“…Comments consistent with member needs being a key influence were sustained throughout the interviews. We illustrate with selected quotes from for‐profit providers, given the perception that this group is less likely to be focused on member needs due to their ownership and governance structures and the existence of a profit motive (see Langford et al ., ; Stewart and Yermo, ; Sy, ; Ashcroft and Stewart, ). In addition, for‐profit funds are more typically ‘sold’ through intermediaries such as employers or financial advisers.we actually sat back and said what's the right option for a default member?…”
Section: Objectives In Designing Mysuper Productsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Meaningful competition for members and assets under management exists, in particular between the retail and industry fund sectors. There are important differences in origins, motivations and governance structures between the sectors (Langford et al ., ; Sy, ). Retail funds typically operate under the umbrella of a financial services corporation, for example banks, insurers or investment companies.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Cooper () reviews existing structures for defined contribution plans. Australian literature has related plan‐level performance to aspects such as asset allocation, fund type, governance, scale, fees or expenses, and the number of external managers (Faff et al ., ; Coleman et al ., ; Langford et al ., ; Bateman and Thorp, ; Ellis et al ., ; Basu and Andrews, ; Liu, ; Cummings, ). These studies confirm the importance of asset allocation and fees.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Agency problems in the context of Australian superannuation funds are discussed by Drew and Stanford () and Bird and Gray (), while Langford et al . () and Sy () focus on how alignment varies between for‐profit and not‐for‐profit providers. For default funds, the implications of misalignment can be exacerbated as many default members may be disengaged and/or poorly informed, and are consequently poor monitors.…”
We interview Australian fund executives about how their organisations responded to MySuper, a regulatory framework for default retirement savings funds that providers were required to have in place by the beginning of 2014. We provide an account of the influences on MySuper product design. Our analysis generates insight into how fund providers balanced their perceptions of the needs of default fund members against business considerations. Differences in member bases and organisational circumstances across funds are found to lead to considerable variation in default fund design.
“…Comments consistent with member needs being a key influence were sustained throughout the interviews. We illustrate with selected quotes from for‐profit providers, given the perception that this group is less likely to be focused on member needs due to their ownership and governance structures and the existence of a profit motive (see Langford et al ., ; Stewart and Yermo, ; Sy, ; Ashcroft and Stewart, ). In addition, for‐profit funds are more typically ‘sold’ through intermediaries such as employers or financial advisers.we actually sat back and said what's the right option for a default member?…”
Section: Objectives In Designing Mysuper Productsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Meaningful competition for members and assets under management exists, in particular between the retail and industry fund sectors. There are important differences in origins, motivations and governance structures between the sectors (Langford et al ., ; Sy, ). Retail funds typically operate under the umbrella of a financial services corporation, for example banks, insurers or investment companies.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Cooper () reviews existing structures for defined contribution plans. Australian literature has related plan‐level performance to aspects such as asset allocation, fund type, governance, scale, fees or expenses, and the number of external managers (Faff et al ., ; Coleman et al ., ; Langford et al ., ; Bateman and Thorp, ; Ellis et al ., ; Basu and Andrews, ; Liu, ; Cummings, ). These studies confirm the importance of asset allocation and fees.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Agency problems in the context of Australian superannuation funds are discussed by Drew and Stanford () and Bird and Gray (), while Langford et al . () and Sy () focus on how alignment varies between for‐profit and not‐for‐profit providers. For default funds, the implications of misalignment can be exacerbated as many default members may be disengaged and/or poorly informed, and are consequently poor monitors.…”
We interview Australian fund executives about how their organisations responded to MySuper, a regulatory framework for default retirement savings funds that providers were required to have in place by the beginning of 2014. We provide an account of the influences on MySuper product design. Our analysis generates insight into how fund providers balanced their perceptions of the needs of default fund members against business considerations. Differences in member bases and organisational circumstances across funds are found to lead to considerable variation in default fund design.
While increased financial literacy may improve individual retirement savings decisions, modifying the placement of key information in retirement savings statements can produce further improvements. We examined the extent to which placement of information and financial literacy affected the accessibility of information for individuals and assisted in their financial decision making. We also disaggregated financial literacy into numeracy and knowledge to identify key drivers. Using an experimental design, we find the increased salience resulting from modifying the presentation format improved participants' ability to locate important information (accessibility) and to evaluate the relative performance of funds (assessability). However, the incremental benefits of placement are only found for individuals with moderate numeracy skills. We conclude there is value accruing from financial literacy programs as advocated by regulators, but suggest additional benefits may be reaped from focusing on numeracy skills and from using presentation formats that improve information accessibility and assessability.
The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about development issues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry the names of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World Bank and its affiliated organizations, or those of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent.
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