Industry funds AustralianSuper and AUST(Q) Super have announced an ‘in principle' agreement to merge.
The proposed merger would see AUST(Q) Super's 17,000 members and over $204 million in funds under management (FUM) transferred to AustralianSuper.
The decision to merge would allow AUST(Q) Super members to leverage AustralianSuper's size and scale and provide the capability to access its investment performance and low fees, AustralianSuper chief executive Ian Silk and AUST(Q) Super chief executive Bob Henricks said in a joint statement.
"With growing competitive pressure and increasing demands on the super fund industry, we believe our members will be best served by the scale of a larger fund such as AustralianSuper, who can also provide a strong Queensland presence," Henricks said.
Silk said the fund would be looking to increase its presence in Queensland further to provide its expanded Queensland member base of 260,000 with improved services.
AustralianSuper currently has over two million members and over $62 billion in funds under management.
The superannuation industry has celebrated the passing of a bill that will provide super contributions on government-funded parental leave.
As TelstraSuper joins the trend of merging into larger funds, industry experts are questioning the long-term viability of corporate offerings.
Iress has launched a tool for superannuation funds looking to house digital advice capabilities.
Following a comprehensive review process, the two funds have entered into a merger agreement.