Super funds seek sustainability labelling carve-out

Mike Taylor

Managing Editor and Publisher

7 April 2026

Major superannuation funds are looking for a carve-out from the Government’s proposed Sustainable Investment Product Labelling Regime arguing that it should not apply to whole-of-fund sustainability claims.

Responding to the Treasury consultation around the proposed new regime, the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) said it believed it should apply to products marketed as sustainable or similar to retail investors.

However, it said that with respect to superannuation, “the regime should not apply to whole-of-fund sustainability claims. While a superannuation fund may broadly adopt ESG integration and asset stewardship, this does imply that every product issued by that fund has a specific sustainability, or similar, objective”.

“ASFA considers that the regime should not apply to financial products that do not promote specific a sustainability, or similar, objective,” ASFA said.

“In this regard, the regime should not apply to products that do adopt ESG integration and asset stewardship within an overall investment approach, but do not specifically promote a specific sustainability, or similar, objective. This relates to superannuation products, but also to the broad range of financial products as defined in the Corporations Act.”

ASFA said that in relation to superannuation, the regime would need to accommodate a narrower focus than ‘financial product’ as defined in section 763A of the Corporations Act.

“Members of superannuation funds typically choose between investment options – some of which are marketed as sustainable, or similar. Often, investment options are not stand-alone financial products under the Corporations Act definition, but instead one of multiple investment options that comprise a financial product.

“Thus, a product-level labelling regime would not reflect how sustainability claims are generally presented to, and assessed by, consumers,” ASFA said.

“For superannuation, the regime should be applied at the level of investment option – noting that this concept is recognised in section 1017BB of the Corporations Act. The regime should not apply to whole-of-fund sustainability objectives – such as net-zero commitments – where ESG integration and/or asset stewardship can be broadly adopted as part of a fund’s investment approach, and which is distinct from an explicit sustainability objective at the investment-option level that would be the basis for disclosure under the regime,” it said.