Australia's Retirement Savings at Risk

The topic is superannuation.

Monday, 29 Jun 2026, at 5:02 am.

Simone Constant is calling on super funds to do better.

In short:

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission says super trustees are not doing enough.

It wants trustees to focus on monitoring advisors and fees.

What's next?

ASIC will continue to monitor superannuation trustees.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has called out platforms for a lack of safeguards.

The corporate watchdog is concerned about super trustees failing to monitor fees and investments.

All superannuation trustees should review and improve before risks cause harm.

The commissioner wrote a 29-page report on safeguarding super.

The report comes after the collapse of Shield and First Guardian, which cost Australians $1 billion.

Code blue for a few bad apples.

ASIC reviewed six platform trustees with $300 billion in retirement savings.

It found areas that need immediate attention, including gaps in advice fee controls.

One trustee proposed a fee cap of $30,000, which is too high.

Superannuation trustees have grown significantly in the past 10 years.

The corporate watchdog wants attention given to limited checks of advice documents.

The report showed insufficient focus on understanding business models.

ASIC wants trustees to address inadequate monitoring of key risk indicators.

Australians are encouraged to engage with their super as they do with their banks.

Super platforms manage almost $400 billion.

Superannuation platforms have experienced extraordinary growth.

In 10 years, platforms have seen a threefold increase in member benefits.

Advice fees have increased fourfold to $2.2 billion.

The superannuation sector is a great asset for Australia.

But it needs to be done well, which is why ASIC is doing its work.

The collapse of Shield and First Guardian is a concern.

The corporate watchdog froze their assets in 2024 and 2025.

However, the actions came after reports of alleged misconduct.

The government plans a crackdown on managed investment schemes.

ASIC's work is to keep shining a light on the issues.

It goes to the heart of concerns about protecting members from harmful fees.

Many individual superannuation trustees do the right thing.

But ASIC looks at the data and outcomes.

The question is whether platform trustees are doing what's required by law.

Younger Australians seek advice on social media.

Some Australians are misinformed about superannuation by inappropriate sources.

Research shows people aged 18 to 34 consult social media for retirement information.

Mary Delahunty says some young people use social media for advice.

Social media is the least trusted source of retirement information.

The current system settings are not ensuring advice reaches those who need it.

Australians know which sources they can rely on.

The problem is that trusted sources are often hard to reach.

Barriers like cost and limitations get in the way of people getting trustworthy information.

The ASFA research points to structural problems in the financial advice market.

The number of licensed financial advisers is 40% lower than a decade ago.

Monday, 29 Jun 2026, at 5:02 am.

Monday, 29 Jun 2026, at 7:11 am.

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