Demand for early release superannuation appears to have levelled off following the upsurge which accompanied the opening up of the Government’s second tranche on 1 July, but repeat applications are still significantly outstripping first time requests.
The latest data released by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has revealed that over the week to 26 July, superannuation funds paid $1.4 billion, bringing to $29.4 billion the amount paid under the scheme since inception.
It said the average payment made over the period since inception was $7,705, but that this rose to $8,547 when repeat applications were viewed in isolation.
The APRA data said that in the week to 26 July, 140,000 applications were received by funds of which 59,000 were initial applications and 81,000 were repeat applications.
It said that since inception the total number of initial applications was 2.9 million and the total number of repeat applications was one million.
The super fund announced that Gregory has been appointed to its executive leadership team, taking on the fresh role of chief advice officer.
The deputy governor has warned that, as super funds’ overseas assets grow and liquidity risks rise, they will need to expand their FX hedge books to manage currency exposure effectively.
Super funds have built on early financial year momentum, as growth funds deliver strong results driven by equities and resilient bonds.
The super fund has announced that Mark Rider will step down from his position of chief investment officer (CIO) after deciding to “semi-retire” from full-time work.