Mr Cooper has more than 35 years of experience in the legal and financial sectors, working predominantly across corporate advice, mergers and acquisitions, and superannuation.

John Burke, CEO of Bennelong Funds Management, says Mr Cooper brings a wealth of industry experience and knowledge to the board.

“Jeremy is an industry veteran with unparalleled experience and expertise in the Australian superannuation and wealth sectors.”

Mr Cooper was previously chairman, retirement income at Challenger Limited. Prior to this, he was appointed by the Rudd Government to chair a wide-ranging review of the superannuation system, known as the ‘Cooper Review’. Earlier in his career, he was the deputy chairman of ASIC and, before that, a partner of law firm, now called Ashurst Australia.

He is currently the chair of the advisory board of the Conexus Institute, a not-for-profit superannuation think tank, and is a member of the Public Policy Committee of the SMSF Association.

Mr Cooper’s appointment follows several changes to the Bennelong board as the business streamlines its focus in the Australian market. He will be replacing Vicki Allen, who is retiring after serving eight years on the board

“On behalf of Bennelong, I extend our thanks to Vicki for her contributions to the company and wish her all the best in her future endeavours. We are looking forward to working with Jeremy as we continue our growth strategy in the Australian market.”

The board is chaired by longstanding board member, Lincoln McMahon. Mr McMahon has been on the board for eight years, providing a wealth of knowledge, experience and dedication to the table.

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John Maroney

The superannuation landscape in 2030 will be the theme of the SMSF Association’s Thought Leadership Breakfast at the National Conference being held at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre from 19-21 February 2020.

Association CEO John Maroney will be joined on the panel by Jeremy Cooper, Chairman, Retirement Income, at Challenger, and Michael Blomfield, CEO, at Investment Trends. Melinda Howes, General Manager – Superannuation at BT, will facilitate the event.

Maroney says: “It’s always a worthwhile experience to ‘crystal ball’ the future, especially in an industry such as superannuation where so often it seems change is the only constant.

“It will be particularly interesting to hear Jeremy’s views considering it will be a decade since he handed down his landmark report into superannuation. He will be in an ideal position to forecast future change from the vantage point of what has happened since his 2010 final report.

“Investment Trends have been at the forefront of research into the financial services industry, providing insights into market dynamics and industry trends, so Michael’s perspective on what the industry will look like in 2030 will also make for compelling listening.”

Other conference highlights include the specialist-only session, workshops that give members the opportunity to interact with speakers and their peers, as well as sessions about the latest changes to SMSF legislation and regulations, investment options, business practice and advice.

Maroney says the Early Bird offer to members closes on Friday (29 November). For further information and early bird registration, go to: https://www.smsfassociation.com/conference

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Amara Haqqani

Milliman, a global actuarial consulting firm and leading provider of risk management and retirement services, has appointed retirement expert Amara Haqqani as director of strategy and solutions in Australia.

Haqqani has spent close to two decades in financial services including four years at annuities provider Challenger, where she served as senior manager, retirement income policy, and advised chairman of retirement income, Jeremy Cooper.

She was most recently consulting to the Financial Services Council on superannuation, retirement income and funds management policy initiatives, in particular those related to the Productivity Commission’s Superannuation inquiry and the Royal Commission into Banking and Financial Services.

“Australians are retiring with larger superannuation balances than ever before but many people, particularly middle-income earners, still feel uncertainty about what to do with that money,” Haqqani said.

“In a world where many are now beginning to focus on this issue, Milliman has the deep thinking, big data, analytics and technology to actually help people build the retirement they want and to help the industry deliver the products and services that retirees need. I look forward to working with the Milliman team at this important time for the industry.”

Haqqani’s appointment comes at a time of intense scrutiny for the financial services industry as it deals with the fallout from the Royal Commission and Productivity Commission inquiry into superannuation. Meanwhile, the industry is also faced with developing a range of new income-focused products that support the sector’s new objective of providing income in retirement to substitute or supplement the Age Pension.

Milliman Australia practice leader Wade Matterson said building retirement solutions was one of the most complex problems faced by the industry.

