The Australian, Australia, Business News, Andrew White

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1 FRI 18 MAY 2018 Media Clippings 'Cultural issues' behind lash on women The Australian, Australia, Business News, Andrew White Page words ASR AUD 5,941 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 763 word(s), ~3 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION SUPER FUNDS MARCH ON IN APRIL Herald Sun, Melbourne, Business News, Karina Barrymore Page words ASR AUD 7,885 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 327 word(s), ~1 min 303,140 CIRCULATION WESTPAC ADVISER'S LIFE BAN Herald Sun, Melbourne, Business News Page words ASR AUD 4,775 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 157 word(s), <1 min 303,140 CIRCULATION All our weapons Herald Sun, Melbourne, Business News, Andrew White Page words ASR AUD 23,543 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 389 word(s), ~1 min 303,140 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT This report and its contents are for the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only and must not be provided to any third party by any means for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia and/or the relevant copyright owner. For more information contact copyright@isentia.com DISCLAIMER Isentia makes no representations and, to the extent permitted by law, excludes all warranties in relation to the information contained in the report and is not liable for any losses, costs or expenses, resulting from any use or misuse of the report.

2 ABC's cream factory The Australian, Australia, Letters Page words ASR AUD 1,354 Photo: No Type: Letter Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 205 word(s), <1 min 94,448 CIRCULATION AMP's all-female exits reflect 'cultural issues' Age, Melbourne, Business News, Clancy Yeates Page words ASR AUD 11,748 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 462 word(s), ~1 min 83,229 CIRCULATION Life ban for adviser over false evidence Courier Mail, Brisbane, Business News, Drew Cratchley Page words ASR AUD 1,335 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 153 word(s), <1 min 135,007 CIRCULATION Watchdog vows to bite Courier Mail, Brisbane, Business News, Andrew White Page words ASR AUD 4,303 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 375 word(s), ~1 min 135,007 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

3 Financial services crackdown The Australian, Australia, Business News, Andrew White Page words ASR AUD 19,037 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 995 word(s), ~3 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION 'Inexperienced directors' sit on super fund boards: APRA The Australian, Australia, Business News, Michael Roddan Page words ASR AUD 6,063 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 638 word(s), ~2 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION AusSuper: investor as predator The Australian, Australia, Business News, Will Glasgow Christine Lacy Page words ASR AUD 8,872 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 459 word(s), ~1 min 94,448 CIRCULATION $2bn Canadian fund to lure Healthscope assets The Australian, Australia, Business News, Ben Wilmot Sarah-Jane Tasker Page words ASR AUD 4,749 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 571 word(s), ~2 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

4 Gig workers, self-employed miss out on $10bn a year in super The Australian, Australia, Business News, Michael Roddan Page words ASR AUD 4,769 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 556 word(s), ~2 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION Shares push super higher Courier Mail, Brisbane, Business News, Karina Barrymore Page words ASR AUD 3,688 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 330 word(s), ~1 min 135,007 CIRCULATION Funds on track for super year Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide, Business News, Karina Barrymore Page words ASR AUD 1,502 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² SA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 242 word(s), <1 min 112,097 CIRCULATION Watchdog warns of corporate crackdown Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide, Business News, Andrew White Page words ASR AUD 7,021 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² SA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 415 word(s), ~1 min 112,097 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

5 Blaming victims Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide, Letters Page words ASR AUD 2,529 Photo: Yes Type: Letter Size: cm² SA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 189 word(s), <1 min 112,097 CIRCULATION ASIC to use 'every inch' of powers Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Business News, Clancy Yeates Page words ASR AUD 20,489 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 514 word(s), ~2 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION AMP's all-female exits reflect 'cultural issues' Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Business News, Clancy Yeates Page words ASR AUD 16,808 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 462 word(s), ~1 min 88,634 CIRCULATION ASIC to use 'every inch' of powers Age, Melbourne, Business News, Clancy Yeates Page words ASR AUD 14,322 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 514 word(s), ~2 mins 83,229 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

6 Super on track Hobart Mercury, Hobart, Business News Page words ASR AUD 202 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² TAS Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 70 word(s), <1 min 28,265 CIRCULATION Returns looking super Cairns Post, Cairns, General News, Karina Barrymore Page words ASR AUD 1,138 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 343 word(s), ~1 min 13,896 CIRCULATION ASIC to use 'every inch' of powers Canberra Times, Canberra, Business News, Clancy Yeates Page words ASR AUD 6,531 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² ACT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 514 word(s), ~2 mins 17,579 CIRCULATION AMP's all-female exits reflect 'cultural issues' Canberra Times, Canberra, Business News, Clancy Yeates Page words ASR AUD 5,379 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² ACT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 462 word(s), ~1 min 17,579 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

7 Recoup the losses West Australian, Perth, Letters Page words ASR AUD 789 Photo: No Type: Letter Size: cm² WA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 109 word(s), <1 min 147,676 CIRCULATION Bonus bonanza West Australian, Perth, Letters Page words ASR AUD 1,175 Photo: No Type: Letter Size: cm² WA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 156 word(s), <1 min 147,676 CIRCULATION How do I get one? West Australian, Perth, Letters Page words ASR AUD 771 Photo: No Type: Letter Size: cm² WA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 110 word(s), <1 min 147,676 CIRCULATION ASIC reveals plans to speed up the pursuit Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Alice Uribe Page words ASR AUD 4,652 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 540 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

8 Dwyer warns on gender savings gap Australian Financial Review, Australia, Companies and Markets, Jonathan Shapiro Page words ASR AUD 2,528 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 373 word(s), ~1 min 44,635 CIRCULATION EXPERT SHARES SUPER INSIGHT Townsville Bulletin, Townsville QLD, General News, Tony Raggatt Page words ASR AUD 3,605 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 353 word(s), ~1 min 16,484 CIRCULATION Bonuses for in-house counsel face scrutiny Australian Financial Review, Australia, Legal Affairs, Misa Han Page words ASR AUD 13,107 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 846 word(s), ~3 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION 'Not one male director of AMP put their hand up,' says Rubin Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Alice Uribe Page words ASR AUD 5,785 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 672 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

9 Boards of super funds gaming the rules: APRA Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Joanna Mather Page words ASR AUD 5,481 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 520 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION CFMEU: keep calm and reform IR Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Michael Angwin Page words ASR AUD 4,187 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 523 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION Labor's tax strategy will face its own Senate ordeal Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Phillip Coore Page words ASR AUD 8,859 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 1072 word(s), ~4 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION Hayne set to tackle SME lending next Australian Financial Review, Australia, Companies and Markets, James Thomson Page words ASR AUD 5,279 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 749 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

10 IPS smashes $3b target Australian Financial Review, Australia, Companies and Markets Page words ASR AUD 2,023 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 293 word(s), ~1 min 44,635 CIRCULATION Life ban for adviser Gold Coast Bulletin, Gold Coast QLD, General News Page words ASR AUD 236 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 75 word(s), <1 min 21,468 CIRCULATION Funds on track for super year with returns up 7.5pc Gold Coast Bulletin, Gold Coast QLD, General News, Karina Barrymore Page words ASR AUD 982 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 318 word(s), ~1 min 21,468 CIRCULATION Builders will fail without home grant Townsville Bulletin, Townsville QLD, General News, Tony Raggatt Page words ASR AUD 1,129 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 318 word(s), ~1 min 16,484 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

11 Setka tells Shorten: loosen strike laws The Australian, Australia, Edition Changes - All-round First, Ewin Hannan Troy Bramston Page words ASR AUD 18,976 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 1568 word(s), ~6 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION ASIC chair vows tougher action The Australian, Australia, Edition Changes - All-round First, Andrew White Page words ASR AUD 13,580 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: View original - Full text: 505 word(s), ~2 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT This report and its contents are for the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only and must not be provided to any third party by any means for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia and/or the relevant copyright owner. For more information contact copyright@isentia.com DISCLAIMER Isentia makes no representations and, to the extent permitted by law, excludes all warranties in relation to the information contained in the report and is not liable for any losses, costs or expenses, resulting from any use or misuse of the report.

12 The Australian, Australia Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,941 Words: 763 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Cultural issues behind lash on women ANDREW WHITE DIRECTORS Australia has a systemic, cultural problem with women in power, say company directors, criticising the reporting of the AMP scandal for raising the gender of chairman Catherine Brenner as an issue in the company s woes. However, Nicola Wakefield Evans, a non-executive director of Macquarie Group, Toll Holdings, Lendlease and Bupa, and Sally Pitkin, who chairs Super Retail Group and is a director of Link Administration and The Star Entertainment Group, said chairmen and directors had to be accountable for failings in their organisation, regardless of gender. The comments follow the resignation of all four female directors on the AMP board this month in the wake of evidence at the royal commission that the financial services giant misled the corporate regulator about its practice of charging clients for services it did not provide. Criticisms included previous episodes, including Deborah Thomas s term as chief executive of Ardent Leisure during the Dreamworld fatalities, and Meredith Hellicar s leadership of James Hardie as it battled claims the company had relocated to Ireland to avoid liabilities for its Australian asbestos diseases. Ms Wakefield Evans said there was a a bit of a lash against the long-term push for more women in positions of power and influence in business, politics and society. We don t have women actually achieving those positions of senior management and power, she said at a superannuation conference in Sydney yesterday. Along with that, I think there are systemic cultural issues in this country and we are seeing a bit of a lash. And we are seeing that through the reporting of how women have seemingly failed in their duty, which I think is manifestly unfair. She said in the AMP case the chairman had to take responsibility. It wouldn t have mattered had there been a male chair, the outcome would have been the same, Ms Wakefield Evans said. What was egregious there was how gender played into the reporting of her ability to actually do her role. Ms Pitkin also said there was a systemic cultural issue in Australia about women holding positions Continued on Page 23 Evans Pitkin

13 The Australian, Australia Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,941 Words: 763 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 Cultural issues behind lash Continued from Page 19 of power or influence, or even participating in areas of work that have predominantly been the domain of men. But she said executives aspiring to careers as nonexecutive directors did not understand the distinction between the positions. It is very different being a non-executive director because you are the ultimate authority in that organisation and so you can lose your position at any time. And you need to be prepared to resign and leave the company because the buck does stop with you, she said. The comments were made at the conference of the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors, a peak body representing local and international funds totalling $2.2 trillion in retirement savings that has campaigned for women to hold 30 per cent of board seats on Australia s top 200 public companies. ACSI president and chief executive of the $120 billion AustralianSuper, Ian Silk, told the conference that 10 out of 13 companies targeted by the organisation in the past year had appointed their first female director. Ardent Leisure chairman Gary Weiss said there may be women who had been promoted beyond their competence on Australian boards, but there were certainly plenty of men who had done the same. Dr Weiss said that whether Ardent s chief executive had been male or female it would not have mattered when it came to the poor performance of the company and the Dreamworld fatalities that led to Ms Thomas s departure. Ms Thomas was appointed after serving as a non-executive director to follow a long-serving chief executive who had delivered results for shareholders, he said. So I think the circumstances of Deborah s appointment coloured the market s view and then when there was a decline in performance over a period of time and then on top of that... came the absolute tragedy at Dreamworld. I think it wouldn t have made a difference. A chief executive who presides over a period of underperformance is always at risk whether that person is male or female. AGL chairman Graeme Hunt said having quotas for board seats can be dangerous, but added that resolving the imbalance in board seats should be managed over a realistic time frame. Mr Hunt said the gender of the person elevated to a board seat should not be the first question a company asks because you need to be thinking about skills over a period of time, and a two, three, four, five-year program of having the right skills around the table.

14 Herald Sun, Melbourne Author: Karina Barrymore Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 303,140 Page: 55 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,885 Words: 327 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 SUPER FUNDS MARCH ON IN APRIL SUPERANNUATION fund is in profit returning 1.7 per cent last month to offset losses in March and on track for another strong financial year. For the average balancedoption fund, the total return so far this financial year is now more than 7.5 per cent. It means that, with two months to go, the typical fund is on track for a ninth straight year of profit. According to research companies SuperRatings and Chant West, most of the increase last month was due to a rise in share markets in Australia and internationally. The April data shows superannuation serves members well through the market ups and downs, SuperRatings chief Kirby Rappell said. Members with full equity rocked around by the volatility earlier in the year but for super members in balanced or growth options, the ride has certainly been smoother. During the past 10 years, the median balanced super fund has returned an average of 6 per cent every year. The median growth fund, more than 80 per cent invested in listed assets, has also returned 6 per cent during the same period, but with greater risk. Chant West research manager Mano Mohankumar said Australian shares increased 3.8 per cent last month, while overseas shares went up 1.9 per cent. Listed property units Australia and 2.9 per cent internationally. Unusually, not-for-profit underperformed bank-owned retail funds during the month. Mr Mohankumar said industry funds returned an average of 1.6 per cent, while retail funds returned 1.8 per cent. However, for the year to date, industry funds were still well ahead at 8.1 per cent, compared with retail funds at 7.1 per cent. Mr Mohankumar said super fund members, with a 10-month return of about 7.5 per cent, were on track for a strong financial year. That return is well ahead of the typical long-term target of between 5.5 and 6.5 per cent a year.

