Bravura Solutions celebrates market reach milestone

Having set its sights on becoming a market leader in digital advice just over 12 months ago, Bravura Solutions has now hit a significant milestone with more than 6 million Australian super fund members having access to its advice tools.

“This achievement reflects the industry’s trust in Bravura’s proven technology that has supported superannuation administration and financial services in Australia for over 20 years,” the technology firm said.

This announcement comes on the back of rapidly growing interest on the part of Australian superannuation funds as they seek to deliver personalised financial advice offerings for their members.

Bravura has been particularly active in this area, partnering with AMP Super to launch a retirement health check just last month, providing members with “simple, intuitive and secure retirement advice”.

Furthermore, Bravura has been collaborating with Aware Super since 2020, pioneering digital hybrid advice solutions with the launch of its “My Retirement Planning” tool in 2023.

According to the firm, this has since resulted in more than 68,000 statements of advice (SOA) in just over 20 months, with 12 per cent of eligible members aged over 45 actively engaging with the digital advice tool, “far surpassing the 2 per cent industry standard”.

Looking back even further, the firm’s collaboration with Rest Super – which began in 2017 – has resulted in around 30,000 annual uses of its digital advice tools by members over the last three years, “making up nearly nine in 10 of all advice interactions in that time”.

While the uptake of digital advice solutions was somewhat slow up to about six months ago – when CFS launched its digital advice offering – growth has since been rapid with Bravura predicting the design and delivery of digital advice solutions will “remain a top priority for super funds this year”.

Notably, despite some parts of the financial advice industry currently existing in a kind of limbo as they await tranche two of the Delivering Better Financial Outcomes (DBFO) reforms, Bravura said the rapid growth in the digital advice space suggests that “regulatory uncertainty is not impeding investment and action in enhancing member services” on the part of super funds and tech providers.

Although Bravura chief executive for APAC Paul Dunn said the rapid expansion in this space underscores a “dynamic new chapter” for the super sector. He also suggested that the ongoing success hinges on the ability to deliver personalised advice at scale in a way that engages members.

“We’re at the early stages of the digital advice revolution within super, and funds are naturally cautious and diligent about getting digital advice right. In our experience, they want a trusted partner who deeply understands their business, their members and has a proven ability to implement enterprise programs,” Dunn said.

Bravura Solutions product manager for advice Michelle Lusty said the super funds they are currently engaging with are keen to move forward with executing their advice strategies.

“It’s not just regulatory pressure that’s driving this trend – there’s real, tangible benefits to both super funds and their members. Bravura’s clients consistently tell us that members who engage with the digital advice tools feel more confident about their retirement,” Lusty said.

“The ability for operating models to adapt and deliver advice at scale as unprecedented numbers of superannuation members seek guidance and advice regarding their retirement in the next decade is critical for funds and the broader industry to achieve better member outcomes and experiences.”