Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2021/January 2022 i Money Magazine

DEBBIE DUNCAN I love to travel (when we can) and I love to read, and receiving a Kindle as a gift a few years ago was a winner on both counts. Now instead of having to lug around a heavy suitcase weighed down with several books when I go away, I simply pack my lightweight Kindle onto which I can download as much reading material as my heart desires. BOB CHRISTENSEN It’s hardly the most significant contribution to civilisation, but a nifty little hair trimmer does it for me. Shaped like a computer mouse, it’s light and easy to use – takes about 45 seconds if I’m pushed, no mirror, ears intact. Because it’s cordless, it can be used anywhere, anytime – even underwater (well, it claims to be waterproof,…

Weak, re-used and stolen passwords are one of the biggest weaknesses exploited by criminals trying to steal your data or attack you with ransomware. Password-only security is no longer sufficient. There is a way to overcome this chink in your security armour: passwordless authentication using biometrics and one-time codes generated through apps and other methods. Instead of relying on passwords, these tools make it much harder for criminals to steal your identity or access your accounts. It’s incredibly difficult for someone to fake a fingerprint or generate a code that’s only valid for 60 seconds. As we move into 2022, the use of biometrics and passwordless security will increase. We already see these systems with banks and government agencies employing the use of one-time codes when important information is being…

BOOK OF THE MONTH PROPERTY FIT By Luke Harris Major Street Publishing, RRP $29.95 Author Luke Harris’s dream was to drive around in a Lamborghini, stopping only to sip lattes in cafes. He wanted a $50 million portfolio, a super-yacht and first-class travel. That was the life of a property investor, so he thought. Not surprisingly, he made plenty of mistakes. He learnt that achieving peak performance in property investing requires the same level of training you need to do to achieve peak performance in any other endeavour. You need to start by learning how other people invest, including the mistakes they make. You have to find a team of experts and do some self-assessment before embarking on your goals.. Five readers can win a copy In 25 words or…

Many Aussie banks have begun raising their rates out of cycle, and it could cost homeowners thousands in interest. CommBank has lifted its four-year fixed term loan to 2.89%, while its three-year fixed terms are up 40 points to 2.69%. On an $800,000 mortgage, these rises could equate to as much as $10,000. “Many [homeowners and home buyers] are aware the Reserve Bank has kept the cash rate at the same historic low and assume that there are still a lot of cheap home loans available,” says Matthew Gatt, general manager, home loans, Compare Club. “That may have been true four months ago, but the banks are already removing many of the ultra-low rates from the market. For example, Bankwest, Macquarie and CommBank have recently raised their fixed-term loans and…

Carol Schwartz Founder of social investment body Trawalla, founding director Women’s Leadership Institute Australia. Board member of the Reserve Bank, EQT Holdings and Qualitas Property Partners. Appointed an officer of the Order of Australia in 2019. From a young age she wanted to be a teacher, but one of her grandfathers pressed her to become a lawyer. Although she quit after doing her articles, she highly recommends studying law. Aged 65, she is married with four children, three of whom were born while she studied for an MBA at Monash University. Works in property, investing and philanthropy.…

It’s official: Chris’s wife has her savings in a poor performer Help! How can we escape a dud super fund? Q Recently my wife received a letter from her superannuation fund explaining that, in line with the new government super regulations, the fund has been listed as a poor performer and is notifying its members as such. Ordinarily it wouldn’t be a big issue – we could simply look into moving to a new, better-performing fund. However, my understanding is that due to my wife’s employment as a teacher at a Catholic school, she’s obligated to stay with her fund, irrespective of its performance. While I’m sure the fund will be doing whatever is necessary to remove this unwanted title, I fear it’s too little, too late, and would prefer…

1. Understand and manage your emotions. Recognise fear, impatience, frustration, excitement or loss, put them in a mental box and leave them there. Highly reactive emotions are not helpful when trying to make responsive rational decisions. 2. Learn more about decision influencers. Try to make the implicit explicit. By knowing more about what makes you tick, and by increasing awareness of how you make choices, you help your brain focus on influencers that might be leading you up the garden path. 3. Design a better environment for making financial decisions. I call this the chocolate cake rule. Remove temptation from your environment and make the right choices as easy as possible. This way when you’re tired or under pressure the right choice becomes the easiest one.…

My children used to ask about the homeless men and women who lived in the park near their inner-city school and the man who had a mattress and sleeping bag in the deserted doorway across the road from my office: “Why is he sleeping there?”. It was an opportunity to explain how shameful it is that our rich society lets people live on the streets. I was proud that their school collected food and clothing for the homeless. At around that time, I would buy The Big Issue from John, a vendor near my work. He had appeared in an ABC documentary on homelessness, so I felt as if I knew a bit about his life. John liked to chat. Sometimes my kids would be with me, and they would…

This month heralds the beginning of the end of a system that’s left super fund members holding multiple accounts on which they have needlessly paid fees and insurance premiums, amounting to a colossal waste of money. Previously, if you didn’t nominate a super fund when changing jobs, your new employer would open a new account for you in their default fund. From now on employers will pay your super contributions into an existing account unless you choose otherwise, and that account will follow you from job to job. Under super choice, you can still nominate any fund as your main fund. Treasury estimates this “stapling” will save Australians $2.8 billion over the next 10 years as fewer people pay fees and premiums on multiple accounts. It will also make it…

ESG (environmental, social, governance) issues form part of almost every conversation we are having with clients right now. Global business and political leaders met in November in Glasgow at the COP26 forum to commit to tackling carbon emissions. My sense is that it will become a bit of a race. It’s as if for the past 15 years countries and industries have been crawling to the tip of a steep mountain of debate over ESG science and what constitutes acceptable emissions targets and now they are about to tip over the peak and the journey downhill is going to have speed, momentum and certainty. My sense is that over the coming years, countries, companies and investors will seek to gain a competitive edge over each other by investing and progressing…

Income from shares … it used to be simple. Buy some banks. Throw in Sydney Airport. And Transurban. After all, they’ve been income stalwarts. And we’ll always fly and use toll roads, right? Right? Of course, we now know the answer. Yes, it took a once-in-a-century pandemic, but our airports fell all but silent, and at times over the past 18 months driving on an Australian toll road during peak hour (if you were allowed to) was more akin to a midnight drive than the usual traffic gridlock. And as for the banks, they chose – or were told by the regulator – to pull in their proverbial horns on dividends, as attention turned to battening down the hatches, in case Covid turned into an economic (as well as health)…

