Putting members' interests first
AustralianSuper’s purpose is to help members achieve their best financial position in retirement. Driven by this purpose and our members first culture, our strategy is to deliver strong long-term performance and provide help, education and advice to members when they need it.
Each year the Fund is required to assess our performance in promoting the financial interests of members by each product. We do this by taking into account various comparison and assessment factors. For the financial year ending 30 June 2022, we have determined that each of our products promote the best financial interests of members.
Benefit from our size
As Australia’s largest super fund our size helps us deliver better outcomes for members.
Profits for members
As a profit-for-member fund, we don’t pay profits or dividends to shareholders.
Strong net benefits
Our Balanced investment option has consistently delivered top long-term performance for members.*
Summary of determinations
Comparison factors
Returns
Returns – Our MySuper Balanced option, where most members are invested, achieved net returns above the median for the 1, 3 and 5 year periods**. The majority of our other investment options also achieved above median investment returns over 1, 3, 5 and 10 year periods relative to comparable funds†.
Investment risk
We prudently manage risk with the aim to achieve each option’s investment objectives. The level of investment risk in our options is broadly consistent with the median level of risk in other MySuper and comparable choice products.
Fees and costs
AustralianSuper’s fees and costs are lower than the median in the superannuation industry when invested in the MySuper Balanced option. Our annual fees and costs (admin and investment) for a $50,000 account balance in the Balanced option are competitively lower than the median of products that have the approximate ratio of 70% growth and 30% defensive assets which is the most appropriate comparison to the Balanced option‡.
Assessment factors
Investment strategy
As required by regulation, the Fund does have an investment strategy for the whole of the fund and for each investment option, including our MySuper product. Our active management approach focuses on delivering strong long-term net return performance.
Insurance strategy and fees
We recognise how important it is to have insurance cover. That’s why we work hard to keep costs down and provide affordable insurance cover options for members.
Our guiding principle is that the cost of basic (default) insurance cover should be no more than 1% of members’ average salary over their lifetime (in super) to retirement and should not erode the ultimate retirement balance by more than 10%. Our insurance fees for basic cover are comfortably below these thresholds and therefore do not inappropriately erode the retirement balances of members.
Options, benefits and facilities
AustralianSuper strives to ensure our products and services offer good value and meet the changing needs of members now and in the long run. Extensive cohort analysis was undertaken as part of the assessment and showed that our options, benefits and features are well utilised across all segments.
Scale
We’re Australia’s largest super fund by both member assets ($258b) and membership (2.87m) as at 30 June 2022. Our scale does not disadvantage the financial interests of members holding the relevant products. Our size enables us to capture economies of scale to reduce overall costs and gives us access to attractive, large-scale investment opportunities.
Setting of fees and operating costs
The fees and costs we charge are designed to provide good long-term value and to be simple, sustainable, competitive and equitable. AustralianSuper’s operating expense to asset ratio are well below the median of other super funds, and shows the fees are set appropriately in the best financial interests of members.
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How to join* AustralianSuper Balanced investment option compared to the SuperRatings Fund Crediting Rate Survey – SR50 Balanced (60–76) Index to 30 June 2022. Investment returns are not guaranteed. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
** Net return (sometimes called net benefit) is the return after administration and investment fees and costs, transaction costs and taxes for a representative member with an account balance of $50,000. Based on APRA Quarterly Statistics, for periods to 30 June 2022, and includes life-cycle products that have the approximate ratio of 70% growth and 30% defensive assets which is the most appropriate comparison to the AustralianSuper MySuper Balanced option. Investment returns are not guaranteed. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
† SuperRatings Fund Crediting Rate Survey to 30 June 2022. Investment returns aren’t guaranteed. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
‡ Based on APRA Quarterly Statistics for period to 30 June 2022.