Cbus Super has signed a memorandum of understanding to merge with EISS Super in 2022.
It said the merger between the two funds would strengthen its position as a leading industry fund and create a combined superannuation fund with over $70 billion in assets under management.
EISS Super was previously slated to merge with TWUSuper but this was cancelled following “extensive due diligence”. Following this, EISS Super announced it had changed some strategic objectives and restarted the search for a merger partner.
Justin Arter, chief executive of Cbus, said: “We have a strong and growing membership of 36,000 members in the electrical trades and strong relationships with industry leaders like the Electrical Trades Union, Master Electricians and NECA.
“Cbus is a specialist fund for workers who build Australia, a fund that tailors our services such as insurance to our members. By joining together with EISS Super, we will be able to deliver even more for members in the electrical sector by harnessing economies of scale.”
EISS Super chair, Peter Tighe, said: “We believe a merger between EISS Super and Cbus will provide our members with access to greater economies of scale and investment opportunities, which are critical to the successful delivery of positive long term outcomes for members”.
Super funds had a “tremendous month” in November, according to new data.
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.