It’s that time of the year when the Money team brings into sharp focus the highlight of our year. Our Best of the Best winners’ list reveals the choices you can make to gain a financial edge, whether it’s a new direction, new priorities, new goals. Our managing editor, Julia Newbould, spearheaded this year’s edition. On page 53 she explains how to make the most of this list. David Thornton, who wrote about many of the winners in managed funds and banking, noticed three key themes. First, we have many repeat winners – consistency and reliability are among the hallmarks of our awards. Second, there are significant differences in the interest rates offered by the various banks, and we urge readers to make the most of this information to find…

Q WHAT DOES THE SPECTRE OF HIGHER GLOBAL INFLATION AND INTEREST RATES MEAN FOR SHARE PORTFOLIOS? From an economic perspective, 2021 was always going to be unusual after the turmoil of 2020. Globally, economic growth was strong as it recovered from the challenges that Covid wrought in 2020. Australia was an exception, as the Delta variant and the associated lockdowns in NSW and Victoria saw economic growth go significantly backward in the September quarter before a likely recovery into the end of the year. The most notable global development in 2021 – and what looms as the most significant policy challenge in 2022 – is the persistence in inflation. Even as key global central banks consistently underestimated inflation through 2021, they have stuck to the “transitory” narrative. By and large,…

GOLD WINNER CLEARBRIDGE INVESTMENTS Carefully chosen infrastructure can provide reliable income as well as long-term growth ClearBridge Investments RARE Infrastructure Income Fund – Hedged provides investors with consistent income via listed infrastructure assets in both developed and emerging markets. It has a minimum investment of $10,000 and a management fee of 1.03%, but is free of performance fees. Infrastructure is a unique asset class in the income space. These assets often provide essential services and are regulated by governments. Infrastructure contracts are long-term. Taken together, these factors work to provide resilient cashflows that rise above market volatility. The fund follows ClearBridge’s infrastructure income strategy, which aims to provide investors with long-term inflation-linked capital growth over an economic cycle with a focus on providing reliable income.…

GOLD WINNER LA TROBE FINANCIAL A regular, stable return like this is hard to resist during such low-interest times La Trobe Financial has taken ownership of this category: this is the 12th consecutive year that its 12-Month Term Account has taken top spot. The fund aims to provide investors with a stable and predictable income based on a monthly variable rate of return, and it does this by investing in mortgage-secured loans in a range of industry sectors. At the time of writing, the fund comprised 8776 mortgages with an average loan-to-value ratio of 64%. The overwhelming majority of these are variable rate mortgages. Given that it’s made up of interest-paying mortgages, the return has been extremely consistent. Its current one-year return is 4.5%, over three years it’s 4.96%pa…

GOLD WINNER MACQUARIE ASSET MANAGEMENT A high-conviction, diversified portfolio delivers stable returns over the long term Diversified products are gaining in popularity. “With the increasing administrative burdens being placed on investors, we are seeing increasing interest in our diversified solutions,” says Gary Ding, portfolio manager at Macquarie Asset Management, this year’s winner. “When investors are looking for a simple, all-encompassing strategy for their investments or superannuation, strategies like the Macquarie Balanced Growth Fund may be suitable as a core allocation or even a total portfolio solution.” The fund provides investors with exposure to a diversified portfolio focused on growth assets, with some exposure to cash and fixed interest. It may be suitable as a core allocation or even a total portfolio solution. “The fund aims to provide stable returns…

GOLD WINNER iSHARES Capture the performance of our 20 biggest companies, with a solid yield as a bonus Exchange traded funds that invest in Australian shares continue to gain in popularity. According to the investment platform Stockspot, at September 30 there was more than $36 billion in ETFs tracking Australian shares, an increase of 52% over the previous year. iShares has held onto first place for another year, this time with its S&P/ASX 20 ETF. It aims to provide investors with the performance of the S&P/ASX 20 Accumulation Index, before fees and expenses. As the name suggests, the fund invests in the top 20 stocks on the ASX, making it a good option if you want to capture the performance of the big-cap stocks that move our market. Reflecting…

GOLD WINNER VANGUARD A diversified portfolio of around 360 securities provides investors with a defensive option This year sees top spot go to the Vanguard Australian Corporate Fixed Interest Index ETF (ASX: VAF), which tracks the return of the Bloomberg AusBond Composite 0+ Yr Index before taking into account fees, expenses and tax. The ETF primarily invests in bonds rated at least BBB by the Standard & Poor’s agency or equivalent, and includes securities issued by the federal government, state governments and treasury corporations, corporate issuers, as well as overseas entities that issue debt in Australia in Australian dollars. The portfolio holds about 360 securities. As part of its ongoing commitment to keeping costs low for investors, Vanguard has further reduced fees on two of its most popular Australian…

Company boards of the future will have to be agile, will most likely serve shorter tenures and will have to manage critical environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, according to a report from the Governance Institute of Australia. The institute’s Future of the of the Board report is designed to identify the major future trends facing boards and board members to 2025, with board accountability and responsibility predicted to soar - 92% of survey respondents agreed on this, with 66% agreeing strongly. ESG issues will also be in the spotlight with 89% saying boards will need to align their purpose with community values. The report is based on a survey of 550 non-executive directors, CEOs and C-suite executives, company secretaries and senior governance or risk management professionals, as well as…

BEST SUPER FUND GOLD WINNER UNISUPER PETER CHUN CEO , UNISUPER There has been a pent-up demand to join this year’s best super fund, UniSuper, after it opened its membership to everyone in July. For 40 years it was only available to the higher education and research sector plus their families. Since it opened up, the $100 billion fund has been busy welcoming new members. Many have switched from the 13 dud funds highlighted in the ATO’s MySuper comparison tool, according to Peter Chun, the CEO of UniSuper, who took up the top job in September. If you are weighing up your super fund and comparing it with others, it is worthwhile looking at UniSuper’s many features. “It is a thoughtful, astute and thinking organisation that takes its fiduciary role…

GOLD WINNER AUSTRALIAN SUPER Members can take control of the investment strategy through various options AustralianSuper has won this category, moving up from third place last year. As the biggest superannuation fund in Australia, it can use its size to invest like no other fund can, according to Alistair Barker, AustralianSuper’s head of total portfolio management. “The accumulation product is scalable and cost-effective and can provide members with extensive choice to help them take control and build their own investment strategy relative to their own investment beliefs,” says Barker. “The fund’s socially aware and member direct investment options are some of the largest in their category and offer great value to members.” The AustralianSuper – Balanced option had a 21% allocation to Australian shares, a 31% allocation to international…