15 Herald Sun, Melbourne Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 303,140 Page: 57 Printed Size: 86.00cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,775 Words: 157 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 WESTPAC ADVISER S LIFE BAN BANKING A FORMER Westpac financial adviser has been banned from the industry for life for providing false evidence to the corporate regulator. Ezzat-Daniel Nesseim was investigated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission as part of the watchdog s crackdown on poor financial advice offered by the four major banks along with Macquarie and AMP. Mr Nesseim provided three wholesale client certificates to ASIC, dating them in the hope they would help end the watchdog s inquiries, ASIC said. In response to ASIC s questions about the certificates, Mr Nesseim gave false answers under oath and affirmed that a written statement he provided containing false statements was true, the watchdog said. ASIC senior executive leader Louise Macauley said such behaviour was not tolerated. Providing false evidence to ASIC in an attempt to avoid scrutiny by the regulator is reprehensible and does not uphold the attributes of honesty and integrity required of a financial adviser, she said in a statement.

16 Herald Sun, Melbourne Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 303,140 Page: 57 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,543 Words: 389 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 All our weapons ASIC chief s warning to bankers ANDREW WHITE REGULATION THE new head of the corporate watchdog has warned the financial services sector he plans to use every inch of our powers and tools to punish misconduct. Australian Securities and Investments Commission chair James Shipton has also accused companies of jeopardising Australia s regulatory structure by failing to act as the first line of defence against misconduct. In a speech yesterday, Mr Shipton said he planned to use new regulatory powers as soon as they became available. He confirmed he was in discussions with the government to get extra resources for enforcement and regulation. I am personally committed to using every inch of our powers and tools to get the outcomes that the community deserves, Mr Shipton said at conference hosted by the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors. And whilst we have been trying to do our job, unfortunately, all too often, the firms who have failed in their firstline responsibilities have made matters worse by not co-operating with us and, in some unacceptable cases, actually obstructed our work. What s more they have endangered the financial system they are meant to support. This cannot stand because if firms continue to fail to step up to their responsibilities, the integrity of our regulatory structure, and our financial system, is undermined. Mr Shipton, who started with ASIC three months ago, said the regulator had done a good job on enforcement with the powers it had. But it needed new powers and a new regulatory approach to overcome a jarring trust deficit in the finance industry, he said. He pointed to new powers including for the first time a penalty for companies that failed to efficiently, honestly and fairly provide services a new enforcement commissioner, Daniel Crennan, QC, and sharply increased fines for companies and individuals. Mr Shipton s comments are his first since the government revealed it was cutting ASIC s funding in the federal Budget, only to reverse course by the end of the week and reveal he was in discussions with Treasury about extra resources. In his speech, he defended ASIC s enforcement record and said many of the revelations at the banking royal commission had come from investigations by the corporate regulator. THE AUSTRALIAN

17 Herald Sun, Melbourne Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 303,140 Page: 57 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,543 Words: 389 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 ASIC chair James Shipton says the watchdog will use all the tools it has to punish misconduct. Picture: KYM SMITH

18 The Australian, Australia Section: Letters Article type : Letter Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 15 Printed Size: 67.00cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,354 Words: 205 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 ABC s cream factory I once worked for a company that displayed a sign: Bonus announcement: All employees who exceed their targets will keep their jobs. Pay and conditions were quite reasonable and there was a very low turnover. Perhaps the fat cats in the cream factory that is the ABC are meeting and exceeding their targets, but those appear to be internal targets and not those outlined in the ABC s charter. With higher than industry standards in pay, conditions, superannuation and job security there is nothing lean and meaningful about the mindset of the worker s collective, apart from their virtue signalling for their entrenched green-leftist ideology and crusade against Australian values. Allan Caton, Mount Eliza, Vic I have a small portfolio of shares and every year I am invited to vote for a number of items on the AGM agenda, including the report that recommends performance bonuses for senior managers and directors. I always vote against this because they are paid to perform at their utmost. The same view applies to ABC staff and all public servants. If a higher performance is required than the present occupant is unable to deliver, then perhaps better replacements found, at a higher salary if necessary. Ian Napier, St Peters, SA

19 Age, Melbourne Author: Clancy Yeates Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 20 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 11,748 Words: 462 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 AMP s all-female exits reflect cultural issues GOVERNANCE Clancy Yeates The fact that only female directors have stepped down from AMP s board is a reflection of deep cultural issues within the wealth manager, says Elana Rubin, the former chairwoman of Australian Super. After AMP s board this month lost chairman Catherine Brenner and directors Holly Kramer and Vanessa Wallace, with Patty Akopiantz set to step down this year, Ms Rubin told a panel discussion yesterday that she had been struck by the fact that no male directors had NATAGE A020 stepped down. Ms Rubin made the comments on a panel alongside the chairwoman of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Elizabeth Proust, and the executive director of The Ethics Centre, Simon Longstaff, at the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors conference in Sydney yesterday. In a discussion on corporate culture, Dr Longstaff said it was an interesting question why only women had left the board, saying there were plenty of men on that board who had been there a long time too. Was there not a single man who it occurred to... also I was responsible for some of what happened?, Dr Longstaff said, prompting applause from some in the room. Ms Rubin, who is a director of Mirvac, ME Bank and Afterpay Touch Group, said the same point had occurred to her. The fact that that can happen I think just highlights the deep cultural issues in the organisation, which still today has failed to really look inside itself and see how can these things have continued to happen. The comments came as the chief risk officer of AMP s troubled financial advice division, Pally Bargri, resigned, citing insufficient capacity to meet the upcoming demands of the role. AMP s former chief executive Craig Meller also last month resigned earlier than planned over the scandal. The AMP board was this month hit by the resignations after the royal commission uncovered that it had repeatedly misled the corporate watchdog in relation to an overcharging scandal. Ms Kramer and Ms Wallace stepped down days before the company s AGM at which they were up for reelection, with a hefty protest vote on the cards. The resignations triggered a debate in the media about gender targets and boardroom diversity. In a later panel session, another non-executive director, Nicola Wakefield-Evans, said there were systemic cultural issues in the country regarding gender diversity in the corporate world, which was reflected in some of the reporting about Ms Brenner. Even so, she said Ms Brenner s decision to step down was the right one. If you look at AMP, it wouldn t have mattered if there had been a male chair, the outcome would have been the same, said Ms Wakefield- Evans, a director of companies including Lendlease and Macquarie Group. The decision she made, I think most people would agree, was the right decision.

20 Courier Mail, Brisbane Author: Drew Cratchley Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 135,007 Page: 38 Printed Size: 76.00cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,335 Words: 153 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Life ban for adviser over false evidence DREW CRATCHLEY A FORMER Westpac financial adviser has been banned from the industry for life for providing false evidence to the corporate regulator. Ezzat-Daniel Nesseim was investigated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission as part of the watchdog s crackdown on poor financial advice offered by the four major banks along with Macquarie and AMP. Mr Nesseim provided three wholesale client certificates to ASIC, dating them in the hope they would help end the watchdog s inquiries, ASIC said. In response to ASIC s questions about the certificates, Mr Nesseim gave false answers under oath, and affirmed that a written statement he provided that contained false statements was true, it said. ASIC senior executive leader Louise Macauley said such behaviour was not tolerated. Providing false evidence to ASIC in an attempt to avoid scrutiny by the regulator is reprehensible and does not uphold the attributes of honesty and integrity required of a financial adviser, she said.

21 Courier Mail, Brisbane Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 135,007 Page: 39 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,303 Words: 375 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Watchdog vows to bite ASIC s new head straining at leash to use tough new powers ANDREW WHITE THE new head of the corporate watchdog has warned the financial services sector he plans to use every inch of our powers and tools to punish misconduct. Australian Securities and Investments Commission chairman James Shipton has also accused companies of jeopardising Australia s regulatory structure by failing to act as the first line of defence against misconduct. In a speech yesterday, Mr Shipton (pictured) said he planned to use new regulatory powers as soon as they became available. He confirmed he was in discussions with the Government to get extra resources for enforcement and regulation. I am personally committed to using every inch of our powers and tools to get the outcomes that the community deserves, Mr Shipton said at conference hosted by the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors. And whilst we have been trying to do our job, unfortunately, all too often, the firms who have failed in their first-line responsibilities have made matters worse by not co-operating with us and, in some unacceptable cases, actually obstructed our work. What s more they have endangered the financial system they are meant to support. This cannot stand because if firms continue to fail to step up to their responsibilities, the integrity of our regulatory structure, and our financial system, is undermined. Mr Shipton, who started with ASIC three months ago, said the regulator had done a good job on enforcement with the powers it had. But it needed new powers and a new regulatory approach to overcome a jarring trust deficit in the finance industry, he said. He pointed to new powers including for the first time a penalty for companies that failed to efficiently, honestly and fairly provide services a new enforcement commissioner, Daniel Crennan QC, and sharply increased fines for companies and individuals. Mr Shipton s comments are his first since the government revealed it was cutting ASIC s funding in the Federal Budget, only to reverse course by the end of the week and reveal he was in discussions with Treasury about extra resources. Mr Shipton defended ASIC s enforcement record and said many of the revelations at the banking royal commission had come from investigations by the corporate regulator. THE AUSTRALIAN

22 The Australian, Australia Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 19,037 Words: 995 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Financial services crackdown Australia s financial services regulator has warned of an imminent crackdown on bad behaviour as it prepares to exercise every inch of new powers set to be granted by the government. New Australian Securities and Investments Commission chairman James Shipton yesterday promised a more intensive supervisory approach as he accused some companies of obstructing the regulator s work and endangering Australia s financial system. He said Australian businesses were suffering from a trust deficit of their own making. BUSINESS P19 FINANCIAL SECTOR SUFFERS FROM A TRUST DEFICIT ASIC chair vows tougher action ANDREW WHITE REGULATORS Corporate Australia has been put on notice that the Australian Securities & Investments Commission will use every inch of new powers to crack down on bad behaviour in financial services. New ASIC chairman James Shipton promised a new, more intensive supervisory approach by the regulator as he accused companies of failing to act as the first line of defence against bad behaviour and undermining the financial system and the corporate regulatory structure. Mr Shipton said Australian businesses and the finance sector in particular were suffering from a trust deficit of their own making and it was the responsibility of business to repair this. Just three month in the role, the former Harvard lawyer and Hong Kong securities regulator said he planned to use new regulatory powers as soon as they became available and confirmed he was in discussions with the government to get extra resources for enforcement and regulation. I am personally committed to using every inch of our powers and tools to get the outcomes that the community deserves, Mr Shipton said in a landmark speech to the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors conference. And while we have been trying to do our job, unfortunately, all too often, the firms who have failed in their first-line responsibilities have made matters worse by not co-operating with us and, in some unacceptable cases, actually obstructed our work. What s more, they have endangered the financial system they are meant to support. This cannot stand, because if firms continue to fail to step up to their responsibilities, the integrity of our regulatory structure, and our financial system, is undermined. Mr Shipton, who started with ASIC in February, said the regulator had done a good job on enforcement with the powers that it had, but needed new powers and a new approach to overcome a jarring trust deficit in the finance industry. Following shocking revelations in the royal commission that AMP and Commonwealth Bank had charged fees to customers for services they did not provide and, in CBA s case, that it had charged customers who had been dead, the federal government agreed to give ASIC substantial new powers and massive increases in fines. The government has also agreed to appoint an enforcement commissioner, with Daniel Crennan QC to become a second deputy chairman of ASIC. Mr Shipton, a former financial services executive in Australia, pointed yesterday to new powers, including for the first time a penalty for companies that fail to efficiently, honestly and fairly provide services. He said many of the issues emerging from the royal commis- Continued on Page 30

23 The Australian, Australia Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 19,037 Words: 995 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 Australia s corporations, and the finance sector in particular, are suffering from a trust deficit. And this current predicament is of the sector s own making Because it is largely of its own making, the sector must be held to account and must take responsibility for its repair I am personally committed to using every inch of our powers and tools to get the outcomes that the community deserves JAMES SHIPTON, ASIC CHAIRMAN Federal government funding for ASIC $m * *Forecast Source: Bloomberg ASIC chair vows tougher action Continued from Page 19 sion had come from investigations by ASIC s Wealth Management Project that focused on investigations into financial advice in large financial institutions. Mr Shipton said ASIC planned to accelerate and expand the program and its enforcement outcomes, including using of external expertise in investigations and enforcement actions and delivering faster response times. His comments were the first since the government revealed it was cutting ASIC s funding in the federal budget, only for Scott Morrison to reverse course by the end of last week and reveal that Mr Shipton was in discussions with Treasury about additional resources. Mr Shipton defended ASIC s enforcement record and said many of the revelations at the royal commission had come from investigations by the corporate regulator. He said that since 2011 ASIC had recovered $1.7 billion in compensation for consumers including $230m this year and 160 criminal convictions including 19 already this year. ASIC had also banned more than 800 people from providing financial services or credit, and more than 390 people had been banned from being directors. These bannings prevent individuals from engaging in misconduct again and thereby they are actions that protect the community, Mr Shipton said. And while the principal purpose of a banning is protective, bannings also have a strong punitive impact on an individual s livelihood. To this end they are an important deterrent tool. He was, however, forced to

24 The Australian, Australia Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 19,037 Words: 995 Item ID: Page 3 of 3 defend ASIC s use of court enforceable undertakings to punish wrongdoing in the financial sector, saying it had provided an effective tool to obtain compensation for customers. Mr Shipton said the financial services had lost sight of the fact that it was managing other people s money and had failed to deal with conflict of interest. While they were a perennial challenge for businesses, particularly in the financial services industry, the failure of companies to address conflicts of interest was verging on a systemic issue and had been at the heart of issues raised at the royal commission. Citing actions against the sale of insurance in car yards, Mr Shipton said there had been reluctance, and often resistance, to addressing conflicts, especially those embedded in remuneration when ASIC pointed them out. He promised a new supervisory approach that will involve more intensive, and dedicated, supervision.

