Where have all the superannuation ratings houses gone?
Remember when there was SuperRatings standing proudly as a ground-breaker in providing ratings to superannuation funds? Remember when the sometimes irascible Warren Chant set up Chant West?
Well, as readers have probably already noted, these days SuperRatings is all part of research and ratings outfit Lonsec while, in mid-February, we learned that Chant West has been acquired by another research and ratings outfit, Zenith.
Of interest ought to be that the combining of SuperRatings and Lonsec resulted from the private equity involvement of Mark Carnegie, while Zenith’s embrace of Chant West follows from Zenith itself having taken on board some significant private investors.
Rollover reckons that the clear message in all these transactions is that the ratings game is getting tougher and having a foot in both the wholesale and retail markets is an advantage.
The competitive pressure may be rising, but Rollover doubts super funds will be seeing any reductions in fees.
With rainy weather abound in Sydney, Rollover was sat in front of his TV watching the smorgasbord of niche documentaries free-to-air has to offer.
As a history buff, Rollover is well-aware of the importance of the role the vanguard plays in a military force, as the leader at the front of battle.
Now that crypto investing is mainstream, with Rest Super announcing it will put a portion of its funds into it, Rollover wonders whether his grandkids will think he is hip when he shows them his crypto balance in his new digital wallet.
Rollover is almost as fascinated by superannuation fund mergers as the deputy chair of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), Helen Rowell.