Superannuation funds risk government intervention unless they self-regulate on governance, according to outgoing Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) chairman Tony Lally.
Addressing the ASFA National Conference in Perth yesterday, Lally said self-regulation by funds on governance was preferable to government intervention.
“It is important to arrive at a system of self-regulation if we are not to risk having it imposed by Government,” he said.
However he said that where fund trustee directors were concerned it was important to have those with a deep understanding of the members working alongside those who had a deep understanding of the investment, regulatory and business environment.
Lally, the former chief executive of Sunsuper, said superannuation funds also needed to look to the next big challenge for the industry - the delivery of effective retirement incomes in the context of the massive flow of assets into the post-retirement phase over the next 20 years.
He said that addressing retirement incomes adequacy represented a critical issue for both the Government and regulators.
Australia’s second largest super fund has added thermal coal companies to its list of investment exclusions.
The fund has expanded its corporate superannuation solutions to partner with Australian businesses of all sizes.
The chief executive of Aware Super anticipates a significant shift in how ESG factors will influence portfolio values in the next six years, surpassing the changes witnessed in the past two decades.
In a recent statement, shadow assistant minister for home ownership and Liberal senator for NSW, Andrew Bragg, accused ‘big super’ of fabricating data attributed to the Reserve Bank of Australia to push their agenda.
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