Imagine checking your superannuation and finding your entire retirement nest egg has almost disappeared, eaten away by fees you never approved.
That is exactly what happened to at least one Australian, according to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
The corporate watchdog has revealed cases where super trustees failed to notice huge charges, risky account switching and other red flags that left members thousands of dollars worse off, according to PerthNow.
In one case, a member’s savings were almost entirely wiped out by fees that should never have been charged.
“One member, for example, had almost 100 per cent of their balance eroded by fees, inappropriate fees that weren’t picked up by the trustee,” ASIC Commissioner Simone Constant said.
“Almost 100 per cent of their balance.”
In another example, members who used a particular financial advice model lost, on average, half of their super to fees.
“That’s pretty harmful stuff,” the ASIC Commissioner added.
The warning comes on following the collapse of Shield and First Guardian investment funds in 2025, which cost more than 11,000 Australians roughly one billion dollars in retirement savings.
ASIC’s investigation found that many trustees were more concerned with preserving their relationships with financial advisers, than protecting their members’ money.
The regulator also uncovered eye-watering advice fee caps buried in the fine print, with one trustee permitting charges of up to $25,000 and another pushing for approval of a $30,000 cap.
Three trustees had no upper dollar limit at all on some percentage-based fees, leaving accounts exposed to massive deductions.
ASIC has committed to applying tougher scrutiny to super trustees after publishing their 29-page report into how well retirement savings are being protected.
“Superannuation is so important to almost every working Australian now that we’re encouraging Australians to engage with your super as you do with your banks,” Constant said.
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