HESTA lowers investment fees on top four options

Australian superannuation fund, HESTA, has announced fee reductions totalling 0.2 per cent across its top four “ready-made” super investment options and has also lowered the balance requirement for members to access its Income Stream product suite.

The four investment options to have their fees reduced, selected by funds under management (FUM), included the default MySuper Balanced Growth option (o.62 per cent to 0.58 per cent), the Conservative option (0.42 per cent to 0.40 per cent), the Sustainable Growth option (0.83 per cent to 0.75 per cent) and the High Growth option (0.78 per cent to 0.72 per cent).

The fund also confirmed the minimum required balance to start an Income Stream account was lowered from $50,000 to $10,000 as of yesterday.

HESTA chief executive, Debby Blakey, said the changes – which can be found in the updated Product Disclosure Statements (PDSs) released yesterday – were intended to show the fund’s “commitment to delivering value” and “improving flexibility and accessibility” for members at all stages of their wealth or retirement journey.

“The fee reductions across our ready-made options demonstrate our commitment to optimising member outcomes while maintaining strong investment performance,” she said.

“We’re focused on ensuring our members receive maximum value from their retirement savings. Retirement is not a one-size-fits-all experience.

“This reduction in minimum balance will open up access to Income Stream products for more members, providing them with tax-free investment returns and the HESTA Retirement Reward, if eligible. It’s about adapting to the realities of modern retirement and providing members with the tools they need to improve their retirement outcomes.”

A statement from the fund also said it was also urging for a “reimagining of retirement design” to better accommodate evolving member needs, by:

• enabling funds to implement member opt-out defaults into retirement products, and
• the option to top up income streams to enable greater flexibility in the pension phase.

“The way many Australians are retiring is changing and initiatives like these can help improve member outcomes and support the future adaptability of our retirement system,” Blakey said.