Sunsuper to maintain 'legacy' in advice following merger

The Australian Retirement Trust has become the second largest super fund in the country with over two million members and over $230 billion in funds under management.

In a statement on Monday, the new fund announced plans to reduce fees for its members from 1 July 2022.

The fixed weekly administration fee for Australian Retirement Trust Super Savings account members will be cut from $1.50 to $1.20 per week, and from 0.16 per cent to 0.15 per cent p.a. for Australian Retirement Trust QSuper account members, subject to final approval by the Australian Retirement Trust Board.

“As the second largest super fund in the industry, we’ll leverage our size and scale to seek out world-class investment opportunities for our members and deliver enhanced products and services and lower fees,” said Australian Retirement Trust’s chief executive officer Bernard Reilly.

The QSuper and Sunsuper merger process began in March last year, after the pair signed a heads of agreement. 

“Over the next two years, we will also continue to fully integrate the two funds, including our investment portfolios and technology platforms,” said Mr Reilly.

He confirmed that Australian Retirement Trust would continue Sunsuper’s legacy in the employer and external financial adviser markets, but did not specify any details.

In August last year, Sunsuper teamed up with Iress to launch  a solution that enables financial advisers to efficiently access clients' superannuation data.

“At Sunsuper, we know the value of advice and the role external advisers play in driving member outcomes, which is why we invested in working with Iress to activate data feeds,” Sunsuper’s head of advice and retirement, Anne Fuchs, said at the time.