BT helps ease transition to retirement

In response to the Federal Government’s new transition to retirement (TTR) strategies, BT Financial Group has lowered the cost of investing for wrap customers who link two to four of their accounts.

“As the popularity of TTR strategies increases in the new super environment, we’re predicting a corresponding lift in the number of investors who concurrently operate both an accumulation and pension account,” BT Wrap product manager Nicholas Bowley said.

The new relationship pricing program, which will take effect on September 1 this year, will see tiered account-keeping fees drop from 0.79 to 0.7 per cent for BT Wrap or BT SuperWrap customers with balances of less than $100,000 and 0.7 to 0.65 per cent for customers with balances between $100,001 and $250,000.

Those with balances above $250,000, $1 million and $2 million will keep their comparatively low current fees of 0.23 per cent, 0.09 per cent and nil, respectively.

Bowley said the new relationship pricing program was designed to afford platform customers who link their accounts — and their families’ — significant savings.

“For example, a typical BT SuperWrap investor with a $200,000 super plan and a $300,000 pension plan would see cost savings of around 10 per cent on their annual account-keeping fees.”

“The new relationship pricing . . . will also benefit BT Wrap investors whose immediate family members hold BT Wrap accounts, or where they have a separate account set up through a business, trust or self-managed super fund.”

BT Financial, Westpac’s wealth management arm, estimates that that between 10 and 20 per cent of its wrap customers, who include more than 5,000 advisers and 100,000 investors, will take advantage of this opportunity to lower their fees.