Annuities growth will be driven by platforms


More planners are likely to use annuities if they can access them via platforms, according to financial services specialist research firm.
Research conducted by Marketing Pulse found that around two thirds of planners expect the availability of annuities through major investment platforms will increase the use of annuities.
The majority of these planners believe recommendations would increase by 10 to 20 per cent, while 27 per cent of surveyed planners who do not currently recommend annuities said they would do so within the next 12 months.
The survey results comes as Challenger has announced the availability of its annuity products via Colonial First State FirstChoice and FirstWrap platforms following partnerships with industry super fund VicSuper to launch an income product for retirement-style and the provision of annuities via the platform of administration provider AAS.
Challenger's Chief Executive, Distribution, Product and Marketing, Paul Rogan said these arrangements were an important development and were part of a growing superannuation industry trend to make retirement income strategies more readily available.
Recommended for you
The alternative investment manager has signalled its intentions to repackage an existing fund into a second private equity vehicle, targeting both listed and unlisted opportunities.
The acquisition of Mason Stevens by Adamantem Capital has reached completion, as the wealth platform looks to increase investment into its services for Australian wealth practices.
Platinum Asset Management and VanEck have both announced name changes to multiple of their ETFs to clarify their complexity.
Active ETFs are gaining traction in Asia-Pacific as wealth managers seek to blend the low-cost fees of passive with active management.