Industry Super Australia (ISA) has urged the Government not to cave into bank-lobbying to dismantle the industry superannuation governance model.
ISA pointed to reports that suggested the Government was preparing a raft of bills that could dismantle the model, and give bank-owned super funds a “leave pass” on some of the new disclosure and transparency requirements.
ISA said the bill came despite ongoing revelations about poor governance, culture, and conduct within the banks and their wealth management arms.
ISA chief executive, David Whiteley, said: “Industry super funds are deliberately different and have been immune to the scandals that continue to cause significant consumer loss and hardship”.
"Member-first governance and culture is the reason industry super funds outperform bank-owned super funds,” he said.
Whiteley said the success of the trustee governance model was evident of the outperformance of industry super funds over bank funds.
"The government should focus on fixing unpaid super, addressing the gender gap and reducing multiple accounts,” he said.
Australia’s largest super funds have deepened private markets exposure, scaled internal investment capability, and balanced liquidity as competition and consolidation intensify.
The ATO has revealed nearly $19 billion in lost and unclaimed super, urging over 7 million Australians to reclaim their savings.
The industry super fund has launched a new digital experience designed to make retirement preparation simpler and more personalised for its members.
A hold in the cash rate during the upcoming November monetary policy meeting appears to now be a certainty off the back of skyrocketing inflation during the September quarter.