25 The Australian, Australia Author: Michael Roddan Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,063 Words: 638 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Inexperienced directors sit on super fund boards: APRA MICHAEL RODDAN SUPERANNUATION The governance standards of Australia s superannuation funds have been earmarked for an overhaul after the prudential regulator found some funds, particularly the union and employer-ed industry funds, are paying independent consultants to make up for a lack of director expertise on their boards. The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority yesterday released the findings of its yearlong inquiry into boards in the $2.5 trillion super industry, which found some industry funds had trouble appointing directors with appropriate superannuation and financial expertise because unions or employer groups blocked the appointment. The results of the investigation come amid a continued debate in the sector about the quality of directors managing the country s nest eggs. Financial Services Minister Kelly O Dwyer late last year was forced to put on the burner legislation aimed at requiring that funds appoint independent directors to a third of its board seats and install an independent chair. The industry fund sector, which has an equal representation of union appointees and employer-group appointees on their boards, have campaigned against the proposals. Industry funds say the laws could threaten the, on average, better returns garnered by the sector compared to the for-profit bank-owned retail fund sector. APRA deputy chairwoman Helen Rowell said standards in the super sector were improving, but boards have more work to do. She said new proposals would give a clear guide to industry better practice. Meeting the minimum requirements of APRA s prudential framework is not enough, Ms Rowell said. APRA continues to encourage (super boards) to change their mindset from one of legal compliance to aiming to deliver the best possible outcomes for their members. The financial services royal commission is yet to turn its focus to the superannuation industry, but many in the sector believe Continued on Page 23 Industry super funds by funds under management* $bn * to end December AusSuper UniSuper REST SunSuper HESTA Source: APRA

26 The Australian, Australia Author: Michael Roddan Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,063 Words: 638 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 Inexperienced boards overseeing funds Continued from Page 19 commissioner Kenneth Hayne will turn his interest to funds where long-serving board directors may have scuppered proposed mergers with other funds in order to keep their jobs. Such behaviour may breach fiduciary duties to act in the best interests of fund members. APRA s review, which focuses on a sample of 29 unnamed funds from the retail, industry and corporate sectors, found very few funds formally documented or could even articulate what their optimal board might look like. It also found there were limited plans outlined by funds for the target size of the board, the desired skills or workload considerations of directors. Funds are legally required to have a charter that sets out policies designed to get the right skills and composition of a board. APRA also found a high number of funds appointing independent experts and consultants as formal members of committees or as non-voting advisers providing input to decisions about risk taking, remuneration or investment. While the appointment of independent experts is standard practice across industry, APRA has observed through its supervisory activities that, in some situations, the appointment of independent experts to board committees has indicated a skills deficiency on the board, the regulator said. Consultants were mostly brought in by industry funds and were mostly brought in to advise on investment decisions APRA said it also found some industry funds experienced challenges appointing directors with necessary skills, particularly superannuation and financial expertise, because employer groups or unions blocked the appointments. A Senate economics committee inquiry into the independent directors legislation heard evidence that employer group appointees were often the most underskilled on a super board. While retail funds often own their own asset management arms and investment managers, industry funds must often insource expertise to give advice on investing in infrastructure. Still, APRA said boards should be forced to consider how the use of independent experts was a sign there was a skills deficiency on the board that would be more appropriately addressed through appointment of a director with the right skills and experience.

27 The Australian, Australia Author: Will Glasgow Christine Lacy Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 8,872 Words: 459 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 MARGIN CALL WILL GLASGOW & CHRISTINE LACY AusSuper: investor as predator It s tough being a minority investor in Healthscope now the Heather Ridout-chaired, Ian Silk-led industry fund behemoth AustralianSuper has gone steady with Ben Gray s private equity outfit BGH Capital. AustralianSuper, the biggest industry fund in the land, with more than about $120 billion in funds under management (including 14 per cent, or about $600 million, of Healthscope), has transformed from investor to predator. The industry fund has joined Gray s career-determining $4.1bn bid to take over the private healthcare operator. That s a first for this market. The scenario is further complicated by giant Canadian asset manager Brookfield s rival $4.35bn bid for the Paula Dwyer-chaired Healthscope, which was floated out of Gray s private equity hands less than four years ago. As part of the BGH consortium, Ridout, Silk and Silk s lucky moustache have ed Gray s management skills over those of Dwyer and Healthscope boss Gordon Ballantyne to deliver superior returns from the enterprise. Being part of Gray s bid team also removes the need for Aus- Super to sell into a takeover and then buy into Healthscope later when it s eventually refloated to keep AusSuper s index weighting in the stock. All understandable from Aus- Super s point of view, which manages the retirement savings of about 2 million workers (and half of Margin Call). Board members representing those workers include former ACTU secretary Dave Oliver and four more directors recommended by what is now Sally McManus s law-spurning ACTU: Julia Angrisano, Paul Bastian, Brian Daley and Daniel Walton. In the more than 25 years of compulsory superannuation in Australia, there has never been a more extraordinary spectacle than these unionistas slow dancing with the sharpest edge in Australian capitalism: Gray and his Ormond College- Continued on Page 20

28 The Australian, Australia Author: Will Glasgow Christine Lacy Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 8,872 Words: 459 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 AusSuper: investor turned predator Continued from Page 19 educated private equity mafia. But what about the other shareholders of Healthscope who could be blocked from Brookfield s $2.50-a-share offer if AusSuper s exclusive relationship with BGH locks the Healthscope board into Gray s lesser $2.36-a-share deal? For Healthscope s 8 per cent shareholder Ellerston Capital, chaired by former Packer family lieutenant Ashok Jacob (very much not a unionista), that would reduce his return on the takeover by $20m. That anguish has been spared for former 6 per cent shareholder Hyperion Asset Management, the Brissie-based boutique fund manager (chaired by Debbie Beale, the ex-wife of former AusSuper director now Opposition Leader Bill Shorten), which quietly left the register last year. Margin Call understands the investor was unimpressed with Healthscope s Ballantyne-led management. As far as we can see, the cleanest fix for all would be for Gray to add $245m to his bid to match Brookfield s offer so all shareholders are on a level playing field. But then, Gray s never really been too worried about other shareholders losing money. Mustachioed Ian Silk

29 The Australian, Australia Author: Ben Wilmot Sarah-Jane Tasker Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,749 Words: 571 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 $2bn Canadian fund to lure Healthscope assets EXCLUSIVE BEN WILMOT SARAH-JANE TASKER TAKEOVERS The Canadian real estate investment trust set to play a key role in the battle for private hospital group Healthscope is close to unveiling a $2 billion-plus specialist fund to hold Australian healthcare assets. NorthWest Healthcare Properties REIT is signing up major global ers for the fund, which could end up holding real estate assets owned by Healthscope in a similar structure if it is able to prize them out of the takeover battle. NorthWest chief executive Paul Dalla Lana announced material progress on plans for a $C2bn ($2.08bn) Australian institutional joint venture. The Canadian group has already built up more than $C2.5bn worth of healthcare property in Australia and New Zealand and is likely to seed the vehicle with its existing hospitals. Mr Dalla Lana said the Canadian trust was targeting Healthscope s real estate assets, rather than seeking to run hospitals. Healthscope s real estate assets are key to the takeover fight for the hospital operator. The Paula Dwyer-led board is reviewing two bids for the company a $4.1bn offer launched two weeks ago by a consortium led by BGH Capital and Monday s $4.35bn bid from Brookfield. NorthWest, which has emerged with a 10 per cent stake in Healthscope, is yet to indicate which parties it would in the takeover. Continued on Page 22

30 The Australian, Australia Author: Ben Wilmot Sarah-Jane Tasker Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,749 Words: 571 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 $2bn fund emerges in health asset fight Continued from Page 19 Healthscope owns 29 of its 45 Australian hospitals, with a book value of about $1bn, but Credit Suisse analysts have said the portfolio has not been revalued over the past five years and is likely significantly undervalued. The Healthscope suitors could seek to develop excess real estate lands or divest non-core hospital operations, the Credit Suisse team also said. NorthWest indicated that it was prepared to acquire all of Healthscope s real estate if necessary. There are lots of possibilities for how we might participate in the potential portfolio sale. Obviously we re prepared to consider all or even parts of the portfolio, Mr Dalla Lana said on an earnings call yesterday. He said the group was working very hard to be sort of a supportive partner and a long-term player to the variety of groups. Mr Dalla Lana said Healthscope s assets were of a high quality and would meet his investment criteria. Market analysts have said the battle for Healthscope was only in the first innings. Australian-listed Healthscope is in the sights of the rival private equity funds, with the BGH Capital-led consortium last month offering $2.36 a share and Canadian group Brookfield committing to a $2.50-a-share offer on Monday. NorthWest scooped up its 10 per cent stake a week ago via a derivative arranged by Deutsche Bank at $2.39 a share. Shares in Healthscope closed slightly higher yesterday at $2.48. Credit Suisse s US equity research team said Healthscope was in the early stages of a multiparty bidding contest. In our view, the first offer is typically not the most successful as prices tend to bias upwards, the analysts said. Complicating the fight for Healthscope is 14.5 per cent shareholder AustralianSuper s involvement in the BGH consortium. The super fund agreed not to any rival proposals. Credit Suisse s team said it would not be surprised if Brookfield evolved its bid with the support of new partners. In any event, the news flow around Healthscope looks to be in the early innings with a rather high level of interest from multiple players, Credit Suisse said.

