CBA, NAB retain top positions

The combinedCommonwealth Bank (CBA)/ Colonial and National Australia Bank (NAB)/MLC groups have confirmed their top positions as the largest Australian retail fund managers.

The CBA/Colonial group remains the largest retail manager, with its share of total Australian retail managed funds assets reaching 16.6 per cent as at March 31, 2002, according to the latest figures released by Morningstar and Plan for Life Researchers and Actuaries. This was up slightly from 16.3 per cent for the same period last year.

In at second position, the NAB/MLC group currently accounts for almost 14.5 per cent of total managed fund industry assets.

According to Morningstar analyst Joel Aurisch, both groups should retain their top positions.

“I don’t think their top positions are going to be knocked easily. But it will be interesting to see their positions in the second to fourth quarters,” he says

Over the March 2002 quarter, total retail managed fund assets grew by more than $6 billion, with strong growth from retail superannuation master funds and retail unit trusts.

Further, retail superannuation master funds remain the largest retail managed fund product type overall at $91 billion, an increase in excess of $2 billion for the March quarter.

Retail unit trusts were the second-largest product type at $55.8 billion, followed by cash management trusts with $31 billion.