Industry Super Australia (ISA) has sought to reinforce the position it adopted in its 28 August second submission to the Financial Systems Inquiry by this week issuing a media statement once again claiming the superiority of industry superannuation fund returns over those of bank-owned and retail funds.
The ISA statement, widely published within daily newspapers, also sought to counter the current Financial Services Council (FSC) campaign to have the default funds under modern awards regime open to all Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA)-approved MySuper funds.
The ISA's 28 August submission argued that the banks should be prevented from selling default super fund services to employers who were already using the bank's services and this was something reiterated at the weekend in the statement issued by ISA chief executive, David Whiteley.
At the centre of the ISA case is the proposition that banks are able to offer service discounts to employers who utilise bank-backed default fund products.
The ISA submission cited "profit orientation where trustees exhibit undivided loyalty to members rather than attempting to balance the interests of members and parent company shareholders".
AustralianSuper has reported a 9.52 per cent return for its Balanced super option for the 2024–25 financial year, as markets delivered another year of strong performance despite the complex investing environment.
The profit-to-member super fund’s MySuper default option has returned 9.85 per cent for the financial year 2024–25.
Colonial First State (CFS) has announced solid double-digit returns for its MySuper balanced and growth equivalent funds during the financial year.
The super fund’s Future Saver High Growth option delivered an 11.9 per cent return for the financial year 2024–25, on the back of a diversified portfolio and actively managed investment strategy.