The latest Australian Taxation Office figures show the size of self managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) is on the rise, contradicting government fears these funds are established with inadequate asset balances.
The statistics revealed as at the end of the 2006/07 taxation year show only 14 per cent of the 356,945 SMSFs in existence had asset balances below $100,000. This compares to 49 per cent of funds back in June 1995.
At the other end of the spectrum, 29 per cent of SMSFs established had over $1 million worth of assets under their control at June 30, 2007, with a further 22 per cent possessing an asset balance of between $500,000 and $1 million.
SMSFs with assets in excess of $1 million in June 1995 made up only 1 per cent of the total.
"While the minister... is criticising SMSFs for not having enough critical mass there to be worthwhile, the statistics show otherwise," SuperConcepts technical manager Graeme Colley said.
However, Colley was not sure whether any definitive conclusions could be drawn from the numbers.
"Whether the message is getting through to people that, if they have not got enough, an SMSF is not right for them because it might be too expensive, or maybe these funds over time... end up with more than $200,000 in them, is not clear," he said.