31 The Australian, Australia Author: Michael Roddan Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 23 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,769 Words: 556 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Gig workers, self-employed miss out on $10bn a year in super EXCLUSIVE MICHAEL RODDAN SUPERANNUATION Gig workers and employees outside traditional workplaces are missing out on about $10 billion a year in superannuation payments a figure that will more than double over the next decade. The figures are contained in a joint submission, made by two of the country s largest superannuation funds, AustralianSuper and Cbus, to the Senate select committee investigating the future of work. The research found that nearly 2.3 million Australians partially or entirely fall outside of normal super coverage, where employers contribute 9.5 per cent of a worker s wage into their super. Self-employed operators, who may or may not be working in the black or cash economy and who do not contribute to their retirement savings account for nearly two-thirds of the unpaid superannuation. Self-employed contractors also often do not have an obligation to make compulsory payments, which means a further $2.2bn a year does not flow into super funds. Low-income employees who earn less than $450 a month and second-job workers also miss out on more than $1bn a year, according to the research. The research by NMG Consulting, for AustralianSuper and Cbus, estimates the amount failing to be paid into superannuation stands at $10bn as of last year equal to 11 per cent of the annual total employer contributions into the super system, which last year hit $92bn. The figure is expected to hit $23bn by The industry fund sector and the peak super body, the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, have been trying to pressure the federal government to remove the $450 monthly threshold on mandatory contributions, which disqualifies workers who earn less than $450 a month from receiving super. Although there are about 220,000 workers who earn less than $450 a month, the government is unlikely to lower or abolish the threshold. Opponents advise against carving off almost 10 per cent of meagre wages for low-income workers and locking it away until retirement. The abolition of the $450 threshold and increasing the super guarantee to 12 per cent as soon as possible are the key reforms needed to ensure the superannuation system keeps pace with the changing nature of work in the economy and ensures members can achieve the best possible retirement, Australian- Super head of membership Rose Kerlin said. The Grattan Institute think tank recently urged both sides of politics to drop the planned increase in the super guarantee to 12 per cent, saying Australians were already on track for adequate retirement incomes. Over the years to 2025, the super guarantee is due to hit 12 per cent. The main beneficiaries from a higher super guarantee will be high-income earners, who already reap most of the benefits from generous superannuationlinked tax breaks, according to the Grattan Institute. AustralianSuper believes that without meaningful reforms the superannuation system will be leaving vulnerable workers behind when it comes to retirement, Mr Kerlin said. The abolition of the $450 threshold could help up to one million Australian workers boost their superannuation savings. Cbus chief executive David Atkin, whose fund looks after workers in the construction industry, said transient contract work, casualisation and self-employment was increasing. Not surprisingly, the construction industry features prominently in the research around those not receiving compulsory super contributions, with an estimated gap of nearly $2bn a year affecting the retirement savings of nearly 350,000 people, Mr Atkin said. David Atkin

32 Courier Mail, Brisbane Author: Karina Barrymore Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 135,007 Page: 37 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 3,688 Words: 330 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Shares push super higher Balanced funds on track for a ninth year of profits KARINA BARRYMORE SUPERANNUATION funds are in profit, returning 1.7 per cent in April, helping to offset March losses. The April increase has pushed up total returns so far this financial year to more than 7.5 per cent, with two months to come. This puts the average balanced option fund on track for a ninth straight year of profits. According to independent research companies SuperRatings and Chant West, most of the increase during April was from a rise in sharemarkets in Australian and internationally. SuperRatings chief executive Kirby Rappell said the data shows superannuation serves members well through the market ups and downs. Members with full equity exposure will have been rocked around by the volatility earlier in the year but for super members in balanced or growth options, the ride has certainly been smoother, Mr Rappell said. During the past 10 years the median balanced super fund has returned an average of 6 per cent every year. This compares with the median growth fund, more than 80 per cent invested in listed assets, which has also returned 6 per cent during the same period but with greater risk. Chant West research manager Mano Mohankumar said Australian shares increased 3.8 per cent during April, while overseas shares went up by 1.9 per cent. Listed property units also increased 4.3 per cent in Australia and 2.9 per cent internationally. Unusually, not for profit industry funds underperformed bank-owned retail funds during April. Mr Mohankumar said industry funds returned an average of 1.6 per cent, while retail funds returned 1.8 per cent for the month. However, for the year to date, industry funds were still well ahead at 8.1 per cent, compared with retail funds at 7.1 per cent. Mr Mohankumar said super fund members with a 10- month return of about 7.5 per cent were on track for a strong financial year, well ahead of the typical long-term target return of per cent.

33 Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide Author: Karina Barrymore Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 112,097 Page: 59 Printed Size: cm² Market: SA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,502 Words: 242 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Funds on track for super year KARINA BARRYMORE SUPERANNUATION funds are in profit, returning 1.7 per cent in April, helping to offset March losses and on track for another strong financial year. The April increase has pushed up total returns so far this financial year to more than 7.5 per cent, with two months to come. This puts the average balanced option fund on track for a ninth-straight year of profits. Independent research companies SuperRatings and Chant West say most of the increase during April was from a rise in share markets in Australia and internationally. The April data shows superannuation serves members well through the market ups and downs, SuperRatings chief executive Kirby Rappell said. Members with full equity exposure will have been rocked around by the volatility earlier in the year but for super members in balanced or growth options, the ride has certainly been smoother, Mr Rappell said. During the past 10 years the median balanced super fund has returned an average of 6 per cent every year. This compares with the median growth fund, more than 80 per cent invested in listed assets, which has also returned 6 per cent during the same period but with greater risk. Chant West research manager Mano Mohankumar said Australian shares increased 3.8 per cent in April, while overseas shares went up by 1.9 per cent. Listed property units increased 4.3 per cent in Australia and 2.9 per cent globally. FOLLOW US ON THE ADVERTISER BUSINESS

34 Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 112,097 Page: 61 Printed Size: cm² Market: SA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,021 Words: 415 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Watchdog warns of corporate crackdown ANDREW WHITE THE new head of the corporate watchdog has warned the financial services sector he plans to use every inch of our powers and tools to punish misconduct. Australian Securities and Investments Commission chairman James Shipton has also accused companies of jeopardising Australia s regulatory structure by failing to act as the first line of defence against misconduct. In a speech yesterday, Mr Shipton said he planned to use new regulatory powers as soon as they became available. He confirmed he was in discussions with the government to get extra resources for enforcement and regulation. I am personally committed to using every inch of our powers and tools to get the outcomes the community deserves, Mr Shipton said at conference hosted by the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors in Sydney. And whilst we have been trying to do our job, unfortunately, all too often, the firms who have failed in their firstline responsibilities have made matters worse by not co-operating with us and, in some unacceptable cases, actually obstructed our work. What s more they have endangered the financial system they are meant to support. This cannot stand because if firms continue to fail to step up to their responsibilities, the integrity of our regulatory structure, and our financial system, is undermined. Mr Shipton, who started with ASIC three months ago, said the regulator had done a good job on enforcement with the powers it had. But it needed new powers and a new regulatory approach to overcome a jarring trust deficit in the finance industry, he said. He pointed to new powers including for the first time a penalty for companies that failed to efficiently, honestly and fairly provide services a new enforcement commissioner, Daniel Crennan, QC, and sharply increased fines for companies and individuals. Mr Shipton s comments are his first since the Government revealed it was cutting ASIC s funding in the federal Budget, only to reverse course by the end of the week and reveal he was in discussions with Treasury about extra resources. In his speech, he defended ASIC s enforcement record and said many of the revelations at the banking royal commission had come from investigations by the corporate regulator. My job is to ensure ASIC does its job and strategically responds to circumstances, Mr Shipton said. And in my current assessment of Australia s financial system, there is a real need for the new regulatory approaches that I mentioned earlier. - The Australian

35 Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide Author: Andrew White Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 112,097 Page: 61 Printed Size: cm² Market: SA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,021 Words: 415 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 EXTRA BITE: New ASIC chairman James Shipton. Picture: KYM SMITH

36 Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide Section: Letters Article type : Letter Classification : Capital City Daily : 112,097 Page: 18 Printed Size: cm² Market: SA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 2,529 Words: 189 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Blaming victims BILL Shorten s plan to pilfer imputation credit refunds in the name of egalitarianism will be monstrously unfair to women of a certain age. Those who married decades ago suffered the injustice of being then compelled by the government of the day to resign their positions and cash in their superannuation. That alone has cost them a fortune. Some were never able to resume work and, instead of regaining employer-funded super, had to create their own super fund or rely on their husband s fund. Many never married while others, now in their 70s, have lost their husbands. They rely on whatever super they have established independently, in which franking credits play a very significant part. They now face losing this support should Mr Shorten s Labor Party become the government after the next federal election. Meanwhile, the current Government has decreed that these women are past the age when they can now add to their super in order to safeguard their income from opportunistic raids by the politically ambitious. We are told that we get the governments we deserve. Sounds like blaming the victim to me. (Dr) ROB MORRISON, Bridgewater.

37 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Clancy Yeates Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 22 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 20,489 Words: 514 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 REGULATION Banks warned on conduct ASIC SCtouse every inch of powers Clancy Yeates The corporate watchdog will ramp up its surveillance of the wealth management arms of Australia s major banks and AMP and has slammed the industry for failing to act in customers interests and manage conflicts of interest. The dressing down came as Ian Silk, the chief executive of retirement savings giant AustralianSuper, said it was likely banks would ultimately scrap conflicted forms of remuneration, and there would likely be further restrictions on how people in the sector were paid. Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) chairman James Shipton said the sector s failure to deal with conflicts of interest was verging on a systemic issue and lay at the heart of many of the sector s woes. Mr Shipton said ASIC would use every inch of [its] powers to lift standards, but also slammed the behaviour of some businesses for obstructing the watchdog s work. He flagged that ASIC would be ramping up its wealth management project an investigation into the largest providers of wealth services including Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Bank, National Australia Bank, Westpac and AMP. Much of what we saw in the financial advice round of the royal commission hearings was based on the work of our wealth management project, he said at the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) conference on Thursday. We intend to accelerate and expand this intense program. After the latest round of royal commission hearings exposed serious misconduct in financial advice including poor advice and customer rip-offs Mr Shipton urged banks and other advice businesses to scrap conflicted payments in the sector. Conflicts of interest were always a challenge for businesses, he said, but it was clear that a number of institutions have not taken the management of conflicts of interest to heart. This is verging on a systemic issue. Indeed, it is the source of much of the misconduct ASIC has been responding to and which is being highlighted by the royal commission hearings, he said. On the sidelines of the conference, Mr Silk said conflicted forms of pay were generally designed to encourage a certain form of behaviour and it looked as though they would be removed. It is likely we re going to face a new regulatory structure around remuneration, I would imagine, said Mr Silk, who is also president of ACSI. Non-executive director Elana Rubin questioned whether short-term incentives would still exist in 10 years, saying the corporate world was at a tipping point in remuneration structures. The chairwoman of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Elizabeth Proust, said Ms Rubin was probably right about short-term bonuses, which may no longer exist in a few years. On Thursday, Macquarie Group also said it was cutting some financial adviser jobs as it focused more on wealthy clients. It said an unspecified number of advisers would be affected by its move to merge its private bank and private wealth businesses. Mr Shipton said the industry s trust deficit stemmed from the fact that many in finance appeared to have lost track of the financial system s ultimate purpose to manage other people s money.

38 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Clancy Yeates Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 22 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 16,808 Words: 462 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 AMP s all-female exits reflect cultural issues GOVERNANCE Clancy Yeates The fact that only female directors have stepped down from AMP s board is a reflection of deep cultural issues within the wealth manager, says Elana Rubin, the former chairwoman of Australian Super. After AMP s board this month lost chairman Catherine Brenner and directors Holly Kramer and Vanessa Wallace, with Patty Akopiantz set to step down this year, Ms Rubin told a panel discussion yesterday that she had been struck by the fact that no male directors had 1HERSA1 A022 stepped down. Ms Rubin made the comments on a panel alongside the chairwoman of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Elizabeth Proust, and the executive director of The Ethics Centre, Simon Longstaff, at the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors conference in Sydney yesterday. In a discussion on corporate culture, Dr Longstaff said it was an interesting question why only women had left the board, saying there were plenty of men on that board who had been there a long time too. Was there not a single man who it occurred to... also I was responsible for some of what happened?, Dr Longstaff said, prompting applause from some in the room. Ms Rubin, who is a director of Mirvac, ME Bank and Afterpay Touch Group, said the same point had occurred to her. The fact that that can happen I think just highlights the deep cultural issues in the organisation, which still today has failed to really look inside itself and see how can these things have continued to happen. The comments came as the chief risk officer of AMP s troubled financial advice division, Pally Bargri, resigned, citing insufficient capacity to meet the upcoming demands of the role. AMP s former chief executive Craig Meller also last month resigned earlier than planned over the scandal. The AMP board was this month hit by the resignations after the royal commission uncovered that it had repeatedly misled the corporate watchdog in relation to an overcharging scandal. Ms Kramer and Ms Wallace stepped down days before the company s AGM at which they were up for reelection, with a hefty protest vote on the cards. The resignations triggered a debate in the media about gender targets and boardroom diversity. In a later panel session, another non-executive director, Nicola Wakefield-Evans, said there were systemic cultural issues in the country regarding gender diversity in the corporate world, which was reflected in some of the reporting about Ms Brenner. Even so, she said Ms Brenner s decision to step down was the right one. If you look at AMP, it wouldn t have mattered if there had been a male chair, the outcome would have been the same, said Ms Wakefield- Evans, a director of companies including Lendlease and Macquarie Group. The decision she made, I think most people would agree, was the right decision.