GOLD WINNER GUILDSUPER This fund is well aware of the changing challenges its members will face during their lives GuildSuper is a newcomer to the top five this year, but its returns over the long term are outstanding – more than 10%pa over the past three years for each age group. The design of a lifecycle super product is crucial. Typically, younger members will have a high allocation of growth assets, which shifts to a higher allocation of defensive assets as they age. “With 85% of our members being women and an average age of 33, we have a unique membership who will experience challenges building their superannuation balance, due to time out of the workforce caring for children and casual or part-time work,” says Greg Everett, general manager…

GOLD WINNER UNISUPER Booming US tech stocks carried the day for a low-fee, consistent outperformer This year’s best super fund, UniSuper has come top in four other Best of the Best awards, including in this international shares category. Global shares had a remarkable run, after a quiet 12 months the previous year, with the MSCI World ex Australia index (in Australian dollars) returning 37% for the 2021 financial year. UniSuper’s outperformance in this asset class was helped by larger allocations to booming sectors such as US tech. Google’s parent, Alphabet, Microsoft and Facebook are all in UniSuper’s top five holdings for international shares. UniSuper has a 26.3% allocation to information technology overall in this option (as at August 31, 2021), with financials the next biggest allocation at 17.8% followed…

GOLD WINNER HOSTPLUS A diversified portfolio and an unwavering strategy help produce outstanding long-term results Hostplus has moved up the ladder this year, from third place last year, with its Balanced (MySuper) offering. But David Elia, Hostplus chief executive officer, says the fund hasn’t done anything particularly different this year. “The investment strategy has always been driven by our investment beliefs,” he says. He attributes the fund’s consistently strong performance to a number of things, including its ability to tolerate high levels of illiquidity compared with its peers; a genuine long-term investment strategy, which it has been extremely disciplined in maintaining; and comprehensive diversification across the portfolio. “Finally, I would argue that active management has played an important role in delivering outsized investment returns,” he says. The annual returns…

GOLD WINNER COLONIAL FIRST STATE Fundamental bottom-up stock selection, coupled with a geared structure, made the most of a strong market recovery In this category we look at the highest performing superannuation products across all asset classes and investment styles. Products may be geared and high risk but they are the standout performers, especially over the past 12 months, when the gold winner, Colonial First State, with its FirstChoice WPS – First Sentier Wholesale Geared Share option, returned more than 67%. Even over the 10-year period the fund has returned an average annual 18.7%.  David Wilson, First Sentier Investors’ deputy head of Australian equities, growth, says this fund is managed with a fundamental bottom-up investment philosophy and a focus on earnings growth and return on capital.  “Through our bespoke…

GOLD WINNER SPACESHIP A youth-orientated philosophy has hit the spot with members who want something different In this category we look at superannuation products that have delivered the best value to members aged 25 who have a $5000 account balance. Performance (net of all age-specific fees) is assessed over one, three and five years. Our winner, Spaceship, had an annual performance of 22% and fees on a balance of $5000 of 2.47%. Andrew Moore, Spaceship’s chief executive officer, says a lot of the fund’s growth has come from millennials and gen Z and there is an “untapped demand” for simple and engaging investment products for this market that are different from those designed for older generations. “The average age of our super member is 31 and they mostly invest…

GOLD WINNER BENDIGO AND ADELAIDE BANK A simple, low-cost product with a range of options covers retirees’ needs Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has taken out this category with its low-fee, easy-to-understand product, SmartStart Pension. “We’re making sure that we’re delivering what our members and customers want,” says Justin Hoare, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’s head of superannuation. “We keep the fee structure simple and the choice simple but broad enough. We have 12 options, which we expect will meet retirees’ needs.” The biggest change in the past year, says Hoare, has been a website upgrade. “We’ve focused on that engagement and that communication rather than overhauling the product structure,” he says. With the federal government’s Retirement Income Covenant due to start from mid-2022, Hoare expects communication to remain a priority.…

GOLD WINNER AUSTRALIAN SUPER A long life in retirement requires a pension that balances growth and income A strong year for equities, as they rebounded following the Covid-19 dip in early 2020, means that even products in the moderate pension product category saw returns of over 15% for the past year. Annual returns over the past 10 years are more subdued, but still robust. AustralianSuper’s Choice Income – Conservative Balanced replaced Cbus Super Income Stream – Conservative Growth for first place in this category. “Consistently strong investment performance and value-for-money fees mean AustralianSuper’s Choice Income members have experienced strong net benefits, well above average balanced account-based pension in market,” says Alistair Barker, AustralianSuper head of total portfolio management. AustralianSuper’s strategic asset allocation for its conservative balanced pre-mix option (for…

GOLD WINNER FUTURE SUPER Aussies who want to put their money behind their beliefs are turning to a fund that focuses on the future rather than the past Future Super wins the title of fastest growing innovator for its rapid take-up by Australians who are climate conscious and want to use their super to invest in the infrastructure and technology businesses of the future. It is a new type of “for purpose” fund, joining the two long-standing fund categories of profit-for-members (industry) and for-profit (retail). “Members are engaged with the fund and excited to be investing in industries that will drive tomorrow,” says CEO Simon Sheikh. Alex Dunnin, executive director, research and compliance at Rainmaker, says Future Super has championed climate-orientated investing. It is growing at 35% year on…

GOLD WINNERS BANK MACQUARIE BANK NON-BANK MORTGAGE HOUSE Simple loans can provide everything the borrower needs and still keep costs at a minimum Often, simpler can be better. And that can certainly be the case when it comes to home loans. Fewer frills translate to cheaper rates. Our awards are ranked by the comparison rate for variable loans for a $400,000 owner-occupied, principal and interest mortgage over 25 years with a loan-to-value ratio of at least 80%. And they must offer a redraw facility. A non-bank offering a basic home loan is always going to be a money-saving proposition, and this year’s winner doesn’t disappoint. The Mortgage House Lifestyle First Refinancer Special has a comparison rate of 1.98%, the lowest of any winners in all home loan categories. As the…

The Best of the Best is our most popular issue of the year – it provides us with information that enables us to save thousands of dollars. It’s certainly a valuable issue, but you’ll find value in every Money magazine. Personally, I have learned much from our contributors this year. Greg Hoffman, Scott Phillips, Steve Johnson and Marcus Padley have provided share information and tips that have helped me invest wisely and profit from their knowledge. Thanks for this month’s tip not to waste money on cheap clothes, Steve Johnson! There have been several share tips this year that I have followed based on these experts’ advice in the magazine, including the February issue, which gives the top 50 property and share investments. And we’ve had letters to the editor…

