K63 Insurance and Superannuation Funds

AusSuper becomes biggest retirement fund

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Original article by Sally Patten
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 8-Mar-18

NMG Financial Services Consulting has forecast that Australia’s industry superannuation funds will have more assets under management than retail funds by 2019. Data from NMG shows that industry fund AustralianSuper has replaced AMP as the nation’s largest super fund. It boasted some $A120bn worth of assets under management at the end of 2016-17, compared with $A118bn for AMP. AustralianSuper’s net inflows for 2017 totalled $A7bn, while many large retail funds had net outflows.

CORPORATES
NMG FINANCIAL SERVICES CONSULTING LIMITED, AUSTRALIANSUPER PTY LTD, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, NMG FINANCIAL SERVICES CONSULTING LIMITED, UNISUPER LIMITED, REST SUPER PTY LTD, HEALTH EMPLOYEES’ SUPERANNUATION TRUST AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SUNSUPER PTY LTD, HOST-PLUS, QSUPER LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, STATE SUPER SCHEME, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL, SUNCORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUN, AUSTRALIA POST SUPER PTY LTD, MINE WEALTH AND WELLBEING

Health merger takes on majors

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Original article by Sarah-Jane Tasker
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 20-Feb-18

Health insurance industry leaders forecast further consolidation in the sector after HCF and HBF revealed plans to merge. They are currently Australia’s two largest not-for-profit health funds, and the merged entity would boast $A4bn worth of assets, about 2.5 million members and a market share of around 18.4 per cent. HBF CEO John Van Der Wielen says the merged group would have a greater chance of ensuring that premium increases are kept in line with the inflation rate. He adds that both funds have had the industry’s lowest premium increases in 2018.

CORPORATES
THE HOSPITAL CONTRIBUTIONS FUND OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, HBF HEALTH LIMITED, BUPA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, MEDIBANK PRIVATE LIMITED – ASX MPL, NIB HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NHF, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

IAG profit jumps 24pc, as insurer mulls Asian exit

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 21 : 15-Feb-18

Insurance Australia Group has posted a 2017-18 interim net profit of $A551m, which is 24 per cent higher than previously. The insurer has written down the value of its Asian assets by $A50m, and indicated that it could potentially exit the region. Meanwhile, CEO Peter Harmer says the company took action to remedy problems with its "add-on" car insurance business well before the financial services commission commenced, and opted to withdraw from this sector of the market.

CORPORATES
INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, SWANN INSURANCE (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, NRMA LIMITED, CGU INSURANCE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INCORPORATED

Insurers admit avoiding cover for risky areas

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Original article by Alice Uribe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 23-Jan-18

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission is investigating the level of competition within the general insurance sector in northern Australia, along with premium increases in that part of the country. The ACCC is due to make its final report to the Treasurer by late 2020. Insurance companies have conceded that they avoid covering some properties in the region, which is prone to cyclones, but have denied suggestions that they have engaged in "premium price-gouging".

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, QBE INSURANCE GROUP LIMITED – ASX QBE, INSURANCE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, SUNCORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUN

Health premium rises tipped

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Original article by Sarah-Jane Tasker, Rachel Baxendale
The Australian – Page: 15 : 18-Jan-18

There is speculation that private health insurance premiums will rise by an average of four per cent in 2018. Macquarie Group analysts estimate that Medibank and NIB will increase their premiums by an average of 3.85 per cent and 3.8 per cent respectively. Macquarie has increased its share price targets for both insurers. Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt expects the lowest increase in health insurance premiums for 17 years. He will announce the premium increases in the next several weeks.

CORPORATES
MEDIBANK PRIVATE LIMITED – ASX MPL, NIB HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NHF, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION LIMITED

Industry funds set for swift growth

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 14 : 12-Jan-18

Australia’s industry superannuation funds now boast 6.8 million members, according to Roy Morgan’s Superannuation and Wealth Management report. In contrast, retail super funds have 3.9 million members. The report also shows that while the median age of all super fund members is 42.7 years, the median age of industry and retail fund members is 39.6 years and 45.7 years respectively. Meanwhile, the median balance of industry funds members is $A38,500, compared with the market average of $A57,800, although Roy Morgan attributes this to the lower median age of industry fund members.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY

Satisfaction with performance of industry superannuation funds back on top of retail funds

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 12-Jan-18

Roy Morgan’s latest Superannuation Satisfaction Report shows that in November 2017, satisfaction with the financial performance of industry superannuation funds (59.2%) was higher than retail funds (57.5%) for the third consecutive month, after having trailed them for the seven months prior. Satisfaction with self-managed superannuation funds remained the overall leader with 71.9%, despite being down by 2.4% points over the last year. Across the fifteen largest super funds (based on number of members), Qsuper had the highest satisfaction with 70.0%, followed by Cbus (67.4%) and Unisuper (66.4%). The best performer among the largest retail funds was Colonial First State in sixth place overall with a satisfaction rating of 61.2%, followed by MLC (55.8%), BT (55.8%), OnePath (54.7%) and AMP (54.2%).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, QSUPER LIMITED, CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING UNIONS’ SUPERANNUATION FUND, UNISUPER LIMITED, COLONIAL FIRST STATE GROUP LIMITED, MLC LIMITED, ONEPATH AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP

Super fund returns outpace property

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Original article by Sally Patten, Alice Uribe, Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Jan-18

The average balanced superannuation fund returned 10.5 per cent in the 12 months to December, the first time in five years that returns have been of double-digit nature. The 10.5 per cent return achieved by super funds exceeded the total average return of 9.1 per cent from property across capital cities for the 12 months to November. However, superannuation experts warn that the strong returns achieved in the past year are not likely to be repeated in 2018.

CORPORATES
THE ASSOCIATION OF SUPERANNUATION FUNDS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, FIRST STATE SUPER, SUPERRATINGS PTY LTD, CHANT WEST FINANCIAL SERVICES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, AUSTRALIANSUPER PTY LTD, KINETIC SECURITIES PTY LTD, SUNSUPER PTY LTD, HOST-PLUS, AUSTSAFE, VISION SUPER PTY LTD, INTRUST SUPER FUND, VICSUPER PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION

Industry superannuation funds set for growth

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Dec-17

Of the 13.4 million Australians aged 14 and over with superannuation, 6.8 million (50.7%) are members of an industry fund. This is well ahead of retail funds with 3.9 million (29.1%) and all other types combined, which make up only 2.7 million. This is one of the major findings from the new 2017 edition of the Roy Morgan ‘Superannuation & Wealth Management in Australia’ report. Although the median balance of industry fund members is currently only $38,500, which is lower than the market average of $57,800, this has a lot to do with the lower median age of industry fund members. The current median age of their members is only 39.6 years, well below all other superannuation types and as a result they have the best long term growth potential. Self-managed superannuation fund members (SMSFs) have the oldest median member age with 59.0 years, followed by public sector funds (49.6 years) and retail funds (45.7 years).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Social media drives up insurance costs

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Original article by James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 11-Dec-17

The insurance sector is seemingly an industry under siege, with its inclusion in Australia’s royal commission into the financial services sector its latest woe. Online calculators and comparison sites are making it easier for consumers to switch policies. Richard Enthoven, the chairman of insurance company Greenstone and the founder of insurance firm Hollard, points to social media as another cause of the industry’s problems. He contends that the practice of unhappy insurance customers complaining about their experience on Facebook and the like is pushing up the cost of insurance premiums.

CORPORATES
GREENSTONE LIMITED, HOLLARD INSURANCE GROUP, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, TWITTER INCORPORATED, INSTAGRAM LLC, COMMINSURE, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD