THE Financial Services Council (FSC) has urged caution in relation to the use of APRA’s proposed heatmapping exercises to make comparisons between superannuation funds.

Responding to the release of APRA’s Information Paper: Heatmap – MySuper products, FSC CEO Sally Loane said that APRA has clearly worked hard to present information in a fair and impartial way and acknowledged the potential value in the analysis APRA is undertaking, but cautioned against the information being viewed in isolation.

“Particular care should be taken by commentators in interpreting the heatmaps into simplistic league tables,” Ms Loane said.

“The industry was not consulted on the methodology, so we don’t have full understanding of APRA’s approach, this is why we caution against using the information to make a like-for-like comparison of products. We believe it is far more complex, and in some cases problematic.

“For example, the reference portfolio used by APRA to benchmark returns appears simplistic, and it is unclear whether the level of risk adjustment is appropriate.

“We are also concerned that the analysis of sustainability relates to the whole of a super fund rather than the specific products being examined, presenting a potentially misleading view.

“We urge APRA to be open to engaging on genuine concerns about data and methodology over the coming weeks,” Ms Loane said.

The FSC said that while there was a case for being able to directly compare MySuper products in this format with the appropriate methodology, there were concerns about APRA’s intention to expand this project to choice superannuation products.

“The variation in choice superannuation products in the market makes them significantly more difficult to accurately compare, and there are not currently agreed metrics and standards for how this would occur.

“We recommend APRA be cautious in extending this exercise to choice products before they have access to appropriate, comparable data.

Ms Loane said that if issues are addressed, information in the heatmapping analysis could be a good resource super funds can use to improve consumer outcomes.

“The FSC and our members will review the documents released today in detail, and we look forward to ongoing engagement with APRA as they improve their data collection, analysis and publication capabilities,” Ms Loane said.

www.fsc.org.au

About the Financial Services Council

The Financial Services Council (FSC) has more than 100 members representing Australia's retail and wholesale funds management businesses, superannuation funds, life insurers, financial advisory networks and licensed trustee companies. The industry is responsible for investing $3 trillion on behalf of more than 15.6 million Australians. The FSC promotes best practice for the financial services industry by setting mandatory Standards for its members and providing Guidance Notes to assist in operational efficiency. The FSC’s mission is to protect and enhance confidence in a strong, sustainable financial services sector that serves Australians with integrity.

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KRISTOFER ROGERS, CEO of Australian fintech Split Payments took out the ‘Start-up Executive of the Year’ award at CEO Magazine’s 2019 Executive of the Year Awards last night.

Presented by The Morning Show’s Larry Emdur at Crown, Melbourne, Mr Rogers joined 600 guests, including Gina Rinehart and Ronni Kahn, Founder of OzHarvest, to recognise the exceptional achievements of CEOs and senior managers in Australia.

“We are so proud to receive this award after what’s been an incredible year for Split Payments," Mr Rogers said. “To be recognised as Start-Up Executive of the Year is an incredible honour.

"In a rapidly scaling start-up environment, the decisions we make as a leadership team can significantly pivot the business - and the challenges we face are amplified. So it’s great to shine a light on our success as we continue to grow.”

Following in the footsteps of successful Australian fintechs including AfterPay and Zip Money, Split Payments’ success is impressive, having reached 14 million transactions through its Open Banking Real-Time Payments Platform since launching in January 2018.

Their ground-breaking innovation delivers the quickest, most cost-effective, and secure global bank transfer capability, which dramatically reduces dishonours and improves clearance times. Split has already secured partnerships with major Australian corporations such as Australia Post, Kounta, illion and MoneyMe.

The award tops off a big year for Split Payments, receiving the ‘FinTech Innovation in Payments’ recognition at the Australian FinTech Awards in Sydney earlier this year and named a ‘Top 20 Global FinTech to Watch’ at Money2020 in Las Vegas USA. Split is making a big splash in the global fintech scene.

The Australian payments ecosystem is set for significant change in 2020, as Open Banking is released in stages, and real-time payments continues to grow.

Led by Mr Rogers, Split is collaborating with several industry associations and tier-one financial institutions to ensure that the Australian fintech sector is leading the way with global innovation in payments.

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AN EXPANDING resources sector, combined with limited knowledge amongst young people of the many and varied careers it offers, is the stuff of a perfect storm for skills shortages. 

However, students from Villanova College, San Sisto College and Mount Gravatt State High School today had the inside running on these career choices when an industry specialist from Glencore Zinc visits the school. 

They’ll be taking part in a Beakers.Bots.Build workshop at Villanova College run by the Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA), which highlights the high-tech nature of the modern resources sector. 

"The students will see their classroom learning come to life as we help them navigate a hands-on simulated gas extraction technique using perforated well casings," said director of skills, education, diversity for QRC, Katrina-Lee Jones. 

"The students will also program a Lego robot, representing an autonomous truck, to move ‘ore’ around a mine site and construct a device to remove unwanted materials 'from a conveyor belt'.

“We are very excited to be hosting this event, as it is the first time all three schools have been involved in QMEA activities,” said the principal of Villanova Mark Stower. 

“It will be great for the students to speak to the industry people and understand how their studies relate to the real world of work."

A recent study by the Minerals Council of Australia demonstrated that 59 percent of young people knew nothing about resources sector careers. 

The QMEA is a partnership between the Queensland Resources Council (QRC) and the Queensland Government under its Gateway to Industry Schools program. It has 74 schools throughout Queensland. 

QRC is the peak representative body for Queensland ‘s resource sector. The Queensland resources sector provides one in every five dollars in the Queensland economy, sustains one in seven Queensland jobs, and supports more than 14,400 businesses and community organisations across the state, all from 0.1 percent of Queensland’s land mass. 

www.qrc.org.au

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THE House of Representatives Health, Aged Care and Sport Committee is holding public hearings in Sydney and Melbourne next week as part of its inquiry into Allergy and Anaphylaxis.

Committee Chair Trent Zimmerman MP said the hearings will be great opportunities to hear from some of the most respected experts in the fields of allergy and immunology, as well as from people whose lives have been severely affected by allergies and anaphylaxis.

"Australia has become known as the allergy capital of the world," Mr Zimmerman said.

‘It’s important for us to hear from everyone with an interest in the treatment and management of allergies. I’m also excited to learn about the cutting edge research happening in this field in Australia.’

The hearings will focus on what needs to be done to provide better support and make improvements to the lives of individuals and families living with allergies and anaphylaxis.

The committee will hold a full day hearing in Melbourne on 18 November and then head to Sydney on 19 November to gather further evidence.

The submission deadline has been extended to Friday 29 November. Visit the Committee’s website for more details.

Public hearing details

Date: Monday, 18 November 2019
Time: 10am to 5pm
Location: Mantra on Russell, 222 Russell St, Melbourne

Date: Tuesday, 19 November 2019
Time: 9:30am to 4:30pm
Location: The SMC Conference and Function Centre, Level 3, 66 Goulburn St, Sydney

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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