Chris Bowen
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The Minister for Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law, Chris Bowen, has announced the Government is streamlining long-term superannuation disclosure requirements.
The move would enable members to receive more useful and accessible information and would exclude exit statements, allow the industry to use inserts to provide five-year performance information until June 30, 2011, exempt traditional funds and allow approved deposit funds and pooled superannuation trusts to provide annual reports online.
Pauline Vamos, the Association of Superannuation Fund of Australia's (ASFA's) chief executive, welcomed the Government's announcement saying it was a clear victory for the industry. "This is a clear indication that this Government is willing to listen and is looking for pragmatic outcomes that provide a benefit to members without placing unnecessary costs on the industry. The next step is to provide income benefit projections for fund members in their annual statements. The industry wants to find a way to show people what they will get in retirement both with and without the age pension so that they can benchmark themselves against the Westpac-ASFA retirement standard," she said.
Amid a challenging market environment, three super fund CIOs have warned against ‘jumping at shadows’.
The professional body is calling for the annual performance test to transition to a two-metric test, so it better aligns with the overarching duty of super fund trustees to act in the best financial interests of their members.
AustralianSuper, Rest, and HESTA agree on the need to retain and enhance the test, yet they differ in their perspectives on the specific areas that warrant further refinement.
Australia’s second-largest super fund has confirmed it is expanding its presence in the UK following significant investment in the region.
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