MySuper assets pursue $1.5tn Choice sector

MySuper assets are fast catching up to the $1.5 trillion Choice sector, hitting nearly $1.2 trillion in the March quarter.

Newly released APRA statistics show MySuper's assets under management (AUM) reached $1.16 trillion, while Choice products had $1.48 trillion at the end of the period.

MySuper first hit the $1 trillion milestone in March 2024 and has grown the nest egg of default members by 16% since then.

Choice products had $1.23 trillion two years ago and have grown 21% over that time.

There are only 51 MySuper products in existence versus the number of Choice products at 664.

Currently, MySuper accounts have an average balance of $77,000, whereas Choice accumulation members have $142,000.

Together with defined benefit members, APRA calculates the three pillars have about $2.79 trillion in total member assets.

In terms of investments, Choice portfolios have a large proportion of member savings in multi-sector strategies, which came to about $992.24 billion. There is about $419.27 billion in single-sector strategies.

Many Choice members prefer cash and term deposits over equities or fixed income. Nearly $30 billion of their savings is sitting in cash accounts, while $11.33 billion is in term deposits.

Just over $24 billion is in direct share holdings and $201 million is in fixed income.

MySuper investment allocations, meanwhile, have more than 50% in listed equities, which is almost evenly split between global and local stocks.

Australian fixed income allocations come to 10.5% and the international portion is 5.1%. Infrastructure has an 11.3% allocation while unlisted property has 5.4%.

Industry super funds' invested assets doubled that of retail funds at $1.58 trillion and $861.9 billion respectively.

Industry super funds have the biggest amount invested in private debt at $19 billion while retail funds have $13.13 billion. Industry funds had $933.9 billion invested in equities while retail funds had $519.9 billion.