With around seven corporate superannuation outsourcing mandates currently in market, last week’s decision by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) to impose additional licence conditions on AMP’s superannuation businesses could not have come at a more awkward time.
Money Management had it confirmed by tender consultants that at least seven corporate superannuation outsourcing tenders are currently in process in the market, with AMP Limited involved in the process as either the current outsource provider or one of the providers being considered as an outsource destination.
However, while those outsourcing processes were underway, APRA announced on Friday that it had imposed directions and additional licence conditions on AMP’s superannuation businesses – AMP Superannuation Limited and N.M. Superannuation Proprietary Limited.
In doing so, the regulator said the new directions and conditions were designed to deliver enhanced member outcomes and said the areas which had been identified included conflicts of interest management, governance and risk management practices, breach remediation processes, addressing poor risk culture, and strengthening accountability mechanisms.
AMP responded by stating that it had accepted the APRA conditions and was well-advanced in addressing the issues raised by the regulator.
However, the tender consultants said that while AMP had been working hard in the aftermath of the negative findings of the Royal Commission, there was no avoiding the fact that the latest APRA announcement would likely impact perceptions and outcomes.
Among the AMP corporate superannuation clients which were seen to be at risk was Australia Post, which had not yet announced its future arrangements.
