When Colonial First State’s (CFS) FirstChoice platform burst onto the scene in May 2002, offering low fees and a simple investment structure, it made a splash, taking big inflows almost immediately.
The platform was ahead of its time.
So much so that it has taken groups like AXA and Credit Suisse — which released their own low cost platforms only this year — up until now to catch up.
As the chief executive of CFS, John Pearce could have rested on his laurels.
Instead, in March this year, he cut management fees for FirstChoice by between 5 and 50 basis points.
And in July, FirstChoice Wholesale was launched, offering average total fees of just 1 per cent for investments over $100,000.
Since then, AMP has dropped fees on its Flexible Lifetime Super products, while ING has also trimmed ongoing fees on OneAnswer.
In the platform market these days, it seems Colonial sets the pace, and others follow.