The VanEck Global Listed Private Equity ETF (ASX: GPEQ) will list on the ASX. The first Australian private equity ETF, it will track the LPX50 Listed Private Equity Index, which has a 10-year performance (in AUD) to October 31, 2021 of 20.9%pa. TelstraSuper has stepped into the retirement income space. The new Lifestyle investment options aim to generate consistent income and tax efficiencies, grow and preserve capital, and manage retirement-specific risks. The options include a cash allocation feature that allows members to automatically put some of their investments in cash each month. CountPlus has finalised terms to acquire Challenger’s self-managed superannuation fund business Accurium, which has a subscriber base of around 3000 accounting firms and 11,000 SMSF professionals.…

What was your first job? When I left school at 15 I was an apprentice electrical fitter. I had quite a bit of knowledge about electronics but they used the apprentices on the production line doing assembly work. It was completely monotonous in a big tin-roofed building and in January 1959 the heat was staggering. It was an incredibly difficult job and I only lasted two and a half weeks. I went back to my parents and asked if I could go back to school and do my leaving certificate. They said yes. If the job had been good, I probably wouldn’t have bothered going back to school. What’s the best money advice you’ve ever received? When I went to rent the second building for Dick Smith electronics, I had…

Australia could be on the verge of a “Great Separation” in the months ahead, judging by research by the Australian Government-backed online separation assistance tool amica in October (while lockdowns were still in place in NSW, the ACT and Victoria) More than a fifth of Aussies in a relationship (21%) reported that Covid-19 and lockdowns have strained their relationship with their partner, while 8% reported that the pandemic has forced them to consider separation. Not surprisingly, relationship stress was found to be highest in the lockdown states. In NSW, 37% of people reported experiencing a strained relationship or considering separation, closely followed by Victoria at 32%. Young couples have fared the worst, with 40% of those aged 18-34 experiencing “relationship stress”. This compares with 28% in the 35-44 age group,…

You haven’t missed the bus. You will be jumping on at a later bus stop than you might have done with hindsight, but I’d still like to see you on the property bus. So let’s look forward. The reason I have consistently spoken about owning a home is little to do with the long-term rise in values that has been historically the case. It is that mortgage repayments are a wonderful forced wealth-creation plan. Over a couple of decades, property values tend to rise: inflation and increased earnings from our work reduce the real cost of our mortgage. So, property ownership and a mortgage are a “win win”. Then, of course, we have the enormously important “intangible” benefits of owning a home. We humans seek security, and home ownership is the…

Tax reform has been on the agenda for decades, but since the introduction of the goods and services tax in 2000, governments have had little appetite for change. The OECD’s latest economic survey, however, has again made the case for reform. It says Australia has become increasingly reliant on personal income taxes, which will make it harder for governments to raise money as the population ages. Personal income taxes made up 47% of government revenue in 2019-20 and account for almost 12% of GDP, compared with around 8% for the OECD average. The GST accounted for only 13.4% of tax collected, with most OECD countries collecting much more. This is important because broad-based taxes like the GST provide the government with a more certain stream of revenue. We all need…

This can certainly be the case at present because of the juicy temporary full expensing provisions. However, Barnes cautions that buying equipment for a tax deduction is generally not a sound commercial decision. Rather than focus on tax savings, “the business needs to evaluate what the new equipment will do for them. Will it increase productivity to meet increased sale demand? Or maybe increase efficiency by reducing wastage or decreasing costs? “New [equipment] models usually result in businesses looking to upgrade, but research needs to be done to work out whether the additional cost drives sufficient gains.” Investing in new equipment can be a major business outlay. “The best businesses I see have an equipment replacement policy,” says Barnes. “A pre-determined policy ensures that all decisions are made in a…

When Covid-19 hit Australia in early 2020 and house prices weakened for a couple of months, many pundits, including the big banks, predicted a market crash with price falls of 15% to 30%. How wrong they were! Indeed, Australian dwelling prices increased 20.3% in the year to September, which is the highest rate of annual appreciation since June 1989, according to CoreLogic. “The value of Australian residential real estate has surpassed $9 trillion dollars over September. This comes just five months after the market exceeded $8 trillion over April,” says CoreLogic head of research, Eliza Owen. “This puts housing values around 28.2% higher than the estimated value of superannuation, the ASX and commercial real estate combined.” Last year experts underestimated Australians’ love affair with property as well as several economic…

Check whether the total and permanent disability (TPD) cover you have through super provides you with an adequate financial safety net. If the dollar amount of cover is too low and/or the definitions of disability are too restrictive, it may be worth looking at what’s available outside super. Insurers offer two main types of TPD policy: any occupation cover and own occupation cover. Although they sound similar, they are very different. Under the former, you must be unable to work again in any job suited to you based on your previous training, education or experience. Or any job you can become suited to with education or training. While the premiums are cheaper, the policies have many exclusions and restrictions that make it harder to claim and offer less likelihood of…

1 eInvest Better Future Fund (Managed) (ASX: IMPQ) We believe sustainable investing in the small- to mid-cap companies is worth consideration in client portfolios. There is an increasing weight of investment funds chasing quality companies with strong ESG credentials – companies are recognising that their focus on ESG compliance is a good way of doing business as it will attract more customers and more investors. Consequently, there is a flywheel effect (or virtuous cycle) in the ESG space, which is spinning faster and faster. In our view, this active ETF provides an attractive exposure to this space. The investment process takes an “ESG-first” active management. 2 BNP Paribas Environmental Equity Trust It seeks to achieve sustainable, above-market returns over the longer term by investing globally in companies active…

But when forced (or opting) to choose the best in breed it’s a different question altogether. I could just grab the company with the highest potential yield in 2022. Or the highest trailing yield from this year. The problem is that if you’re a long-term investor, and your long-term return will come from a combination of income and capital growth, that would be a potentially pyrrhic victory. Instead, I’m opting for a long-term success story, backed by a cross-shareholding in – and its own earnings stream from – one of Australia’s oldest public companies. A company with a strong track record, high-quality management and a bright future, this year’s Best in Breed is brickmaker-cum-investment company Brickworks.…

BEST INVESTMENT MANAGER GOLD WINNER VANGUARD INVESTMENTS AUSTRALIA DANIEL SHRIMSKI CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER It’s fitting that Vanguard Investments Australia has taken out top spot as this year’s best investment manager, having just notched up a quarter of a century serving investors in Australia. “Vanguard was founded on a simple idea - that an investment firm should operate solely in the interests of its clients to give them the best chance for investment success,” says Daniel Shrimski, managing director, Vanguard Australia. “This mission has inspired our Australian operation to be focused on changing the way Australians invest, by providing low-cost, high-value investments and advocating on behalf of investors in the industry.” The Vanguard brand is synonymous with exchange traded funds (ETFs). And for good reason: it is the largest ETF provider…

