The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has been asked to explain how it is handling mergers which involve under-performing funds.
The regulator has been put on notice by Tasmanian Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson to explain its approach to mergers involving under-performing funds, including any examples which might have already occurred.
Whish-Wilson’s questioning took place during Senate estimates with APRA’s response expected to be gazetted next week.
Whish-Wilson asked: “Has APRA encountered examples where a lesser performing fund is seeking a merger partner, but is unable to find a willing successor fund?”
“Have APRA been approached by potential successor funds seeking advice or relief in order to receive underperforming assets in a merger with a lesser-performing fund?”.
He then asked what guidance APRA would offer to successor funds and lesser-performing funds which were considering a merger.
“Has APRA considered contingency measures to protect the value of (members) assets in underperforming funds that are unlikely to find a willing merger?” Whish-Wilson asked.
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Australia faces a decade of deficits, with the sum of deficits over the next four years expected to overshoot forecasts by $21.8 billion.
APRA has raised an alarm about gaps in how superannuation trustees are managing the risks associated with unlisted assets, after releasing the findings of its latest review.
Compared to how funds were allocated to March this year, industry super funds have slightly decreased their allocation to infrastructure in the six months to September – dropping from 11 per cent to 10.6 per cent, according to the latest APRA data.