Hostplus and Statewide has signed an exclusive Heads of Agreement as part of the merger process being undertaken by both industry superannuation funds.
Both funds said they would commence reciprocal due diligence to confirm that a merger was in the best interests of their members.
The trustee boards would then move to execute a successor fund transfer deed with the aim of completing the merger during the second quarter of 2022.
Hostplus and Statewide Super previously announced they had initiated merger discussions following a detailed competitive assessment conducted by Statewide Super’s trustee, followed by a period of consultation with Hostplus.
This assessment determined that the funds’ respective members, contributing employers and associated communities would realise scale and several other anticipated benefits from a combined fund.
The merger of the funds would create a significantly broader national fund which was anticipated to have over 1.4 million members, 258,000 contributing employers and more than $90 billion in funds under management.
Hostplus was also in the process of merging with Intrust Super and had signed a successor fund transfer deed, and had also previously announced a strategic partnership with Maritime Super.
Big business has joined the chorus of opposition against the proposed Division 296 tax.
Future Group is set to take on nearly $1 billion in funds under management (FUM) and welcome more than 100,000 new members following two significant successor fund transfers.
Insignia’s Master Trust business suffered a 1.9 per cent dip in FUA in the third quarter, amid total net outflows of $1.8 billion.
While the Liberal senator has accused super funds of locking everyday Australians out of the housing market, industry advocates say the Coalition’s policy would only push home ownership further out of reach.