Kelly Power

Key points

• Landmark expansion will give Australians access to integrated, whole of‑life retirement income and wealth management solutions – the most comprehensive offering of its kind in the market.
• Expanded partnership with Challenger with broader integration into CFS’s super and non-super ecosystem, including guaranteed and investment-linked pensions, as well as a complete range of annuities directly available on the FirstChoice and CFS Edge platforms.
• New alliance with Generation Life, powered by BlackRock’s global investment capabilities, to deliver investment-linked annuities, alongside tax-effective investment bonds.
• Introduction of innovative retirement income solutions (IRIS) capabilities on the FirstChoice and CFS Edge platforms, supported by new modelling and digital tools to help advisers deliver more tailored advice with greater efficiency.

Colonial First State (CFS) has announces the largest-ever expansion of its retirement offerings through a multi-partner alliance that will reshape how retirement solutions are delivered in Australia.

Developed with Challenger, Generation Life, and BlackRock, the partnerships move beyond product-led approaches to a whole-of-life retirement model that enables Australians to transition from accumulation to retirement with greater confidence, flexibility and income security.

Kelly Power, Chief Executive Officer of Colonial First State Superannuation, said, “CFS has built its reputation on being a leader in retirement, and this expansion reflects a material capital commitment to supporting Australians across their entire retirement journey by providing the most comprehensive whole-of-life offering in the market.”

“By bringing together best-in-class global investment capability, local market-leading lifetime income expertise and tax‑effective structures, this integrated offering is designed to meet the increasingly complex financial needs of Australians. It recognises that retirement is no longer a single event, but a long-term financial journey that requires different solutions over time,” added Ms Power.

A seamless retirement income experience for advisers

CFS will integrate innovative retirement income solutions (IRIS) and the full suite of annuity capabilities from Challenger directly across all CFS platforms. It will also integrate Generation Life’s investment-linked IRIS onto FirstChoice and investment bonds onto FirstChoice and CFS Edge, providing a tax-efficient alternative as Australia’s investment and retirement tax landscape continues to evolve.

The new whole-of-life offering will bring together a comprehensive range of retirement solutions in a single environment, making it easier for advisers to deliver whole‑of‑portfolio advice across wealth management, income and estate planning.

The adviser experience will also be supported by new integrated retirement modelling capabilities that draw on multiple data sources to enable more tailored retirement outcomes and greater efficiency via straight-through processing.

The rollout of new solutions begins from August with the introduction of the Retirement Income Optimiser on the FirstChoice platform, as well as a Pension Bonus feature for eligible CFS members. Further solutions will be introduced progressively over the next 12 months.

Greater choice and confidence for members

CFS’s expanded partnership with Australia’s largest annuity provider, Challenger, builds on a relationship of more than 30 years, with this next phase fully integrating Challenger’s complete product range – including newly launching IRIS guaranteed and market-linked pensions alongside fixed-term, lifetime income and aged care solutions.

The alliance with Generation Life brings together its retirement expertise with BlackRock’s global investment and retirement capabilities. CFS members will also benefit from BlackRock’s experience delivering LifePath Paycheck in the US – an integrated target date strategy which provides eligible participants the ability to purchase a guaranteed income stream for retirement payable by third-party insurers selected by BlackRock.Together, these alliances will provide CFS members with greater choice and flexibility in how they generate income and transfer wealth over time. Members will have access to lifetime income solutions combining fixed, CPI and investment-linked annuities, with account-based pensions, alongside flexible and tax-effective investment bond structures, and digital tools designed to support more confident decision-making across long-term and intergenerational planning.

Partner perspectives

Nick Hamilton, Managing Director and CEO, Challenger, said, “What’s powerful about this partnership with CFS is how naturally our organisations fit together. But the real significance goes beyond partnership mechanics. Australia has been very successful at helping people accumulate super, yet far less effective at helping them convert those balances into income they can actually depend on. CFS is embedding lifetime income at scale, and this collaboration tackles one of the hardest and least‑solved problems in the retirement system – how to turn savings into income for life.”

Jason Collins, Head of Australasia, BlackRock, said, “CFS has been a longstanding whole portfolio partner for BlackRock, and we are proud to continue supporting its MySuper LifeStage portfolios. Working alongside Generation Life, we look forward to contributing to the next phase of growth as CFS expands the retirement toolkit for advisers and members, and moves towards more integrated, end-to-end retirement solutions that help more Australians experience financial wellbeing.”

Felipe Araujo, CEO of Generation Life, said, “Generation Life is proud to be selected as a partner of choice by CFS to help co-develop next-generation wealth management and retirement solutions. Australia’s retirement system is entering a new phase, where advice delivery is keeping pace with the increasingly dynamic needs of Australian retirees. This alliance represents one of the first truly integrated retirement ecosystems of its kind in Australia, bringing together income, tax efficiency and intergenerational wealth planning in a more connected way to better support Australians through retirement and across generations”

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Felipe Araujo

Retirement confidence among high-net-worth (HNW) Australians has fallen sharply since 2022, according to new research commissioned by Generation Life, as evolving superannuation and tax settings emerge as a major source of uncertainty in long-term financial planning.