GOLD WINNER GREENCAPE CAPITAL An investment process that focuses on management seems to be paying off Greencape Capital is this year’s category winner. Filtering by the quality of a company’s stewardship goes to the heart of Greencape’s investment process, which is defined by bottom-up fundamental stock analysis that is benchmark unaware. Mike Ryland, portfolio manager at Greencape Capital, says: “We apply our process to the S&P/ ASX 100, then the next best 50 ideas we call circle of competency stocks. These are identified as ‘customers’, ‘competitors’ or ‘suppliers to the ASX 100’. We then rank with shareholder stewardship of management a key focus.”…

GOLD WINNER FIRST SENTIER INVESTORS Small caps come with higher risks – but they can also come with huge rewards Small-cap stocks can be inherently riskier than their large-cap peers: they’re typically younger companies with far less trading history. They can also be less liquid due to their smaller trading volume. On the flipside, small-cap stocks have their growth journey in front of them. Small caps have performed well of late. During the September quarter, the S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries Accumulation Index returned 3.4%, which is double the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index (1.7%). Energy (28.6%) was the best-performing sector, followed by communication services (11.0%) and real estate (8.4%). First Sentier Investors won gold this year with its Wholesale Australian Small Companies Fund, which aims to outperform the S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries…

GOLD WINNER NIKKO AM Investments in a range of countries and companies provide superior long-term returns While the Australian stock-market has been a stellar performer over the years, diversification isn’t its strong suit given its concentration in the finance and resource sectors. By contrast, international markets are as varied as they are many, offering far greater diversification. The Nikko AM Global Share Fund has been crowned as this year’s best international shares fund, after coming third last year. It aims to achieve capital growth over the long term, with total returns (before fees) 3% above the MSCI All Countries World ex-Australia Index (with net dividends re-invested) expressed in Australian dollars (unhedged) over rolling three-year periods. The strategy’s investible universe is roughly 5000 global companies listed across developed and emerging…

GOLD WINNER VanECK A focus on quality global shares provides strong returns along with diversification According to the investing platform Stockspot, at September 30, 2021 there was almost $68 billion invested in ASX listed exchange traded funds tracking global shares, which makes up over half of the Australian ETF market. This year’s winner, the VanEck MSCI International Quality ETF (ASX: QUAL), gives investors exposure to a diversified portfolio of quality international companies listed on exchanges in developed markets around the world (ex Australia), and aims to provide investment returns before fees and other costs that track the performance of the index. The MSCI World ex Australia Quality Index focuses on so-called quality stocks selected from the MSCI World ex Australia Index by identifying companies that demonstrate high return on…

GOLD WINNER FIDELITY Developing countries are set to catch the recovery as they transform their economies Emerging markets aren’t the debt-laden places they used to be in the 1990s. Today, they offer deep growth opportunities and diversification benefits not always available in developed markets. Moreover, emerging markets have become less reliant on energy and materials, which have been largely replaced by information technology and financials. Names like Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent have grown to become for emerging markets what Amazon, Google and Apple have been for developed markets. This year’s winner, the Fidelity Global Emerging Markets Fund, invests in 30 to 50 companies that are historically strong performers with an emphasis on robust corporate governance. And it seems to be working, with the fund returning 18.1%pa over three years…

GOLD WINNER NANUK ASSET MANAGEMENT A global focus on companies that are contributing to a better world increases diversification, reduces risk and provides investors with strong returns Investors have worked out that investing responsibly and achieving outperformance aren’t mutually exclusive things. Rather, they go hand in glove. First place this year goes to the Nanuk New World Fund, up from third place last year. Its three-year performance of 15.1% is proof that outperformance can be achieved with ESG filters. The fund doesn’t have a performance fee, but the barrier to entry is quite high for a fund of this type with a $50,000 minimum investment. The pandemic has been a tailwind of sorts for ESG funds because it has prompted investors to reconsider the way they invest and the…

BEST PENSION FUND GOLD WINNER CBUS JUSTIN ARTER CEO, CBUS C bus has won the Best Pension Fund for the third consecutive year for its sharply priced, flexible retirement product offering strong investment returns over the long term. The $65 billion fund, originally set up for the building and construction industries but now open to the public, takes its retirees’ needs seriously. As well as an income-stream product it offers support services including advice for their retirement years. Justin Arter, Cbus CEO, says once members reach about 50 they become quite engaged with the fund, wanting to know about how much they need in retirement and how to invest and preserve their savings for the long haul. Cbus members are loyal and typically roll their accumulation money into the pension…

GOLD WINNER UNISUPER An inhouse investment team delivers great results for members and the planet UniSuper’s Global Environmental Opportunities option is the clear outperformer in this new category, returning 48.7% over the past year for a competitive fee of 0.67%. The option, which was launched in 2012 and has been managed entirely inhouse since 2017, has also managed to deliver near 20% returns every year for the past three years. John Pearce, UniSuper chief investment officer, says that because of the investment team’s experience with environmental investing, it has been able to build its investment management capability and establish a strong record in this area. “Global Environmental Opportunities specifically invests in environmental themes, such as alternate energy, energy efficiency, clean water, pollution prevention, green building and sustainable agriculture,” he…

GOLD WINNER VISION SUPER A determination to reduce fees means there will be more in members’ nest eggs at retirement This category looks at the lowest-priced multi-choice platforms that allow fund members to choose from a broad range of investment options. Vision Super has taken out this category again with its Personal Plan. The product has investment and administration fees under 0.2 % and a low annual member fee of $78. Michael Wyrsch, Vision Super deputy chief executive officer and chief investment officer, says delivering value for members is fundamental to the fund’s approach. “We’re always conscious that any fee reductions and cost savings we can deliver mean more for members’ retirements. We’ve reduced fees across Vision Super products over the past five years, and we’ll always try to…

GOLD WINNER IOOF For risk-averse investors, capital protection takes precedence over returns It’s been a tough year for fixed interest, with rates so low. “It is not even a hedge against inflation right now,” says Alex Dunnin, Rainmaker’s head of research. But as he also points out, if you’re going to deliver a good overall portfolio return, then you need to have all the components working, and that includes fixed interest. “These funds have demonstrated that they have run a pretty competitive story,” he says of the top five superannuation products in this category. This year’s winner is the IOOF ESE’s MultiMix Diversified Fixed Interest Trust, which came fourth last year. Although it does not have a 10-year history, it has the best annual returns over the one, three…

GOLD WINNER HOSTPLUS An advantage of scale is that low fees don’t eat away at those precious savings Hostplus has won the award this year, pushing two-time previous winner Rest down to fourth place. Its indexed balanced option has no administration fee and a fixed member fee of $78 a year. That fee – of $1.50 a week for members – has been the same since it was introduced in 2004. David Elia, Hostplus chief executive officer, is proud the fund has been able to keep it so low. “I believe we are one of the only funds that still doesn’t have a percentage-based administration fee. In 17 years we haven’t had to change our administration fee. It’s a real example of how we’ve been able to leverage our…

