September 2025
11Sep

Australian Retirement Trust invests $1b in Macquarie green energy fund

The Australian Retirement Trust (ART) has invested nearly $1 billion in the renewable energy-focused Macquarie Green Energy and Climate Opportunities Fund (MGECO). The numbers: The investment is part of the superannuation fund’s commitment to invest at least $2 billion by 2030 in assets that can generate returns while delivering social and environmental benefits. ART manages $350 billion in retirement savings on behalf of more than 2.4 million Australians. The context: Aside from climate change, ART’s $2 billion impact investment commitment will also flow to...

September 11, 2025
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09Sep

Australia. Why retirees are turning to the gig economy

Ms Symons retired from financial planning about three years ago and was relying on the age pension for an income. But as a renting divorcée with four children and 11 grandchildren, it was hard to make ends meet. The maximum pension payment the 73-year-old could get amounted to about $675 a week. "When you take your rent out of that, the noodles are looking good [but] I don't want to eat noodles," she said. Being a driver paid per job...

September 9, 2025
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01Sep

Crypto finds gateway into Australia’s $2.8t pensions pot

Australia’s A$4.3 trillion ($2.8 trillion) retirement system — long regarded as one of the world’s best-regulated savings pools — is emerging as a new frontier for crypto. Coinbase Global Inc. and OKX, two of the largest digital-asset exchanges, are rolling out products aimed at steering pension money into cryptocurrencies, underscoring how digital assets are edging further into mainstream finance. The initial focus is self-managed superannuation funds, or SMSFs, which already make up about a quarter of Australia’s pension pool. Unlike mainstream...

September 1, 2025
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June 2025
23Jun

‘Good news’: Australians tipped to be $125k better off in retirement

The average young Australian is tipped to be $125,000 better off in their retirement simply by staying in the workforce, a major superannuation fund reveals. Australian Retirement Trust says the rise in the superannuation guarantee over the last five years is “good news” for Australian workers who will have more in their retirement nest egg. Under changes to the superannuation guarantee proposed by the Rudd government and enacted by the Morrison government, every working Aussies superannuation rate automatically went from 9.5...

June 23, 2025
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March 2025
24Mar

Australia. Retirees more pessimistic about retirement expectations: report

Australians have changed their retirement expectations over the past 12 months, with higher living costs creating a pessimistic attitude among pre-retirees, according to a report from Colonial First State. The Rethinking Retirement Report 2025 revealed that rising living costs have eroded comfortable living standards for retirees, and fewer retirees said they are currently able to enjoy a comfortable retirement compared to last year. It continued that three-quarters of retirees are using pension payments to cover essential living expenses, while close to one in...

March 24, 2025
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21Mar

Meeting the Growing Demand for Age-Friendly Care: Health Care at the Crossroads

By The John A. Hartford Foundation America is aging rapidly. Those age 65 and older are the fastest-growing segment of the population. From 2025-2050, the number of adults 65+ will increase by 30%, from 63 million to 82 million, accounting for nearly one quarter (23%) of the total population by mid-century. And the “oldest old” ranks are growing even faster: the number of adults age 85 and older is projected to more than double between 2025 and 2050, from 7 million...

March 21, 2025
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18Mar

Amid robust U.S. investment, Australia’s largest retirement fund plots an ambitious agenda

AustralianSuper first began operating in 2006 when the Superannuation Trust of Australia and the Australian Retirement Fund merged, seeing the benefits of size. That year, CIO and Deputy Chief Executive Mark Delaney was responsible for managing approximately A$21.3 billion. Almost 20 years later, he’s running Australia’s largest superannuation fund, with over A$380 billion ($239 billion) in assets and serving over 3.5 million Australians across a broad swath of professions. And that is only set to grow in coming years with...

March 18, 2025
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February 2025
05Feb

Australia. SMSFA calls for urgent review of pension tax ruling

The SMSF Association has called on the government to urgently review Tax Ruling 2013/5A1, saying the commissioner’s view on when a pension ceases due to the failure to make minimum pension payments remains problematic. In a submission in collaboration with the joint bodies, the SMSFA said TR 2013/5 lacks clear legislative backing, and its reliance on regulation 1.06(9A) appears to be an overreach, adding unnecessary complexity without providing practical benefit. The addendum to TR2013/5 deals with when a superannuation income stream...

February 5, 2025
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January 2025
29Jan

Retirement is a risky business for most people

Firstlinks published an article by Bruce Bennett on 8 January 2025 that highlighted some of the problems with the Commonwealth Super Scheme (CSS): This article drew comparisons between account-based pensions available from industry super funds and SMSFs. I think those comparisons are misplaced. A more interesting exercise would be to compare the CSS with the age pension because both are income streams that are paid for life and indexed to inflation. In both cases, the provider is the Commonwealth Government and benefits are...

January 29, 2025
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24Jan

Australia. Avoiding the retirement poverty trap

More than one fifth of Australian retirees live in poverty, according to a recent report by the left-leaning think-tank, The Australia Institute. The Reducing poverty in retirement report compares the poverty rate of people aged 65 and over between Australia, Sweden, and Norway, which are nations with comparable GDPs. It concludes that the public pension systems in Sweden and Norway ensure retirement security while Australia’s system does not. The rate of poverty in retirement in Australia is 22.6% – more than one in five. In...

January 24, 2025
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