Fed: Super industry accuses APRA of overstating risk to funds
CANBERRA, Aug 30 AAP - The superannuation industry today accused its regulator of overstatingthe risk major funds faced in investing the retirement savings of most Australians.
Yesterday a senior official from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA)said it had about 20 larger funds rated high or extreme risk at any one time.
Big super funds were not exempt from risk any more than large insurance companies orthe major banks, APRA executive general manager, Charles Littrell told a conference inSydney.
Potential problems and possible failures were referred to, involving two approved trusteesand one corporate fund which were said to involve more than $1 billion.
But the Association of Superannuation Funds in Australia (ASFA) said the estimatesof possible failures were exaggerated.
"We welcome APRA's commitment to be more proactive," ASFA chief executive Philippa Smith said.
"But there seems to be some rewriting of history and exaggeration as to the extentof the problem."
Despite its concerns, APRA also said it was 99 per cent confident the industry generallywas safe, Ms Smith said.
"We the super funds are also also being more proactive about best practice and makingsure that funds are meeting that," she told ABC TV.
"The safety record of super funds have been good up to now and I for one want to makesure it's good going into the future."
But Ms Smith said she was concerned about the risk posed by falling investment returns.
"It does make it more difficult and we need to be as vigilant as we possibly can."
AAP jph/daw/nw/bwl
KEYWORD: SUPER
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