Industry super funds outperform bank-owned funds
Australian industry superannuation funds have outperformed bank-owned funds on average by two per cent in the short, medium and long term, Industry Super Australia (ISA) says.
This outperformance was driven mainly by two factors: culture, which delivered all profits to members, and investment philosophy.
The average outperformance of industry super funds over bank-owned ones ranged from 2.63 per cent over one year up to 2.25 per cent over 10 years.
Also, the retail and bank-owned super funds were facing additional fees of between $800 million and $1.8 billion over four years, which would leave members around $20,000 worse off in retirement, according to Rainmaker Research.
ISA's chief executive, David Whiteley, said that the recent announcement by the consortium of IFM investors and Australia's largest super fund, AustralianSuper, of its successful bid for the lease of NSW AusGrid was representative of the long-term investment beliefs of industry super funds.
"Industry super funds are deliberately different to banks," he said.
"While the banks chase profit at members' expense, industry super funds are focused on getting the best super returns for Australians by making deep, long-term investments, especially in infrastructure, which in turn strengthen the foundations of Australia's economy.
"The difference continues to be quantified by the outperformance of industry super funds."
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