GOLD WINNER PRIME SUPER A small player can outclass its bigger opponents in the property game Prime Super has been awarded the best property super product for the second year in a row. It may not have the annual double-digit performance of some of the other top five in this category, but what it does have is the most consistent (and best) track record over 10 years. “It’s really good that we’ve got this award again. It’s nice to see the work we’ve been doing over the last few years has been recognised,” says Lachlan Baird, Prime Super’s chief executive officer. Prime Super does not have the scale that some of the larger funds have, but it has been able to use its smaller size to its advantage by…

GOLD WINNER UNISUPER Retirees have benefited from a big bounce in returns, but it’s the long term that matters most Growth pension products made a big comeback in the past financial year. Our winner, UniSuper’s Pension – High Growth, for example, returned 30.5% over the 12 months. The winner last year (and second placegetter this year), Cbus, recorded just a 0.38% return over the 12 months to the end of June 2021, with its Super Income Stream – High Growth product compared with 28.65% in the past financial year. But it’s the long-term performance of these products that is of most interest, with our winner returning an impressive 12.9%pa for the past 10 years. “Over the long term, it’s about getting the big picture right. In simple terms that…

INNOVATION – BEST ULTRA LONG-RUN INVESTMENT RETURNS GOLD WINNER AUSTRALIAN SUPER ALISTAIR BARKER HEAD OF TOTAL PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT It is hard to go past this year’s winner of ultra-long-term superannuation returns, AustralianSuper. The $233 billion fund with 2.4 million members is the top performer, ranked over seven, 10, 15 and 20 years, for its balanced investment option. “There aren’t that many superannuation funds with a 20- or 30-year investment history,” says Alex Dunnin, executive director, research and compliance, at Rainmaker. “AustralianSuper has built a rock-solid base. It has scale on its side. As AustralianSuper has grown bigger and bigger, it has got better.” AustralianSuper and large funds such as Hostplus, which came second in the category, are committed to being investment engines, says Dunnin, making streamlined investment choices. “There’s no…

BEST INNOVATION – INVESTMENT LEADER GOLD WINNER AWARE SUPER DAMIAN GRAHAM CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER Listening to the needs and concerns of its members helped Aware Super win the innovation award for being an investment leader. The former NSW First State Super fund chose its new name, Aware, to highlight that it is a thoughtful fund that listens to its members as well looking for investment opportunities. “We want to invest in a way that our members are proud of,” says Damian Graham, Aware’s chief investment officer. A growing number of the fund’s 1.1 million members are telling the fund, loudly and clearly, that it wants Aware to take a strong stand on climate change and use its massive $150 billion investment muscle in Australian and global share and property markets…

Contact us To send a letter to the editor, write to: Money, Level 7, 55 Clarence Street, Sydney NSW 2000 or email money@moneymag.com.au For all enquiries and letters, please include name, address and phone details. Letters may be edited for clarity or space. Because of the high number of letters received, no personal replies are possible. How to get Money Subscribe to the print or digital edition, as well as our free weekly email newsletter via the Money website or: Online: magshop.com.au/ money-magazine Call: 136 116…

A staggering two-thirds of lenders say they turn away creditworthy customers because they lack data from traditional and alternative sources, according to Experian’s recent Risk Radar report. Leveraging new data sources was identified as a top credit risk priority by 60% of respondents, with 30% of those seeing it as critical. But awareness hasn’t necessarily translated into investment, with less than half of Australian risk leaders thinking their business was accessing all data sources available. There is a vast array of consumer data beyond traditional banking, credit bureau and employment data, such as digital transaction, buy now pay later (BNPL) and subscription data. This is fuelling demand for systems to help lenders analyse this information to make informed, actionable and faster decisions that ultimately benefit consumers. The increasing prevalence of…

Out of sight, out of mind used to be a common description of super but we are seeing more young Australians taking control of their financial future by opening a self-managed fund.  From July to September there was a 9.3% increase in new SMSF accounts compared with the same period last year. The fastest-growing segment of new accounts is Gen Y, or millennials (born 1981-1996). Since 2020, this group has represented 10% of new accounts – double the rates from 2016 to 2019. The number of SMSF accounts owned by gen Z investors (born after 1997) has also doubled in the past 12 months.  Over time, SMSF accounts are 30% more likely to trade than non-SMSF accounts, with the top 10 most traded stocks heavily weighted towards blue chips. We’re also seeing…

The value of private home renovations fell 12.6% in September to $980 million, but it follows the second highest value of $1.12 billion in August and remains higher than any month before February. The highest yet value of alterations and additions ($1.21 billion) was recorded in March 2021. The value of private residential alterations and additions approved increased by 33.7% from 2019-20 to 2020-21, in line with the availability of the HomeBuilder grant, says Daniel Rossi, director of Construction Statistics at the Australian Bureau of Statistics. “The $10.9 billion approved in this series during 2020-21 was the highest ever value approved in a financial year.” The number of new dwelling approvals also fell in September to 4.3%, following a 7.6% rise in August. “The decline in the total number of…

Aussie small caps have outperformed every other asset class in the year to September, returning 35%. According to the latest wholesale managed funds performance tables from Rainmaker, which publishes Money, small caps beat Australian large caps (31.9%), property (29.4%), international equities (27.6%), environmental, social and governance funds (24.9%) and the growth sector of multi-asset funds (23.2%). International equities and property both fell short of their benchmark through the 12 months, while Australian fixed interest went backwards by 1.1%. In terms of specific products, the Ausbil Global Resources Fund returned 115% while the BetaShares Crude Oil Index ETF delivered 83%. Auscap Long Short Australian Equities Fund (76%) came third, followed by the Spheria Australian Microcap Fund (73%), India Avenue Equity Fund (69%), Ausbil Australian SmallCap Fund (69%), VanEck Australian Banks ETF…

It’s the oldest parenting trick in the book. Your child looks at you and says, “I’m hungry!”, usually after seeing an ad for junk food. If you ask them what they want, they are unlikely to choose something healthy. So instead, you say, “Would you like an apple or a banana?” If they protest at the choices you offer, you say, “That’s all we’ve got right now, an apple or a banana.” They think for a second, and usually choose one and then go about things happily again. No fight, and they feel like they’ve made their own choice. But have they? Clearly, they didn’t come to us wanting fruit, but they’ve walked away feeling more in control of their choice than they really are. We wanted them to eat…