39 Age, Melbourne Author: Clancy Yeates Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 20 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 14,322 Words: 514 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 REGULATION Banks warned on conduct ASIC to use every inch of powers Clancy Yeates The corporate watchdog will ramp up its surveillance of the wealth management arms of Australia s major banks and AMP and has slammed the industry for failing to act in customers interests and manage conflicts of interest. The dressing down came as Ian Silk, the chief executive of retirement savings giant AustralianSuper, said it was likely banks would ultimately scrap conflicted forms of remuneration, and there would likely be further restrictions on how people in the sector were paid. Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) chairman James Shipton said the sector s failure to deal with conflicts of interest was verging on a systemic issue and lay at the heart of many of the sector s woes. Mr Shipton said ASIC would use every inch of [its] powers to lift standards, but also slammed the behaviour of some businesses for obstructing the watchdog s work. He flagged that ASIC would be ramping up its wealth management project an investigation into the largest providers of wealth services including Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Bank, National Australia Bank, Westpac and AMP. Much of what we saw in the financial advice round of the royal commission hearings was based on the work of our wealth management project, he said at the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) conference on Thursday. We intend to accelerate and expand this intense program. After the latest round of royal commission hearings exposed serious misconduct in financial advice including poor advice and customer rip-offs Mr Shipton urged banks and other advice businesses to scrap conflicted payments in the sector. Conflicts of interest were always a challenge for businesses, he said, but it was clear that a number of institutions have not taken the management of conflicts of interest to heart. This is verging on a systemic issue. Indeed, it is the source of much of the misconduct ASIC has been responding to and which is being highlighted by the royal commission hearings, he said. On the sidelines of the conference, Mr Silk said conflicted forms of pay were generally designed to encourage a certain form of behaviour and it looked as though they would be removed. It is likely we re going to face a new regulatory structure around remuneration, I would imagine, said Mr Silk, who is also president of ACSI. Non-executive director Elana Rubin questioned whether short-term incentives would still exist in 10 years, saying the corporate world was at a tipping point in remuneration structures. The chairwoman of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Elizabeth Proust, said Ms Rubin was probably right about short-term bonuses, which may no longer exist in a few years. On Thursday, Macquarie Group also said it was cutting some financial adviser jobs as it focused more on wealthy clients. It said an unspecified number of advisers would be affected by its move to merge its private bank and private wealth businesses. Mr Shipton said the industry s trust deficit stemmed from the fact that many in finance appeared to have lost track of the financial system s ultimate purpose to manage other people s money.

40 Hobart Mercury, Hobart Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 28,265 Page: 23 Printed Size: 28.00cm² Market: TAS Country: Australia ASR: AUD 202 Words: 70 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Super on track THE typical superannuation fund is in profit returning 1.7 per cent last month to offset losses in March and on track for another strong financial year. For the average balancedoption fund, the total return so far this financial year is now more than 7.5 per cent. It means that with two months to go, the typical fund is on track for a ninth straight year of profit.

41 Cairns Post, Cairns Author: Karina Barrymore Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 13,896 Page: 33 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,138 Words: 343 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Returns looking super Funds on track for good year as profits up KARINA BARRYMORE SUPERANNUATION funds are in profit, returning 1.7 per cent in April, helping to offset March losses and on track for another strong financial year. The April increase has pushed up total returns so far this financial year to more than 7.5 per cent, with two months to come. This puts the average balanced option fund nicely on track for a ninth straight year of profits. According to independent research companies SuperRatings and Chant West, most of the increase in returns during April was from a rise in share markets in Australia and internationally. The April data shows superannuation serves members well through the market ups and downs, SuperRatings chief executive Kirby Rappell said. Members with full equity exposure will have been rocked around by the volatility earlier in the year but for super members in balanced or growth options, the ride has certainly been smoother. During the past 10 years the median balanced super fund has returned an average of 6 per cent every year. This compares with the median growth fund, more than 80 per cent invested in listed assets, which has also returned 6 per cent during the same period but with greater risk. Chant West research manager Mano Mohankumar said Australian shares increased 3.8 per cent during April. Overseas shares went up by 1.9 per cent. Listed property units also increased 4.3 per cent in Australia and 2.9 per cent internationally. Unusually, not for profit industry funds underperformed bank-owned retail funds during April. Mr Mohankumar said industry funds returned an average of 1.6 per cent, while retail funds returned 1.8 per cent for the month. However, for the year to date, industry funds were still well ahead at 8.1 per cent, compared with retail funds at 7.1 per cent. Mr Mohankumar said that super fund members with a 10 month return of about 7.5 per cent, were on track for a strong financial year, well ahead of the typical long-term target return of between 5.5 and 6.5 per cent.

42 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: Clancy Yeates Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 38 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,531 Words: 514 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 REGULATION Banks warned on conduct ASIC to use every inch of powers Clancy Yeates The corporate watchdog will ramp up its surveillance of the wealth management arms of Australia s major banks and AMP and has slammed the industry for failing to act in customers interests and manage conflicts of interest. The dressing down came as Ian Silk, the chief executive of retirement savings giant AustralianSuper, said it was likely banks would ultimately scrap conflicted forms of remuneration, and there would likely be further restrictions on how people in the sector were paid. Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) chairman James Shipton said the sector s failure to deal with conflicts of interest was verging on a systemic issue and lay at the heart of many of the sector s woes. Mr Shipton said ASIC would use every inch of [its] powers to lift standards, but also slammed the behaviour of some businesses for obstructing the watchdog s work. He flagged that ASIC would be ramping up its wealth management project an investigation into the largest providers of wealth services including Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Bank, National Australia Bank, Westpac and AMP. Much of what we saw in the financial advice round of the royal commission hearings was based on the work of our wealth management project, he said at the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) conference on Thursday. We intend to accelerate and expand this intense program. After the latest round of royal commission hearings exposed serious misconduct in financial advice including poor advice and customer rip-offs Mr Shipton urged banks and other advice businesses to scrap conflicted payments in the sector. Conflicts of interest were always a challenge for businesses, he said, but it was clear that a number of institutions have not taken the management of conflicts of interest to heart. This is verging on a systemic issue. Indeed, it is the source of much of the misconduct ASIC has been responding to and which is being highlighted by the royal commission hearings, he said. On the sidelines of the conference, Mr Silk said conflicted forms of pay were generally designed to encourage a certain form of behaviour and it looked as though they would be removed. It is likely we re going to face a new regulatory structure around remuneration, I would imagine, said Mr Silk, who is also president of ACSI. Non-executive director Elana Rubin questioned whether short-term incentives would still exist in 10 years, saying the corporate world was at a tipping point in remuneration structures. The chairwoman of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Elizabeth Proust, said Ms Rubin was probably right about short-term bonuses, which may no longer exist in a few years. On Thursday, Macquarie Group also said it was cutting some financial adviser jobs as it focused more on wealthy clients. It said an unspecified number of advisers would be affected by its move to merge its private bank and private wealth businesses. Mr Shipton said the industry s trust deficit stemmed from the fact that many in finance appeared to have lost track of the financial system s ultimate purpose to manage other people s money.

43 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: Clancy Yeates Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 38 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,379 Words: 462 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 AMP s all-female exits reflect cultural issues GOVERNANCE Clancy Yeates The fact that only female directors have stepped down from AMP s board is a reflection of deep cultural issues within the wealth manager, says Elana Rubin, the former chairwoman of Australian Super. After AMP s board this month lost chairman Catherine Brenner and directors Holly Kramer and Vanessa Wallace, with Patty Akopiantz set to step down this year, Ms Rubin told a panel discussion yesterday that she had been struck by the fact that no male directors had stepped down. Ms Rubin made the comments on a panel alongside the chairwoman of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Elizabeth Proust, and the executive director of The Ethics Centre, Simon Longstaff, at the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors conference in Sydney yesterday. In a discussion on corporate culture, Dr Longstaff said it was an interesting question why only women had left the board, saying there were plenty of men on that board who had been there a long time too. Was there not a single man who it occurred to... also I was responsible for some of what happened?, Dr Longstaff said, prompting applause from some in the room. Ms Rubin, who is a director of Mirvac, ME Bank and Afterpay Touch Group, said the same point had occurred to her. The fact that that can happen I think just highlights the deep cultural issues in the organisation, which still today has failed to really look inside itself and see how can these things have continued to happen. The comments came as the chief risk officer of AMP s troubled financial advice division, Pally Bargri, resigned, citing insufficient capacity to meet the upcoming demands of the role. AMP s former chief executive Craig Meller also last month resigned earlier than planned over the scandal. The AMP board was this month hit by the resignations after the royal commission uncovered that it had repeatedly misled the corporate watchdog in relation to an overcharging scandal. Ms Kramer and Ms Wallace stepped down days before the company s AGM at which they were up for reelection, with a hefty protest vote on the cards. The resignations triggered a debate in the media about gender targets and boardroom diversity. In a later panel session, another non-executive director, Nicola Wakefield-Evans, said there were systemic cultural issues in the country regarding gender diversity in the corporate world, which was reflected in some of the reporting about Ms Brenner. Even so, she said Ms Brenner s decision to step down was the right one. If you look at AMP, it wouldn t have mattered if there had been a male chair, the outcome would have been the same, said Ms Wakefield- Evans, a director of companies including Lendlease and Macquarie Group. The decision she made, I think most people would agree, was the right decision.

44 West Australian, Perth Section: Letters Article type : Letter Classification : Capital City Daily : 147,676 Page: 61 Printed Size: 45.00cm² Market: WA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 789 Words: 109 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Recoup the losses As a shareholder in three banks, AMP and Telstra, I do think it is time the Federal Government and the Australian Securities and Investment Commission started to recoup the millions of dollars that shareholders have lost. As a 78-year-old person who has just retired and never been out of work since three months before I turned 14, these few shares I possess are all the super I have. All these chief executives who take home millions of dollars a year in bonuses and have caused this massive fiasco should be fined heavily instead of we shareholders and the general public being held to ransom. Name and address withheld.

45 West Australian, Perth Section: Letters Article type : Letter Classification : Capital City Daily : 147,676 Page: 61 Printed Size: 67.00cm² Market: WA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,175 Words: 156 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Bonus bonanza One hundred and eighty-nine employees of the ABC on executive pay-grades have been awarded a total of about $2.2 million in bonuses. A further 190 non-executive employees of the same taxpayer-funded organisation have been awarded bonuses totalling $385,000. This is on top of their bloated taxpayer-funded salaries and generous superannuation schemes. I could understand bonuses being awarded if the ABC was making a profit, or ratings were soaring, but the reality is that the ABC does the opposite of make a profit and is bleeding the taxpayer dry. Its ratings, if it were a commercial organisation, would be heading it towards liquidation. So what are these employees of the ABC being awarded bonuses for, one might ask? It appears that it is for merely doing their job. The sooner this anachronistic, money-guzzling organisation is privatised, so that the hordes of Australians who supposedly love it can pay for it themselves, the better. Greg Williams, Bicton

46 West Australian, Perth Section: Letters Article type : Letter Classification : Capital City Daily : 147,676 Page: 61 Printed Size: 44.00cm² Market: WA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 771 Words: 110 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 How do I get one? I have read of the generous bonuses being paid to the executives of the ABC and other big organisations like banks, mining companies, etc. Surely bonuses should only be paid where someone is clearly excelling at their duty in order to merit this extra cash? Being on a part-pension myself (less than $500 per fortnight), I also work part-time where I can to supplement this, as my partner's modest superannuation lowers my age pension entitlement. I also do regular voluntary work with several community groups and I m a former member of the defence forces. Can I put my hand up for a bonus, please? Name and address supplied

47 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Alice Uribe Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 4 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,652 Words: 540 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 ASIC reveals plans to speed up the pursuit Alice Uribe The corporate regulator has put the financial advice sector on notice, laying out plans to speed up its investigations into wealth management firms and warning of a new era of more "intensive, dedicated" oversight James Shipton, who took up his role as Australian Securities and Investments Commission chairman three months ago, said the regulator would expand its Wealth Management Project - which has so far snared financial advisers at the big four banks and AMP and flagged the dangers of vertical integration. "Much of what we saw in the financial advice round of the royal commission hearings was based on the work of our Wealth Management Project," Mr Shipton told the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors conference in Sydney on Thursday. "We intend to accelerate and expand this intense program. We are also looking at ways to build on our substantial enforcement outcomes." The corporate regulator plans to use more "external expertise" in its investigations and enforcement actions. "This will help accelerate our response times and ensure ASIC continued to deliver strong enforcement results." The royal commission heard a range of shocking revelations at its second round of hearings - which focused on financial advice - last month, including wealth management giant AMP charging its clients fees for services it did not provide and then lying to ASIC about it, and the Commonwealth Bank charging fees to dead people. The two weeks culminated with counsel assisting the royal commission Rowena Orr QC inviting Commissioner Kenneth Hayne to find that AMP broke the law - a suggestion the wealth management giant has rejected. Mr Shipton said the financial services sector remained "under threat", adding that institutions have not only "failed in their first-line compliance duty, they have jeopardised the entire regulatory structure". "This cannot stand, because if firms continue to fail to step up to their responsibilities, the integrity of our regulatory structure, and ourfinancialsystem, is undermined," he said. He added the finance sector's failure to deal with a variety of conflicts of interest was "verging on a systemic issue", and that ASIC planned to use "every inch of our powers and tools" to prosecute breaches. But Mr Shipton was forced to defend the regulator's reliance on enforceable undertakings - which some industry commentators say is indicative of a "toothless regulator". "It is a very valuable tool," said Mr Shipton, adding that the regulator would have increased powers going forward. On Thursday, ASIC permanently banned former Westpac financial adviser Ezzat-Daniel Nesseim from providing financial services for providing false evidence to ASIC. Mr Nesseim lied under oath and provided the regulator with dated client certificates in an attempt to stymie an ASIC investigation. Last month the Turnbull government increased criminal and civil penalties for corporate misconduct and boosted ASICs surveillance powers. The corporate regulator will have stronger powers to refuse, revoke or cancelfinancialservices of credit licences where the licensee is "not fit or proper" and be granted access to telecommunications intercept material to improve its investigative tools. Mr Shipton welcomed these moves and said ASIC would "adopt new supervisory approaches", with a focus on the country's largest financial institutions and superannuation funds. He said Australia was lagging other countries with regard to civil, criminal and intervention powers.