The 2025/26 Navigating Uncertainty Report polled the sentiments of more than 650 HNW Australians and 354 financial advisers between October and November 2025^[1]. It reveals broad consensus that Australia’s superannuation system remains strong at its core.

Yet respondents report mounting pressure in the current financial landscape, as frequent legislative adjustments and heightened taxation debate continue against a backdrop of ongoing policy change. Most recently, the passage of Division 296 through Parliament for Royal Assent – set to begin from 1 July 2026 – is a stark reminder that for many Australians, long-term retirement planning must now contend with ever-shorter policy cycles, weighing on confidence even among financially resilient households.

Declining confidence among HNW Australians

A majority of respondents say they feel less confident today than they did in 2022. In comparison to three years ago:

• 71% are now less confident about their financial security
• 69% now feel less confident about retiring comfortably
• 63% are now taking less investment risk with their portfolios

This shift is unfolding amid heightened geopolitical tension, market volatility and rising household budget pressures – factors that continue to influence how Australians plan, adapt and make financial choices.

Yet despite softening sentiment, retirement remains the top financial goal, ahead of wealth transfer, wealth accumulation and lifestyle priorities.

“A secure, comfortable retirement is the ambition of every Australian – it’s their highest financial priority,” said Felipe Araujo, CEO of Generation Life.

“But the journey feels less certain. Trust in Australia’s world-class superannuation system endures, yet confidence in the rules that surround it has weakened – shaped by years of shifting legislative change and taxation debate, of which Division 296 is only the most recent chapter.”

A world-class savings system clouded by uncertainty

While 84% of HNWs agree that Australia has one of the best retirement systems globally, concerns about stability are intense:

• 66% say the rules change too often and are hard to follow
• 61% are not confident the system will build and protect long-term savings
• 63% believe the system is flawed in the way long-term savings are taxed.

This uncertainty is most pronounced among those approaching retirement, with respondents aged 60 and over reporting the lowest levels of confidence. At this stage of life, changes to superannuation rules naturally carry greater potential consequences – affecting how individuals think about their contribution strategy, the timing of retirement and the tax settings that will apply to their savings. But this concern is no longer confined to pre-retirees. Mid-life HNW Australians (30-49) now report the highest levels of systemic pressure and are already adjusting their behaviours in response to continued policy settings, signalling that vigilance is also spreading across generations.

Policy churn now a major pressure point

Australians are now placing far greater weight on how superannuation rule changes influence their near-term decisions – a notable shift from 2024, when inflation dominated household concerns. This is reflected in clear movement across the HNW population, with contribution patterns and advice interactions increasingly shaped by the broader policy environment.

• About one-third of those who reduced super contributions in the past year did so in response to proposed government tax policy changes
• Almost 40% reduced contributions following adviser guidance, indicating greater engagement with advice as rules evolve

Super-tax conversations surpassing retirement and inheritance in advice

This behavioural shift is also reshaping advice demand. Understanding superannuation and tax legislation is now the third-highest driver of advice engagement, ahead of both retirement and legacy planning – even as Australia enters the largest intergenerational wealth transfer in the nation’s history, estimated at $5.4 trillion^[2].

“What we’re seeing is a meaningful shift in the questions Australians want answered,” explained Mr Araujo.

“Super-tax settings have now become a huge focus, alongside retirement and the great wealth transfer on the advice agenda, not because people are changing their goals, but because they want clear direction – certainty – on the rules that frame their post-accumulation plans.”

The CoreData study explored this pattern of uncertainty with advisers, and their responses closely echoed the client trends. About 70 per cent had spoken to most or all of their clients about the Government’s Division 296 policy since its announcement in 2023, with conversations commonly centring on a lack of clarity and concerns about supertax policy rules continually changing. However, this increased attention has not translated into broad awareness across the wider HNW population, especially non-advised people.

Division 296: high attention, uneven awareness

Despite extensive public debate and media focus at the time of fieldwork in 2025, 44% of HNW Australians said they were not familiar with the Division 296 super tax. Among those who were familiar:

• 65% said they supported the proposal
• 65% said the proposal increased their confidence in the system; just 9% said it reduced their confidence

Advice provides clarity in a shifting policy landscape

This uneven awareness aligns with a broader theme across the study: as policy settings continue to evolve, Australians in ongoing advice relationships show consistently higher familiarity – revealing a clear divergence in how emerging rules are interpreted and understood.

• Awareness of Division 296 sits at 62% among those receiving ongoing advice, compared with 38% among those without an adviser
• Almost a third say advisers help simplify complex decisions, reduce cognitive load and provide reassurance amid uncertainty

Australians receiving professional advice also report significantly stronger financial satisfaction:

• 86% of those with ongoing advice are happy with their financial situation (vs. 55% without)

This sentiment is mirrored in how advisers assess future risk. While 72% of advisers believe future legislative changes will negatively affect HNW investors in general, only 21% believe it will negatively impact their own clients – pointing to confidence in their abilities to adapt structures and strategies over time.