It’s important that we teach children about the benefits of giving. It comes as no surprise that the pandemic has caused some young people to retreat and become anxious about the state of the world. One way to help them re-engage and to connect with a community is to develop their charitable skills. Thinking of others who are disadvantaged or taking up a worthwhile cause can be healthy as it develops a young person’s empathy, compassion and engagement. It helps them understand that they are part of a community and that it’s good to care for each other and contribute to that community. As they grow older, they might give their time to help cook meals for the needy, or work at a charity, nursing home or a childcare centre.…

Overall we expect demand to increase from 2021 levels. Borders opening, increasing business confidence and a general back-to-business feeling will be the theme for the next year. However, I predict some of the recent drive in growth rates across the country will slow down slightly, as many private investors take a break from purchasing at the current rapid rate. While they have been in lockdown and working from home, investing has been a high priority. This may change as many people book their overseas trips to the northern hemisphere for our winter. When people travel or are busy with work, investing can fall down the priority list. The June-September months are usually a little slower compared with other times of the year. Interestingly, Covid broke this trend and resulted in…

It wasn’t so long ago – before the Covid-19 pandemic struck, to be precise – that every other central bank around the planet was hopin’ and wishin’ and prayin’ for consumer price inflation to, at the very least, move higher to within their expressed targets. These targets were generally in the vicinity of 2% – the rate at which the world’s monetary and fiscal masters consider stable inflation. They are correct, of course. We only have to look back at the experience after the early 1990s recession. Back then, inflation moderated from the wilds swings of the decades before it and so did the instances of recession (until the GFC, that is). It was the time of the “Great Moderation”. However, since the GFC of 2008-09, inflation has died. We’ve…

Everybody thinks there is a stock-market Holy Grail: a method, a technique, an algorithm, a repeatable process that guarantees stockmarket success. And they’re right. I’ll tell you what it is: “Predicting the future.” Predicting the future is the stockmarket Holy Grail. But what if you’re not that good, that clever, that smart? What if you are a human being incapable of predicting the future? Well, there is another way. If you can’t predict the future, the Holy Grail is to join the advice side of the industry and pretend you can. It’s the only other guaranteed route to riches in an industry that is 99% marketing and 1% insightful research. After 40 years in the stockmarket you learn the game, and eventually you tire of the predictions. In particular, I…

Our experts compared thousands of products in superannuation, managed funds, ETFs, banking and insurance Identifying Australia’s best financial products is no easy task. There are hundreds of providers and thousands of products, choices and options to assess. Rainmaker, publisher of Money, has been reviewing superannuation, managed funds and their investment managers for more than 20 years. To conduct the banking products assessments Rainmaker and Money teamed up with InfoChoice, one of Australia’s leading financial product comparison websites. The sections below describe how it’s done. Superannuation There are more than 500 superannuation products in Australia, offering tens of thousands of investment choices. Money’s superannuation awards span best-performing products, best-value products and best-value insurance. To find Australia’s top-performing super products, Rainmaker reviewed MySuper products and asset classes that include growth, balanced, moderate…

GOLD WINNER CHARTER HALL This is a fund for investors who want exposure to a mix of quality real estate assets Listed property funds provide investors with access to retail, residential, commercial and industrial real estate via a single liquid, tradable security. Top spot this year goes to the Charter Hall for its Maxim Property Securities Fund, up four places from last year. The fund is a managed investment scheme that provides investors with exposure to a range of A-REITS, from residential through to retail and commercial. Importantly, it aims to outperform the S&P/ASX 300 A-REIT Accumulation Index by 1.5% a year over rolling three-year periods. The fund has only a $5000 minimum investment amount, which is better than every other finalist by at least the same amount.…

GOLD WINNER ARDEA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Anchor your portfolio with a fund that holds a diversified mix of quality bonds and securities Fixed-interest investing bridges the gap between cash and equity-based income investing, both in terms of return generated and risk taken. Ardea Investment Management took out this category with its Real Outcome Fund, which invests in high-quality government bonds and cash securities that have lower credit risk. It could best be described as a low-risk diversifier that delivers positive returns that are independent of interest rate fluctuations and general market volatility.…

GOLD WINNER FIRST SENTIER INVESTORS Its strategy provides a smooth, strong income stream during the various market cycles A decade ago, income investors used to be able to get 6% by simply putting their money in the bank. It's different today with term deposits returning a negative yield after you factor in inflation. This has boosted the value proposition of income funds. First Sentier Investors is this year's winner with its Wholesale Equity Income Fund, has the performance to back this up, with three-year returns of 9%pa. “The First Sentier Equity Income strategy seeks to address the triple objectives of higher income, lower volatility and attractive long-term total returns through a fully integrated active stock selection plus active options process investment process,” says Rudi Minbatiwala, head of equity income,…

BEST ETF MANAGER GOLD WINNER BETASHARES ALEX VYNOKUR CEO Australian investors continue to pile into exchange traded funds, attracted by their liquidity, low cost and transparency. At the end of September, the ETF industry had grown over the last 12 months by 76%, or $53.9 billion net. “The industry continues to grow rapidly as investors, both in Australia and globally, increasingly recognise the understated power that an exchange traded fund delivers – namely diversification, cost-effectiveness, convenience and transparency while, at the same time, delivering compelling returns,” says Alex Vynokur, CEO of this year’s winner BetaShares. The winner was the ETF provider with the most products shortlisted across the different award categories. BetaShares featured in the top five in three categories: best Australian shares income fund, best Australian shares ETF and…

ASIC has released guidance for issuers of crypto exchange traded products (ETPs), with the industry broadly supporting the regulator’s stance. ASIC’s good practice guide includes admission and monitoring standards, custody of crypto assets, pricing methodologies, disclosure and risk management best practice. The regulator has also introduced a new “crypto asset” category in the licensing application for responsible entities. “Crypto assets have unique characteristics and risks that must be considered by product issuers and market operators in meeting their existing regulatory obligations,” says ASIC commissioner Cathie Armour. ”The good practices we published provide practical examples of how these obligations may be met, in a way that maintains investor protections and Australia’s fair, orderly and transparent markets.” Irfan Ahmad, State Street Digital’s APAC product lead, says the ASIC guidance is progressive and…

GOLD WINNER AUSTRALIAN ETHICAL A world leader in ethical investing is delivering on its mission to build a better world Amid a global pandemic and an international push towards net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, Australian companies are increasingly embracing environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) principles. According to Mercer’s Global Talent Trends 2021 report, 70% of human resource leaders indicate that their company has continued an ESG approach or stepped up the pace to adopt one. Moreover, 55% have done so by tying ESG principles to their company’s purpose, while 40% are building ESG goals into their transformation agenda. “... getting beyond the surface level on sustainability and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) will be crucial to attracting talent and investors,” the report notes. Indeed, “attracting investment” takes place…

