Guarantees not worth the cost
Australian financial services companies and superannuation funds looking to offer post-retirement products may be well-advised dropping the notion of a guarantee, according to new research released by Milliman.
The research, contained in a paper titled ‘Life-cycle investing for the post-retirement segment’, argues that the global financial crisis (GFC) raised many questions about such products with the steep market downturn exposing “many flaws in traditional asset-allocation principles and risk management techniques.
It said the lack of balance sheet and capital within many retirement funds made it difficult for a guarantee to be offered without significant support from a third-party institution.
The report said the GFC had shaken many people’s confidence in the institutions that traditionally provided guarantees or insurance against such events, with the high profile corporate failures of institutions such as Lehman Brothers and American International Group having brought counterparty risk to the forefront.
However, it noted that opportunities might exist for funds to replicate some of the accepted investment strategies without a guarantee, resulting in a sustainable and lower-cost solution while providing much of the benefit of the original product but without a guarantee label.
The Milliman research concludes that strategies delivering protection rather than an absolute guarantee may prove attractive and cost-effective in the Australian defined contributions market because it will entail lower costs and minimal counterparty risk.
It said guarantees often carried with them a number of restrictions that could be avoided through the use of protection strategies without sacrificing the value proposition.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
Recommended for you
ASIC has launched court proceedings against the responsible entity of three managed investment schemes with around 600 retail investors.
There is a gap in the market for Australian advisers to help individuals with succession planning as the country has been noted by Capital Group for being overly “hands off” around inheritances.
ASIC has cancelled the AFSL of an advice firm associated with Shield and First Guardian collapses, and permanently banned its responsible manager.
Having peaked at more than 40 per cent growth since the first M&A bid, Insignia Financial shares have returned to earth six months later as the company awaits a final decision from CC Capital.
