TelstraSuper launches retirement investment product

9 November 2021

| By Liam Cormican |

TelstraSuper has unveiled a new range of income investment solutions that aims to help members draw reliable, consistent and sustainable income in retirement.

The super fund said an estimated 1.8 million superannuation members were expected to move $300 billion in super savings from the accumulation phase to decumulation over the next five years, which would create new industry challenges.

TelstraSuper said its new suite of products would address challenges that retirees may face such as market volatility, sequencing risk and the need for an income stream.

The new ‘Lifestyle investments options’ would target these challenges through a consistent income strategy that provided greater tax efficiencies and managed risks such as drawing down on super during a market downturn.

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TelstraSuper chief executive, Chris Davies, said as the Australian population ages, super funds would have a critical role in helping members navigate the specific financial challenges of retirement.

“Superannuation balances will continue to increase in both size and importance; individuals retiring today can expect to spend around 20 years on average in retirement,” Davies said.

“TelstraSuper recognises that members who are drawing down on their superannuation have different requirements and investment risks to members who are working and accumulating superannuation, and as such, products should be designed specifically to resolve these challenges.

“This provides an opportunity, and a need, for superannuation funds to innovate and develop new products that allow retiree members to take advantage of both strong investment returns while offering downside protection and mitigating longevity risk. These new investment options follow the launch of our new digital retirement website for our income product members last July.”

To help deliver a consistent and sustainable income, the ‘Lifestyle’ product suite included a new industry-leading cash allocation feature that allowed members to automatically allocate some of their investment to their cash investment option each month.

Members could then draw a regular, consistent income from this cash investment option while also managing volatility by transferring small amounts into the cash option.