A clearer path forward for retirement confidence

Generation Life’s research shows that while confidence in the superannuation system remains strong, successive rule changes are reshaping how Australians approach their retirement strategies. In this environment, enduring planning structures that offer clarity and stability across investment and retirement decisions become even more important – and Australians are increasingly turning to advisers for clear guidance through evolving policy settings.

Commenting on the broader implications of the findings, Mr Araujo emphasised, “Australians are seeking clearer and more stable policy settings so they can plan with confidence. Rule certainty is fundamental to long-term retirement planning, and with Division 296 now passed through Parliament for Royal Assent, advisers play a critical role in helping to translate such policy shifts into the right structures and decisions for their clients.

“With clear guidance, communication and well-designed long-term investment frameworks, Australians can move forward with much greater assurance.”

——–

Notes:
[1] About the 2025/26 Navigating Retirement Uncertainty Report: The 2025/26 Navigating Uncertainty Report was co-designed by Generation Life, Madden & Assoc., and CoreData, with all fieldwork conducted by the CoreData research team. The survey was undertaken online between October and November 2025 when Division 296 superannuation tax was proposed as at the date of participation. Respondents were sourced through CoreData’s proprietary research panel, supplemented by specialist panel partners. In total, 650 Australian high-net-worth (HNW) investors and 354 financial advisers participated in the survey, completing a structured questionnaire with an average length of 12 minutes. HNW investors are classified as having an investment portfolio over 1 million, excluding superannuation and principal place of residence. All data underwent quality, and validity checks by CoreData for accuracy, consistency and reliability, reducing the risk of error or bias and to enable robust insights.
[2] JBWere (2024), The Bequest Report: https://www.jbwere.com.au/content/dam/jbwere/documents/campaigns/JBWere-Bequest-Report.pdf

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Mr Rodda joins Generation Life at a pivotal period of growth for the company, a market leading provider of tax-effective investments and retirement income specialist.

Felipe Araujo, CEO of Generation Life said: “It’s a privilege to welcome Brendon to Generation Life. With more than 25 years of experience in financial services, he is exceptionally well placed to take on this role. He will further strengthen our growth trajectory by enhancing our capabilities and broadening the sectors we represent, supporting financial advisers in delivering solutions aligned to Australians’ evolving wealth needs.

“Building on the heightened interest in investment bonds and our strategic alliance with BlackRock to drive innovation in Australian retirement incomes, Brendon’s arrival advances our national footprint and amplifies the targeted promotion of our strategic product solutions across wealth management, financial advice and institutional engagement. As Australia’s market leader in after-tax solutions for estate planning, and pre- and post-retirement incomes, we remain focused on delivering innovative structures that empower investors with greater flexibility, protection, and certainty beyond superannuation.

“Brendon joins Generation Life effective immediately. The executive group and our national team welcome him at this exciting time,” Mr Araujo said.

Mr Rodda’s arrival is backed by career successes in sales, strategy and business leadership at leading wealth management and financial service organisations. With an early background in financial planning, Mr Rodda has deployed a deep understanding and appreciation for the role of quality advice matched with market leading product solutions.

His executive career spans several well-known finance brands including Challenger, NabInvest (MLC), Macquarie Investment Management, PIMCO Australia and Allianz Retire Plus.

“I have long admired the Generation Life evolution and its approach to delivering flexible, innovative investment strategies and solutions for financial advisers and their clients,” Mr Rodda said.

“My work has equally focused on supporting the quickly maturing needs of Australian retirees and those seeking greater certainty in their post-accumulation phase of life. I see enormous opportunity to deepen our strategic relationships across Australia’s wealth and advice channels, ensuring Generation Life continues to be the provider of choice for investment bonds and lifetime annuities.

“I am pleased to join the executive group at Generation Life and look forward to accelerating our growth in core markets and across the spectrum of strategic sales and client engagement.”

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Leon Stavrou

Northern Trust (Nasdaq: NTRS) has announced that it was selected to provide global custody and valuation reporting services for Australian life insurance company Generation Life.

With the new remit, Northern Trust will provide support to AU$1.5 billion (as of 31 January 2025) of Generation Life’s portfolio assets, including domestic and international equities, bonds, FX, and SICAVs.

Founded in 2007 and based in Melbourne, Generation Life specialises in providing tax effective investment solutions with over AU$3.8 billion in total funds under management (as of 31 December 2024).

“Northern Trust’s position as one of Australia’s leading asset servicing providers allows us to dedicate resources and tailor capabilities to meet our clients’ unique needs,” said Leon Stavrou, Country Head of Australia, Northern Trust. “Our selection by Generation Life, a leader in their field, will help them achieve operational excellence, and we look forward to building a highly successful partnership.”

“In making the decision to partner with Northern Trust, we were impressed by the quality of their comprehensive services, which exceeded our expectations,” said Felipe Araujo, Chief Executive Officer, Generation Life. “This is an important partnership for Generation Life. Northern Trust’s focus on investment in digital technology strongly aligns with our objective to deliver a scalable operating model to support our growth ambitions and enhance the experience for our clients.”

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