Best Growth Super Funds
GOLD WINNER AUSTRALIANSUPER
Greater risk is designed to bring greater reward for members with a long-term horizon
Australia’s biggest super fund, AustralianSuper, wins this year’s best growth super fund category with its $8.5 billion high growth option.
AustralianSuper has beaten many of its competitors to disclosing all investments and their value on its website. This high growth, pre-mixed diversified investment option has 94% in growth assets such as Australian shares (32%), international (47%), direct property (4%), infrastructure (7%), private equity (4%), cash and credit (6%). The heavy weighting to growth assets makes this a long-term investment option with the recommended time frame of 12 years, which suits many superannuation members with a long time horizon.
The investment aim of the high growth option is to outperform the inflation rate by 4.5%pa compared to the balanced fund’s aim of 4% or the conservative balanced fund’s goal of 2.5%.
The high growth option has consistently beaten the benchmark. Over one year until the end of June 2018 it has beaten the benchmark by 1.68% while over 10 years the high growth option has outperformed the benchmark by 1.17% pa.
The high growth option’s extensive portfolio of Australian (364 shares) and global (630 shares), infrastructure (59 projects), property (161 properties), credit and fixed interest (1094 securities), and private equity (346 projects) is transparent to all members ahead of the mandated deadline.
AustralianSuper has continually taken more of the investment management in house with 31% of the portfolio managed internally, a move the fund estimates has contributed to saving the fund in excess of $100 million in annual savings to members.
AustralianSuper uses its scale to negotiate low fees. The $140 billion fund with 2.2 million members (or one in 10 workers) is one of the few superannuation funds with a flat administration fee of $78 per year and no asset-based fee. The investment management fee for this option is 0.67%.
In second place is the
$12 billion MTAA superannuation fund originally set up for motor traders but open to anyone. The growth option has 92% of its assets in shares, property, infrastructure and private equity.