Powered by MOMENTUM MEDIA
lawyers weekly logo
Advertisement
Superannuation
09 July 2025 by Adrian Suljanovic

Diversified strategies power double-digit super returns over volatile year

Brighter Super and Mercer Super have reported double-digit returns, crediting diversified strategies and long-term focus amid ongoing market ...
icon

Institutional investors ‘aggressively’ buying into risk

Institutional investors have increased their risk exposure over June amid tempered levels of market volatility

icon

GQG warns of flow headwinds as funds lag benchmarks

Inflows for the first half of 2025 for GQG Partners stand at US$8 billion, but the firm has flagged fund ...

icon

No rate cut in July, but Bullock says call was about timing rather than direction

In a sharp rebuke to market expectations, the Reserve Bank held the cash rate steady at 3.85 per cent on Tuesday, ...

icon

Platforms hold their ground with fund managers amid advice shift

Fund managers are keeping platforms firmly in their ETFs, confident in their growing role reshaping financial advice and ...

icon

‘Set-and-forget portfolios no longer serve’, says BlackRock as it adopts tactical stance

Immutable economic laws and mega forces are keeping BlackRock overweight US equities, but the fund manager is adopting a ...

VIEW ALL

Crisis drives investment skill rethink

  •  
By Alice Uribe
  •  
5 minute read

As super funds try to find new strategies to cope with negative member returns, more are employing chief investment officers to navigate their way through the current economic climate.

No doubt now exists that the global financial crisis has hit the superannuation industry hard. As the full realisation of declining member returns becomes clear, funds have turned their attention to preventative measures to stop such a situation re-occurring.

At an industry summit held last week, the discussion turned to the role of the asset consultant and how funds are negotiating this relationship in the current financial environment.

"The asset consultant is one of the more maligned in our organisation," Anglican Church, Diocese of Sydney chief investment officer David Cannings said.

"One criticism is that they don't understand the nature of the operation."

 
 

Other criticisms levelled at asset consultants included the problem of conflicts of interest where they are offering both platforms and advice, and the ways of ensuring the accountability of consultant research.

Industry consultant Glen Langton said that with the amalgamation of superannuation funds, more and more funds were appointing CIOs as a way of keeping a handle on their investments and taking a more hands-on approach.

"Historically many funds were happy to outsource this to asset consultants, but now not so much," Langton said.

And this certainly seems to be the case. Australia's largest industry fund, AustralianSuper, has added a CIO as has the Local Government Superannuation Scheme (LGSS).

"My position is a new one that was only created in the middle of last year. This is in line with the industry trend where trustees were looking for someone who didn't have any other conflicts or distractions involved with their advice," LGSS CIO Craig Turnbull said.

"So it's really a way to get independent, dedicated advice from in-house investment staff that has more exposure to the trustees, while at the same time reducing duplication."

Despite this, there are funds that have not chosen to take on a CIO and work closely with their asset consultants to achieve results for their members.

"We rely heavily on asset consultants and building trust with our asset consultant, JANA. We plan and take time out and this helps build relationships with asset consultants across all asset classes," legalsuper chief executive Andrew Proebstl said.

And even funds that have taken on a CIO still see the value of maintaining a good relationship with their asset consultants.

"The global financial crisis has tested the business strategies of the funds we've been involved in, so it is still of great benefit to have an asset consultant," Turnbull said.