48 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Jonathan Shapiro Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 18 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 2,528 Words: 373 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Dwyer warns on gender savings gap Jonathan Shapiro The retiring chief executive of $90 billion superannuation fund First State Super Michael Dwyer says pension funds must deal with the growing gender savings gap. Mr Dwyer says female members are falling too far behind when they take time out of the workforce. "One of the issues we have been vocal about is how to bridge the savings gap," Mr Dwyer told The Australian Financial Review. "Broken work patterns are a major issue. They are the sort of things we need to educate the community on but also our members." First State Super was initially set up to manage the pension assets of state government employees such as nurses and teachers. Mr Dwyer said about 63 per cent of its funds under management are held for female members and quoted industry research that the average savings for males was $295,000 compared to $138,000 for females. Mr Dwyer is retiring as chief executive later this year after more than 13 years in the position. During that time, the fund's assets have grown by 10 times from $9 billion to $90 billion. That growth was helped by opening up to take public money in 2006 and two significant mergers, in 2011 with Health Super and in 2016 when it acquired the government's financial planning business StatePlus for $1 billion. While the advice industry has come under intense scrutiny during the Hayne royal commission, Mr Dwyer said the value of providing trusted financial advice to everyday Australians had never been more important "It makes a dramatic and significant difference to get that advice. People who do certain occupations should be allowed to get on with their job and have trusted relevant partners such as ourselves to look after their interests." The superannuation industry, he said, also faced challenges in engaging with younger members. For older members, the challenge will be ensuring the pools of assets they have accumulated are enough as life expectancy increases. Mr Dwyer also reiterated First State Super's commitment to the concept of "universal ownership", in which managers of large pools of capital adopt a holistic approach to ensuring it is deployed for the benefit of its members, and broader society. Mr Dwyer said the fund remained committed to serving its members.

49 Townsville Bulletin, Townsville QLD Author: Tony Raggatt Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 16,484 Page: 37 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 3,605 Words: 353 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 BUSINESS EDITOR TONY RAGGATT TONY.RAGGATT@NEWS.COM.AU FIT FINANCE TIPS: CEO of AustralianSuper, Ian Silk, will visit Townsville later this month. EXPERT SHARES SUPER INSIGHT TONY RAGGATT THE head of Australia s largest super fund, with $130 billion under management, will visit Townsville later this month at the invitation of Mayor Jenny Hill. AustralianSuper chief executive Ian Silk will meet with key government and industry stakeholders, discover what the city has to offer and advise on how to tackle the superannuation gender gap facing female workers. Cr Hill said having the CEO of AustralianSuper visit Townsville was a rare opportunity for employees and businesses. AustralianSuper is the country s biggest super fund with more than $130 billion of members money invested in Australia and around the world, Cr Hill said. It s fantastic Mr Silk is sharing his knowledge of the superannuation system and the global economy with our workers to ensure they understand what they need to do to become financially fit for their retirement. Cr Hill said she hoped a breakfast being held in conjunction with the Townsville Business Women s Circle on May 30 would generate ideas about how local workers and employers can reduce the superannuation

50 Townsville Bulletin, Townsville QLD Author: Tony Raggatt Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 16,484 Page: 37 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 3,605 Words: 353 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 gender gap. It is real and it s going to affect a lot of local women no matter how long they have been in the workforce, Cr Hill said. I m hoping the breakfast will help generate a lot of practical ideas about how the Townsville business community can do its part to reduce the superannuation gender gap. Cr Hill said Mr Silk would meet Townsville City Council staff to speak about being financially fit for retirement. She said the council s blue-collar workforce had received a 0.5 per cent increase in their superannuation entitlements as part of a wage deal secured last year. Council has taken a big step in preparing its workforce for retirement by providing an extra 0.5 per cent in employer superannuation contributions to our workers who mow the city s parks and build our roads, Cr Hill said. Mr Silk will be in the city for events on May 30 and 31. AustralianSuper has more than more than 2.2 million members, with assets of $130 billion.

51 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Misa Han Section: Legal Affairs Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 34 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 13,107 Words: 846 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Bonuses for in-house counsel face scrutiny Misa Han The way general counsel and chief risk officers are paid is a hot topic as the banking royal commission and regulators draw attention to how remuneration incentives affect outcomes. Banks are under pressure to review bonus structures as regulators question whether linking pay to financial results undermines the independence and long-term outlook expected of executives in top risk and legal roles. The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority's report into the Commonwealth Bank, earlier this month, noted the bank's chief risk officer, and former general counsel, David Cohen's fixed and variable remuneration mix was "not materially different" from that of the business unit executives. It noted that at other banks, chief risk officers received a higher weighting to fixed remuneration "aimed at safeguarding the independence of this critical function". The 2017 annual reports from the big four banks and AMP, whose chief risk officer for advice resigned this week, show that at most of the institutions, variable remuneration - made up of both short-term and long-term incentives - paid to chief risk officers exceeded 45 per cent of their total remuneration. The only exception was at NAB, where variable remuneration made up less than a third of chief risk officer David Gall and general counsel Sharon Cook's remuneration. Michael Robinson, director of remuneration consulting firm Guerdon Associates, said that generally global guidelines require chief risk officers' variable remuneration to be linked to non-financial indicators of performance rather than financial indicators such as revenue and profit At CBA, 30 per cent of the chief risk officer's short-term variable pay and 40 per cent of general counsel's short-term variable pay are linked to financial outcomes, compared to 60 per cent for business executives. Mr Robinson also said that overseas it was more common to see chief risk officers being paid a fixed salary and long-term bonuses only. "In some regulated entities around the world you will see chief risk officers are on no variable remuneration whatsoever. What they receive is a normal fixed pay, and a grant of equity that might be deferred over a long time," he said. He said similar principles can apply to general counsel because they are primarily performing risk roles, and if their pay is linked to sales, a conflict of interest could arise. "Generally, bonuses for someone associated with risk management would not be short-term focused because it is about looking after the sustainability [of the business] in the long term," he said. Monash University banking and finance expert John Vaz said top executives in risk roles should not receive short-term incentives linked to the company's financial performance. "Any variable component [of a risk executive's salary] should be tied to the performance in the risk area. The risk department should not be compromised by any financial performance-based incentives," he said. A CBA spokeswoman said it was developing a full plan to address APRA's recommendations, to be made public in early July, and it will reflect the report's findings about remuneration outcomes for past and current executives. An AMP spokeswoman said it would consult with key stakeholders to determine the right remuneration approach for its executives, including its chief risk officer and general counsel, in The last financial year, then chief risk officer Saskia Goedhart was paid $1.7 million, 65 per cent of it in bonuses. Then group general counsel Brian Salter, who made headlines for instructing Clayton Utz to make changes to an independent report destined for ASIC, was paid $2.7 million, 71 per cent of it in bonuses. AMP's board exercised its discretion to forfeit Mr Salter's outstanding deferred remuneration. An ANZ spokesman said the chief risk officer's pay was structured differently to other executives to minimise conflicts of interest, including by having a lower variable reward target of 170 per cent of fixed remuneration compared to 200 per cent for other group executives. A NAB spokeswoman said the bank made changes to its risk officer's remuneration structure in 2011 and when it introduced the chief legal counsel role in 2017 the bank introduced a similar remuneration structure with a higher proportion of fixed remuneration compared to other executives and a greater weight on long-term rather than short-term incentives. A Westpac spokesman declined to comment on specific individual remuneration outcomes, but said the remuneration committee and board consider senior executive remuneration each year.

52 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Misa Han Section: Legal Affairs Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 34 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 13,107 Words: 846 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 Kenneth Hayne (top), who is heading the banking royal commission, and APRA boss Wayne Byres. PHOTOS: ROYAL COMMISSION, LOUISE KENNERLEY

53 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Misa Han Section: Legal Affairs Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 34 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 13,107 Words: 846 Item ID: Page 3 of 3 Remuneration of chief nsk officers and general counsel at financial institutions, FY17 Former firm Total David Gall Chief Risk Officer $2,095,978 Sharon Cook General Counsel' KWM, HDY $487,179 David Cohen Chief Risk Officer Aliens $2,252,260 Anna Lenahan Genera! Counsel* Aliens $1,369, , ,586 (62.8%) Nigel Williams Chief Risk Officer" $3,250,000 1,350,000 1,900,000 (58.! Bob Santamaria General Counsel Aliens Not in the executive team, so not disclosed in annual repoi Alexandra Holcomb Chief Risk Officer** $2,034,036: 1,003,000 1,031,036(50.7% Rebecca Lim Genera! Counsel* Ashurst $1,410,727: 750, ,727 (46.8%) Saskia Goedhart Chief Risk Officer"* $1,736,000 : 600,000 1,136,000(65.4%) Brian Salter Genera! Coursser* Clayton Utz $2,735,000 : 785,000 1,950,000 SOURCE: FY17 ANNUAL REPORTS * Part year " Retired or resigned in 2018 * * Resigned in 2017

54 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Alice Uribe Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 12 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,785 Words: 672 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 'Not one male director of AMP put their hand up,' says Rubin Alice Uribe Prominent company director Elana Rubin has questioned why it was the women directors on the AMP board who fell on their swords, saying it was a striking example of a problematic board culture. Ms Rubin said the problems at AMP revealed by damning revelations at the Hayne royal commission highlighted "deep cultural issues within the organisation" but "the problems had existed long before Catherine Brenner took the chair". "The fact that... not one male director of AMP put their hand up and said we won't seek re-election... we'll flag that now as collective accountability. "The fact that didn't happen just highlights the deep cultural issue in the organisation, which still today has failed to looked inside itself, and say how could these things have continued to happen?" Ms Rubin also slammed the characterisation of boards being made up of poor-performing "part-timers", saying directorships were no longer just "something to do on the way to golf. She rejected the suggestion that joining a board was a "lifestyle choice" or a "halfway house". "I think that characterisation may have been true a number of years ago, but the changes that have taken place that I've seen over the past 15 years of being a non-executive director is that if s actually a career," she said on a panel at the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors Conference in Sydney on Thursday. Wesfarmers and AGL Energy company director Diane Smith- Gander on Wednesday told The Australian Financial Review the country had too many part-time directors as revelations at the banking royal commission highlighted the poor performance of some high-profile boards. Elana Rubin: "I see it as a far more extensive role than it has been in the past, and definitely not something to do on the way to golf." PHOTO: ROB HOMER Ms Smith-Gander added that AMP's board upheaval - chairman Catherine Brenner and three female directors resigned in as many weeks - would be a turning point in the way boardrooms were run. But Ms Rubin, who is a former chairman of behemoth fund AustralianSuper and is now director of Mirvac and ME Bank, said more directors were getting out of the boardroom and "kicking the tyres". "They've got to get out and see the business in operation," she said. "They've got to speak to employees, they've got to meet with customers. "I see it as a far more extensive role than it has been in the past, and definitely not something to do on the way to golf. On the same panel, Elizabeth Proust, chairman of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, said: "I think that too many people sit on the outside, so see it as a lifestyle and it's absolutely nothing of the kind. "It's a serious occupation. For many people it is a transition to retirement, and it's not retirement, but if s certainly not a lifestyle job." But industry commentators have raised concerns about "overboarding", where directors sit on a number of boards. Ms Rubin said she got "great benefif' from sitting on a variety of boards. "You see different approaches, you hear different issues, you assemble different information by the process of osmosis and you use it to strengthen how you go about your work," she said. According to Ownership Matters, of the 1721 directors that sit on ASX boards, one, Robert Millner, has seven positions, eight directors have five and 126 have three seats. Coca-Cola Amatil revealed on Wednesday that Ms Brenner would not stand for re-election at the soft drinks maker after 10 years at the beverage giant. Ms Brenner quit as chairman of the embattled financial services group last month after the banking royal commission heard AMP never gave customers advice for which they had paid, and then lied about it to regulators. Coca-Cola Amatil chairman liana Atlas said, while it was in the interests of investors for Ms Brenner to stay on the board, she did not intend to seek re-election at the annual meeting next year at the end of her current term.