Q WHAT HAPPENS TO FUNDS THAT FAIL THE NEW MYSUPER PERFORMANCE TEST, AND WILL MEMBERS BE BETTER OFF AS A RESULT? Like defeated Roman generals, failed MySuper products know what to do. The seeds of the biggest changes to superannuation in its history were planted in 2021 when the results of the first super performance test on MySuper products were released. Out of the 76 MySuper products assessed, 13 failed. It was not without controversy. The performance test only looks at returns. Everyone knows that investment comes with risk. Performance is therefore not a single number measured by the return over a period of time; it is a holistic concept based on returns, volatility and other risk measures. Funds that passed the test may well have the greatest hidden risks…

GOLD WINNER AUSTRALIAN SUPER Conservative assets play a key role for fund members who are more concerned with preserving capital AustralianSuper has taken out this category with its Conservative Balanced Option after coming second in 2021. Last year’s winner, VicSuper, comes third this year. AustralianSuper says this option is designed to have medium-term growth with a balance between capital stability and capital growth. It has a higher allocation to fixed interest at 24.5% and lower allocations to Australian shares (14.5%) and international shares (21.5%) than the fund’s balanced and high-growth options. “We have a history of strong, long-term returns that are among the best in the industry,” says Alistair Barker, AustralianSuper’s head of total portfolio management. Given the outlook for interest rates and this option’s higher allocation to fixed…

GOLD WINNER UNISUPER A high allocation to equities – ranging from Apple to Westpac – has paid off handsomely for a fund that relies heavily on team work to allocate its assets UniSuper has taken out the top spot for both the best growth and pension products this year. UniSuper – High Growth has shown consistently strong performance over the past decade with annual returns of more than 11.5%. It has also delivered this performance with competitive fees, which, Peter Chun, chief executive officer says, are some of the lowest in the industry. The high-growth option, which targets a return of 4.5% above CPI over seven years, had a strategic asset allocation of 49.5% Australian shares, 40.5% international shares, 5% property and 5% infrastructure and private equity, as at…

GOLD WINNER VISION SUPER Smart decision-making, good managers and a bit of luck all play their part The winner this year, Vision Super Saver’s Just Shares, is a newcomer to the top five, but its returns over the past 12 months are a standout at 31.2%. Over the 10 years it managed an average annual return of more than 11%. Vision Super has been able to deliver this performance to members at a competitive fee of just 0.65% on $50,000, the lowest in our top five.   Michael Wyrsch, Vision Super’s deputy chief executive officer and chief investment officer, says the fund’s strong performance is a result of a combination of factors. “Part of it is smart decision-making – low exposure to energy stocks helped even our passive portfolio…

GOLD WINNER AMG CORPORATE SUPER In a time of negligible returns on cash, it’s worth seeking out a stronger performer A MG Corporate Super has won this category for the second year in a row and Alex Dunnin, Rainmaker head of research, says its cash fund has always been a strong returner. “Some of those funds have just been there year in, year out,” he says. Alan Hegerty, the chief executive officer of AMG Super, says it has been difficult for superannuation funds to maintain cash returns for their members in the current low-interest-rate environment. “Given the nature of superannuation we have always believed it is important to offer members, particularly pension members, the safeguard of a good-performing cash option. Our philosophy has been to try and offer a…

GOLD WINNER HESTA As well as enjoying strong investment returns, members of this fund are making a positive impact on the planet This year we have divided our ESG superannuation product awards into Best Diversified ESG Super Product and Best Equities Superannuation Product. Last year’s winner of the best ESG Super Product, HESTA, placed top in this new category of Best Diversified ESG Product with its Sustainable Growth product and strong returns over one, three, five and 10 years. Alex Dunnin, Rainmaker’s head of research, said the ESG categories were expanded because ESG investing is becoming more sophisticated and so should the way we assess it. “We should be grouping equities with their like and diversifieds with their like. Another reason is the sector is getting big enough to…

GOLD WINNER QSUPER A lifecycle approach, coupled with a low fee, gives fund members reason to feel confident about their future despite the economic challenges Q Super is the best-value MySuper product for the second year in a row with its one low fee across all balance levels. “As a profit-for-members fund, we work hard to keep our fees low so more money goes towards our members’ retirement savings,” says Charles Woodhouse, QSuper’s acting chief executive officer. Smart, cost-effective MySuper solutions have never been more important given another year of disruption due to Covid-19. Woodhouse says the fund’s purpose – to make members confident they can look forward to their best years – remains the same, despite recent challenges in the economic environment. “This year we continued to focus…

GOLD WINNER CBUS A strong commitment to sustainable investing is designed to boost both present and future returns C bus’s responsible investment policy makes it clear: “Responsible investment is a fundamental investment belief the trustee considers necessary to deliver long-term value creation for beneficiaries.” So, it should come as no surprise that one of its regular pension options, and not a specific ESG option, has won the new category of Best Diversified ESG Pension Product in this year’s Best of the Best awards. As one of the few funds in the top five to have 10-year track records, Cbus Super Income Stream – High Growth, has a stellar return of 12.18%pa over the past decade. Fees are also competitive at 1.17%. According to its responsible investment policy, Cbus is…

GOLD WINNER AUSTRALIAN SUPER Three key strategies underpin an impressive long-term performance Australia’s largest superannuation fund, with $233 billion in funds under management and 2.4 million members, AustralianSuper, has moved from third place last year to first place this year. Alistair Barker, Australian-Super’s head of total portfolio management, says the key to the fund’s long-term outperformance has been a series of strategic decisions: “First, to actively grow the fund to extract the benefits of scale in investing; second, to pursue investment strategies that leverage our long-term investment horizon; and third, to build an internal investment capability that enables us to invest at lower cost, access high-quality investment opportunities and make more informed and timely investment decisions,” says Barker. Competitive fees, and a wide range of pension payment options, are…

GOLD WINNER LEGALSUPER Fund members who want to be more involved in investing their savings can take control through a flexible, low-cost option You don’t have to have a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) to select your own direct investments such as shares, exchange traded funds (ETFs), listed investment companies and term deposits. Many employer superannuation funds allow members to directly invest in these asset classes. This year’s winner of the member direct investment option, Legalsuper, has won for its broad range of investments and flexibility. Set up 32 years ago for Australia’s legal community, the $5 billion fund with 41,589 fund members is now open to the general public. Andrew Proebstl, CEO of Legalsuper, says one recent trend the fund has noted is that people who operate their own…