The number of members accessing their superannuation early has been higher than what the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) had expected.
In a session with the Senate Select Committee, APRA deputy chair Helen Rowell said the number of members accessing super was higher than expected but that the amount of dollars drawn down had been “in line with initial assumptions”.
As at 17 May, over 1.59 million applications had been received from members looking to access their super and 1.41 million of these had been paid. So far, some $10.6 billion had been paid out with an average member payment of $7,510.
APRA said while there had been a high volume of applicants at the start of the scheme, these had steadied out and were now around 200,000 per week.
Rowell said she expected to see an uptick towards the end of the scheme on 30 June, 2020 and a second one at the start of the next tranche.
APRA said it was monitoring factors such as the impact of the early access system on liquidity, levels of payments and number of applicants.
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