55 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Joanna Mather Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 12 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,481 Words: 520 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Boards of super funds theru gaming es: APRA Joanna Mather The boards of superannuation funds have been caught out manipulating bestpractice guidelines so that incumbent directors can serve very long periods. Some boards are also rejecting quality directors with relevant expertise in favour of appointees from a fund's sponsoring organisations - unions and employer groups. The weaknesses were identified by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority in a governance review of the $2.5 trillion super sector. The results come at a time of heightened concern about the performance of boards overseeing financial services companies. The APRA review found examples where boards had adopted tenure limits, but reset the clock from the day of the revised policy, "allowing existing longterm directors to remain on the board for another maximum term of 12 years". This demonstrated a "tension with the spirit and intent of the prudential framework", APRA said in documents sent to super funds on Thursday. APRA officials also observed policies that appeared to be "designed to enshrine the current composition of the board or enable some directors with long tenure to continue". Some policies measured the average tenure of the board as a whole, rather than individual directors, while others allowed indefinite or permanent tenure for certain directors while they also held a senior position in a sponsoring organisation. The "thematic review" of super governance examined 29 licensees from funds of varying types and size. It comes amid intense scrutiny of organisational culture in financial services. Three AMP directors have resigned as a result of revelations heard at the banking royal commission, while the board of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia was excoriated by APRA after the bank allegedly broke anti-money laundering laws. "Very few boards had formally documented, or were able to articulate, what their optimal board (and committee) composition should be, and how this might change... in light of their strategic plan and objectives," APRA's review report says. "A framework to address board underperformance was also commonly lacking across the sample population. Almost two-thirds had no evidence of a process for dealing with underperformance beyond steps for removal of a director for breaching fitness and propriety criteria." The report singles out boards with "equal representation" governance models. These are the boards for which half of the directors are appointed by unions and the other half by employer groups. "Where boards have an equal representation structure, it is common that a nominating organisation is given the power to veto an appointment or reappointment of a director of a board via their respective constitutions and charters," it says. "The thematic review indicated that some boards had experienced challenges in appointing quality candidates with the necessary capabilities, particularly superannuation and financial expertise, in part due to the limitations imposed by constitutions." APRA deputy chairman Helen Rowell has been expressing concern about the size, composition, renewal policies and performance goal-setting of super funds for several years. The Coalition government tried, but failed, to pass legislation that would have required all boards to have at least onethird independent directors, with one of them serving as independent chairman. Helen Rowell has long been concerned by the actions of super funds, PHOTO: PAT SCALA

56 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Michael Angwin Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 39 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,187 Words: 523 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 CFMEU: keep calm and reform IR Union win John Setka and Sally McManus are setting the workplace agenda. Why is the Turnbull government letting them doit? Michael Angwin Lef s everybody calm down. Yeah, John Setka is saying again, in the chorus behind Sally McManus, that he has to break the law to get improved conditions for his members. He's trying to tell you that the law is so bad that he has no choice but to break it. That's Sally's script and he's sticking to it Let's be clear. While Setka and his union may break the law - do break the law - "breaking the law" is not an industrial tactic deployed in sorrow rather than anger. It is a campaign slogan that goes alongside "changing the rules". Setka may also be -filling in an effort to justify the millions of dollars of his members' fees being spent on fines, penalties and costs. But Setka and McManus are doing little more than framing their campaign to acquire more legislated bargaining power and standing. They are not so much inventing a justification for illegal union behaviour as creating the argument that the law must be changed to accommodate the ambitions they are unable to achieve through their own capability and strategy. That's always how it's been. Trade unions have always been partly reliant on the law for their growth, standing and successes - even on the laws that they break. Sometimes they've been reliant on businesses and they've done enterprise bargaining deals that give them standing in exchange for concessions. And being key players in industry super funds hasn't been bad for their longevity either. Now, they are just looking for a bit more help as their membership stagnates and declines, and as they look a little into the future and see that it is no more accommodating than the present I suppose it is inevitable that the Turnbull government should respond with outrage when anybody boasts that they break the law. Most of us would. But more sober reflection should follow. McManus and, to some extent Setka, are setting the pace on industrial relations change. You may not like Sally's ideas and you may not like Setka's methods. Butyou have to credit them with ideas and strategy and impact The Turnbull government and most business organisations currently have no antidote to the success of the McManus/ Setka axis. That's because they are missing from the action of the ideas swirling around industrial relations. Neither government policy nor business advocacy is being wellserved by data on the impact of the current industrial relations system on business performance. There's a good case to be made that reform that facilitates the speed and extent of business responses to changes in markets, costs, skills, technology and social norms will help boost thepaceofpay increases. But the government and business are not making it Industrial relations does need reform to help prepare the country for the economic challenges ahead; but not in the McManus/ Setka direction. Rather than fulminate, the government would be better served by developing a few ideas of its own and by campaigning for them. Michael Angwin advises companies on IR matters.

57 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Phillip Coore Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 39 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 8,859 Words: 1072 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Labor's tax strategy will face its own Senate ordeal Canberra observed Labor has gone for a high risk, high tax gambit ~ but can Bowen rely on that revenue? Phillip Coorey When Labor first announced plans to curb superannuation tax breaks and flagged placing limits on negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions, Malcolm Turnbull wasn't even prime minister. It was April 2015 and Labor's moves were considered crazy brave. The Greens, as they had on many other policy issues, had led in calling for changes to super concessions and negative gearing. But while the Greens had the luxury of all care no responsibility, it was different level of risk for the alternative government to put its neck on the line. These days Labor feels not just vindicated but emboldened. In 2016, Labor was flattered when the Turnbull government went further than it had proposed and curbed super tax concessions in the budget Labor's narrow loss at the federal election in July that same year convinced the party it was on a winner with its plans for negative gearing and CGT. To his credit, shadow treasurer Chris Bowen has promised from the very early days of Opposition that should Labor be elected, there would be no nasty surprises like those Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey unveiled in the 2014 budget Labor would take the "hard decisions" and announce them before elections, which it has done. Not only does Bowen see this approach as a basis for establishing trust with the voters, he has argued previously the modern maul of politics means a newly elected government needs to hit the ground with an agenda or be wiped out Accordingly, since the 2016 election, Labor has amplified its revenue raising/ reform efforts considerably, announcing plans to tax family trusts, abolish cash refunds for excess franking credits, cap at $3000 the deducibility for the preparation of a tax return, impose farther limits on superannuation tax concessions, increase the top marginal tax rate to 49 per cent and legislate to revoke the vast majority of the company tax cuts should they be passed this term. These, along with negative gearing and CGT, according to Labor's current costings, would give it a maximum $220 billion over the next decade which it could use to outbid the government on income tax cuts, pay down debt faster and spend more on its "inclusive growth" agenda based on education, skills training and health care. The government which is still struggling with the concept that Labor regards its hightax plans as a virtue, sought to embarrass the Opposition this week by having Treasury cost the various tax hikes over the four-year forward estimates period and come to the conclusion that in the short term, the biggest source of funding for Labor's plans would come from belting self 1 funded retirees by abolishing their cash payments for excess franking credits. This is worth pointing out given that Labor, as Shorten did repeatedly in his budget reply, is creating the impression that all the promised goodies are coming at the expense of not giving big business a tax cut Far from it Big businesses like the banks would not receive their cut until under the 10-year company tax reduction plan. Still, Treasury and the government could have saved their time and just used the costings Labor has published because Labor is making no attempt to hide the fact it is flogging retirees, claiming the cash refunds are an anachronism. Its own numbers show the retirees tax over 10 years will constitute more than onequarter of the $220 billion and Bowen regarded the whole Treasury exercise as an endorsement "[Morrison] said, and the government had said in the past that our figures were wrong and dividend imputation reform wouldn't raise as much as we said," Bowen said. "He appears now to be accepting that he was wrong and we were right "Secondly, if we are accused of paying for our policies, then I plead guilty." Still, the risks with Labor's approach are twofold. Firstly, is the revenue it is banking on realistic? Regardless of Treasury endorsing its policy costings, Labor, should it win the election, is going to need a sympathetic Senate and that is far from assured. Assuming Turnbull doesn't have another brain snap and call another doubledissolution election, the current-11 member Senate crossbench will most likely be cut to five after the next half-senate election. Six of them - Derryn Hinch, David Leyonhjelm, Fraser Anning, Brian Burston, Peter Georgiou and Tom Storer- scraped in last time because they, or the disqualified/ retired senator they replaced, were able to cobble together half a quota of votes as required in a double dissolution. All are on three-year terms and except perhaps for Hinch, face an almost impossible task of being returned at a normal half-senate election. Only those crossbenchers on full-six year terms are guaranteed to be there after the election - Pauline Hanson, the Centre Alliance's Stirling Griff and Rex Patrick, Steve Martin (who replaced the disqualified Jacqui Lambie) and Cory Bernardi, who defected from the Liberal Parry. And all these five are low taxers. They supported the first tranche of company tax cuts for those with turnovers capped at $50 million. Labor will a least try and pare this tax break to companies with turnovers capped at $10 million. And all but Griff and Patrick, who are still deciding, the remainder of the company tax cut package. They are most unlikely to support any Labor bill to revoke the tax cuts thus far legislated, nor revoke the remainder of the package if it passes before the election. Neither are they likely to increase the top marginal tax rate to 49 per cent worth $22.5 billion over the decade. Consequently, unless Labor and the Greens boost their Senate numbers to a combined 39 votes at the election, Labor's $220 billion war chest could be reduced by between $50 billion and $100 billion. Less hypothetical is the second risk, which is whether Labor has pushed it too far with its tax plans. One senior source confided the assault on franking credit cash payments would cost Labor several hundred thousand votes, but these would be made up for elsewhere with the spending plan. The coming byelections will be the first indicator of how that cunning plan is tracking. Phillip Coorey is The Australian Financial Review's political editor.

58 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Phillip Coore Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 39 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 8,859 Words: 1072 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 Chris Bowen and Bill Shorten have laid their cards on the table early, PHOTO: AAP

59 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: James Thomson Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 33 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,279 Words: 749 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 James Thomson Hayne set to tackle SME lending next We are only days away from the next instalment of the greatest show in Australian business getting under way again. Senior counsel assisting the banking royal commission, Rowena "Shock And" Orr will be sharpening her dagger-like questions to a fine point while Commissioner Ken Hayne will be pondering where to make his wise interventions in each day's proceedings. But while the last round of hearings upended a 186-year old institution in AMP, and cost the jobs of several of its most senior officers, the next round of hearings may not provide such a banking and finance bloodbath - at least initially. The third round of hearings, which begin Monday, will focus on lending to small and medium enterprises. Having covered this space for the best part of a decade, there is no doubt that SME lending is a contentious and emotive issue. Get a group of entrepreneurs in a room and they can talk for hours about their experiences and frustrations in dealing with the banks. But where the first round of royal commission hearings focused on loans the banks shouldn't have made to borrowers (in this case, home buyers), the issues are very different in small business land. Here, the most common complaints are about the loans that the banks do not make. The ability of SMEs to access bank funding - and the propensity for banks to withdraw credit they have extended - has always been the central issue in this sector, which is why it will be fascinating to see how the royal commission interprets the first item on its agenda: responsible lending. While the pressure on banks to ensure they are making home loans only where the borrower can afford them has risen sharply in recent years - including through the first round of the royal commission in March - the SME sector has resisted the introduction of responsible lending provisions. The argument has been quite simple: SME loans are hard enough to get already, so putting in place a layer of compliance on top of this may further restrict credit flow. You could even say all SME loans are somewhat irresponsible, in that a bank cannot judge the borrower's ability to pay as easily as it can with a mortgage. Where a home loan is supposed to be made based on what income the borrower has now, a business loan is made on what income will be built in the future. The banks must necessarily take a punt on the entrepreneur - and the younger the business, the bigger the punt That is not to say that banks shouldn't carefully assess a business borrower's suitability to a loan, and there have been pushes for SMEs to come under the responsible lending regime that overlays consumer loans. But while it's possible the royal commission may unearth examples of banks irresponsibly lending to SMEs, the perennial protests of entrepreneurs about the banks' unwillingness to lend does suggest these would be relatively limited. Where the commission will certainly land blows is on the way banks treat SME customers who have existing loans. We know this topic will be tackled through the quite specific lens of the BankWest saga, where Commonwealth Bank, having bought BankWest at the height of the GFC, has been repeatedly accused of calling in loans in an unfair manner that caused the collapse of many businesses. This is likely to be particularly brutal for CBA, which has long denied that it was acting with any other motive than to protect its interests in the midst of a global firestorm. It's not hard to imagine Orr and her team presenting reams of internal correspondence that

60 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: James Thomson Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 33 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,279 Words: 749 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 will raise questions about the way CBA and other banks acted during this period. There will also likely be some quite ugly instances too of the banks suddenly changing loan terms for SME customers, or retreating from a sector, or making a sudden decision not to rollover a loan at the end of its term. A series of inquiries have looked at these problems and forced the banks to change their terms. But these instances might not resonate with the public in the way the fee rip-offs in financial planning or bribes for mortgage commissions did. Lending to SME is an inherently risky area, and so the battles are much less black and white. While if s easy to damn banks for taking too many risks to boost profit, it may prove harder to whack them for taking too few.