“Building retirement solutions requires actuarial, data science, investment management, behavioural finance, communications, and digital skills. Yet, at heart, it is a human problem that requires an understanding of how people act rather than how we expect they should behave. Milliman’s expertise covers all aspects of the retirement value chain and Amara’s appointment further boosts our ability to help the industry create truly tailored retirement experiences.”

Milliman’s services include:

• The Milliman Retirement Expectations and Spending Profiles (ESP), which uses a variety of big data sources, including the anonymized bank transaction data of more than 300,000 retirees, allowing funds and advisers to better understand the spending patterns of retirees.
• Risk overlay services, which manages excessive volatility and provides a cushion against extended market downturns. These services are used by a wide range of firms including Colonial First State, Plato Investment Management, BetaShares, Maritime Super and financial planning dealer groups.
• The Milliman Goals-Based Advice Platform, which brings enterprise-grade algorithms to analyse thousands of scenarios based on clients’ personal financial position and goals. It provides deep insights and allows clients to make informed decisions about competing goals and priorities.

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A quarter of seniors surveyed said they would not be able to tolerate any annual loss to their retirement savings.

Seven out of 10 Australians aged over 50 are worried about the potential for another global financial crisis (GFC) and the impact it could have on their retirement savings.

The latest National Seniors Australia (NSA) survey revealed that 10 years on from the GFC, concern among older Australians is still strong.

“These results clearly show that the GFC has cast a long shadow, particularly for those who were already in retirement when it hit and have been unable to recoup their losses,” Challenger’s Chairman Retirement Income, Jeremy Cooper, said.

“This, combined with increasing life expectancies, has left many seniors uncertain about the future.”

A quarter of seniors surveyed said they would not be able to tolerate any annual loss to their retirement savings. More than 90% thought they would not be able to tolerate losses of 20% or more, the equivalent of the average impact on superannuation balances at the time of the GFC.

Seniors remained worried about running out of money, with over half concerned about outliving their savings. “This is a realistic concern”, said Prof McCallum. “The risk of running out of money increases with age. Almost a third of respondents over 80 reported running out of savings, and almost a quarter of those between 75 and 79 had also run out.”

The survey showed six out of 10 older Australians now keep some or all their savings out of the market to minimise their exposure to a potential market collapse. Despite concerns, half of older Australians are comfortable with the way they are managing their risk.

Prof. McCallum said the priorities for almost all older Australians remained clear across National Seniors’ annual surveys.

“Seniors want regular and consistent income,” he said. “When asked to rank several financial goals, having income that lasted for life was one of the most important, with 80% of seniors rating it ‘very important’. The only goal that rated higher was a desire for regular and constant income.”

National Seniors conducted one of the largest comprehensive surveys of older Australians earlier this year. The advocacy organisation collected responses from 5,446 Australians aged over 50 to develop the report Once bitten, twice shy? GFC concerns still linger for Australian seniors, which focuses on the preferences and spending patterns of older Australians.

The full report can be accessed at www.nationalseniors.com.au/GFCconcerns

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“The decision to invite Jeremy to join the committee continues the tradition of looking outside our own membership ranks to ensure we get the expertise, knowledge and experience to make a valuable contribution to the policy debate. [Former Labor Parliamentary Secretary Bernie Ripoll joined the committee in March 2017.]

“Their skills complement the six other committee members from the Association’s board, senior executive management and membership, guaranteeing the diversity of views so necessary for good public policy.”

Cooper’s wide-ranging career, which spans more than three decades, includes corporate and M&A work for the law firm Ashurst, five years as Deputy Chair of ASIC, a year as Chair of a comprehensive review of Australia’s superannuation system (Cooper Review), and more than seven years at Challenger, where he has focussed on retirement income research, public policy issues and thought leadership.

Hs has also contributed to the public debate via his roles at the Financial Services Institute of Australasia, the Australian Centre for Financial Studies, and the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia.

Cooper says: “While chairing the review of the superannuation system nearly a decade ago, I came to appreciate both the importance of self-managed super funds and the critical role the SMSF Association plays in advocating for this sector and the broader superannuation industry.

“I am looking forward to playing a public policy role at a time when we are about to see a majority of the assets in the SMSF in pension mode. It will be critically important to get the policy settings right as we enter into this new chapter of the system’s evolution.”

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