61 Australian Financial Review, Australia Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 16 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 2,023 Words: 293 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 IPS smashes $3b target As the banking royal commission has financial services companies, planners and investors re-thinking their future, the spotlight has turned to broking platforms. While the future of the industry may be up in the air, what's clear is that there will be increased focus on separation of advice and products, which is likely to play into the hands of independents. In that light, Street Talk understands platform owner Integrated Portfolio Solutions (IPS) has been quietly snapping up customers. Sources said the group had surpassed $3 billion in funds under administration across the company's investment and SMSF platform. And the flows are said to have picked up in recent months as investment advisers and family offices make the switch. So we wouldn't be surprised to see IPS line up as an initial public offering contender. While it is believed there is nothing imminent sources reckon it's one to watch. IPS is already ed by Singapore private equity firm Aura Group. The investor took a stake six months ago - which in turn helped the platform owner to expand its team and accelerate its technology road map. And IPS is tipped to follow its new investor with a Singaporean office. The end game is expected to be an IPO or trade sale - where it could end up trading alongside rivals Netwealth andhub24. "We have a clear corporate strategy which encompasses growth and M&A opportunities," IPS director Edward Caser told Street Talk. "We have been approached before, and no doubt will again. Maybe we'll find our own acquisition opportunity. I would say the favourite in the race is we'll remain private for the foreseeable future. If a transaction did occur, I think there's as much chance of a private sale as there is for an IPO."

62 Gold Coast Bulletin, Gold Coast QLD Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 21,468 Page: 53 Printed Size: 37.00cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 236 Words: 75 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Life ban for adviser A FORMER Westpac financial adviser has been banned from the industry for life for providing false evidence to the corporate watchdog. Ezzat-Daniel Nesseim was investigated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) as part of the watchdog s crackdown on the financial advice offered by the four major banks, Macquarie and AMP. He provided three wholesale client certificates to ASIC, dating them in the hope they would help end the watchdog s inquiries, ASIC said.

63 Gold Coast Bulletin, Gold Coast QLD Author: Karina Barrymore Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 21,468 Page: 53 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 982 Words: 318 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Funds on track for super year with returns up 7.5pc KARINA BARRYMORE SUPERANNUATION funds are in profit, returning 1.7 per cent in April, helping to offset March losses and on track for another strong financial year. The April increase has pushed up total returns so far this financial year to more than 7.5 per cent, with two months to come. This puts the average balanced option fund on track for a ninth straight year of profits. According to independent research companies SuperRatings and Chant West, most of the increase during April was from a rise in share markets in Australia and internationally. The April data shows superannuation serves members well through the market ups and downs, SuperRatings chief executive Kirby Rappell said. Members with full equity exposure will have been rocked around by the volatility earlier in the year but for super members in balanced or growth options, the ride has certainly been smoother, Mr Rappell said. During the past ten years the median balanced super fund has returned an average of 6 per cent every year. This compares with the median growth fund, more than 80 per cent invested in listed assets, which has also returned 6 per cent during the same period but with greater risk. Chant West research manager Mano Mohankumar said Australian shares increased 3.8 per cent during April, while overseas shares went up by 1.9 per cent. Listed property units also increased 4.3 per cent in Australia and 2.9 per cent internationally. Unusually, not for profit industry funds underperformed bank-owned retail funds during April. Mr Mohankumar said industry funds returned an average of 1.6 per cent, while retail funds returned 1.8 per cent for the month. However, for the year to date, industry funds were still wellahead at 8.1 per cent, compared with retail funds at 7.1 per cent. Mr Mohankumar said super fund members with a ten month return of about 7.5 per cent, were on track for a strong financial year.

64 Townsville Bulletin, Townsville QLD Author: Tony Raggatt Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 16,484 Page: 9 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,129 Words: 318 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Builders will fail without home grant TONY RAGGATT ONE of Townsville s biggest builders say they pretty much won t have a business if the Queensland First Home Owners Grant is not continued beyond June 30. The dire forecast from Tropical Homes comes as the local industry endures a desperate development drought and peak body Master Builders urges the State Government to extend the $20,000 grant for new homes and units. Meanwhile, Townsville s dwelling approvals dipped to 35 for April almost half the average of an already depressed previous 12 months. Tropical Homes general manager Will Porter said the grant was imperative to his business. He said work flowing from the April approvals would be shared among 40-odd builders. We re doing homes a year and 90 per cent of that would be firsthome buyers, Mr Porter said. If we didn t have the first-homeowners grant any more, we pretty much wouldn t have a business. The development industry competes with an established-home market where values have fallen, often below building costs. The grant can tip the equation towards new builds. With a new build in Townsville starting at $300,000 and the grant offering $20,000 towards that, Mr Porter said it was an attractive option for buyers. Another factor weighing on builders is the tighter credit market amid concerns of overheated markets in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne and the revelations of the royal commission into misconduct in the banking and finance industries. Lending itself is getting tough with the royal commission they re going through everything with a fine tooth comb. If we lose the grant on top of it, that would just about break our, Mr Porter said. Master Builders deputy CEO Paul Bidwell said the association was urging the Government to continue the momentum it had generated and extend the grant at the $20,000 rate beyond this financial year. A decision on the grant is expected when the Government hands down its budget next month.

65 The Australian, Australia Author: Ewin Hannan Troy Bramston Section: Edition Changes - All-round First Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 18,976 Words: 1568 Item ID: Page 1 of 4 Setka tells Shorten: loosen strike laws EXCLUSIVE EWIN HANNAN TROY BRAMSTON Victorian construction union leader John Setka has called on Bill Shorten to make it easier for workers to take strike action and to relax union right-of-entry laws, as the fallout from a botched blackmail case escalates. The union movement sought to ramp up pressure on the Turnbull government over the dropped blackmail charges against Mr Setka and his deputy, Shaun Reardon, while ACTU secretary Sally McManus called for an inquiry into whether federal Coalition politicians played a role in helping bring the unwarranted and discredited criminal charges against the union pair. In an interview with The Australian, Mr Setka criticised Labor s Fair Work Act and accused Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard of being probably the worst Labor prime ministers in Australia s history. As Labor frontbencher Joel Fitzgibbon defended Mr Setka in the wake of the charges being dropped, declaring that the history of mankind and our progress had been built on civil disobedience, Malcolm Turnbull took aim at the union leader for linking the CFMEU s success to its willingness to break the law. The Prime Minister said comments yesterday by Mr Setka had underlined the way in which the Labor Party is parting company from the rule of law. The political stoush over the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining and Energy Union came as it was poised to tighten its grip over the Australian Council of Trade Unions, with Michele O Neil expected to become ACTU president, replacing Ged Kearney who resigned to contest the by-election in the Melbourne seat of Batman for Labor in March. Ms O Neil is the national secretary of the textile, clothing and footwear sector of the manufacturing division of the CFMMEU. Mr Setka said yesterday Labor should commit to removing conditions attached to legal strike action, including protected action ballots of workers and notice periods and called on a Shorten government to give unions an unfettered right to enter workplaces to organise members. If I am on site and my boss is ripping me off, I am not getting my proper wages and he s just Continued on Page 6 MORE REPORTS P6 EDITORIAL P15 O Neil McManus Setka

66 The Australian, Australia Author: Ewin Hannan Troy Bramston Section: Edition Changes - All-round First Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 18,976 Words: 1568 Item ID: Page 2 of 4 Setka sets strike test for Shorten Continued from Page 1 screwing me, who is the law to tell me, hang on a sec, you just can t walk off the job, you can t stop work, Mr Setka said. I am a human being. I am not a slave. I am working. I am not in the army. I have not been conscripted to work there. He said right-ofentry laws should be relaxed to allow unions better access to members. This is Australia, not North Korea. He attacked the record of the Rudd and Gillard governments on workplace relations. That Labor government was in for five years what did they achieve for workers? he said. Nothing. They should be ashamed of themselves. Some of the same people who were in charge then now have a chance to redeem themselves. Be the stand-for-something Labor Party. The legacy the Rudd and Gillard governments left is an absolute disgrace. He said he believed Mr Shorten was trying to make the Labor Party how it used to be, actually stand(ing) up for working people. In response to Mr Setka s comments, opposition workplace relations spokesman Brendan O Connor said last night Labor wanted fairer workplaces. For that reason, we are in different discussions with unions, employers and other affected stakeholders to achieve that end. Mr Shorten took a hard line against organisations or individuals that broke the law. I don t think you need to break the law, full stop, he said. But I think the issue you re going to is the court case (on Wednesday), that the prosecution dropped all its matters. I think that speaks for itself. Mr Turnbull criticised Mr Setka over his union s willingness to break the law. The law applies to everybody. To everyone, the Prime Minister said. Laws can be changed by parliaments, democratically elected. Unions and unionists do not have some sort of privilege as Sally McManus and John Setka would like to claim to go around breaking the law without consequences. Jobs Minister Michaelia Cash accused the CFMEU of believing it was above the law, saying Mr Setka had proudly broken the law and been charged in excess of 59 times including for assault and jail time for contempt. The irony of Sally McManus s and John Setka s position is, it is Labor s laws they are complaining about, she said. Workplace Minister Craig Laundy denied the dropping of the charges was embarrassing for the government, noting that the CFMEU had racked up $15 million in fines for law breaches over the past two years. This is a rogue union and this is exactly the sort of behaviour going on day in and day out that the courts are dealing with, and the royal commission exposed, and we ll continue to legislate off the of that to make sure they behave themselves, he said. Mr Setka urged an independent inquiry into the role of Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police, Victorian and federal Coalition MPs, and lawyers. He said the union s lawyers would meet next week to consider legal options, given the case had cost the union in excess of $1m. Mr Fitzgibbon defended Mr Setka after the blackmail charges against him were dropped. Next time they tell you these guys have been fined 1000 times or whatever they are claiming, ask what they were fined for, he told Sky News. I suspect in most cases they were fined for trying to stick up for workers, notwithstanding legislat- ive barriers this government has put in their way. Ms McManus said the dropped case was the centrepiece of the trade union royal commission, which she said was used as a political weapon by Tony Abbott and former workplace relations minister Eric Abetz to smear unions. At what levels were the government involved in what we believe are trumped-up charges against these union leaders, she told Sky News. Mr Abbott lashed out at the CFMEU following the decision, saying one failed prosecution doesn t turn Australia s most thuggish union into a bunch of choir boys. Senator Abetz ridiculed Ms McManus s claims he and Mr Abbott were involved in the CFMEU court action, saying charges were laid by Victoria Police in 2015 and prosecuted by the state Director of Public Prosecutions. The chairman of Mr Abbott s commission of audit and the former head of the Business Council of Australia, Tony Shepherd, said there was no need to roll workplace laws. The Fair Work Act and Fair Work Australia were established by Labor," he said. They were modified during the Labor government quite significantly after a review which included consultation with unions and with industry. Membership of unions in Australia has declined significantly, but on the whole workers are feeling they are being treated fairly and properly.

67 The Australian, Australia Author: Ewin Hannan Troy Bramston Section: Edition Changes - All-round First Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 18,976 Words: 1568 Item ID: Page 3 of 4 Legal cases arising from the trade union royal commission COMPLETED Nine criminal convictions Halafihi Kivalu Former CFMEU official, found guilty of the blackmail of a Canberra subcontractor. Given a suspended sentence of two years nine months and ordered to pay reparations of $70,000 in June 2016 Derrick Belan Former head of the NSW National Union of Workers, found guilty of 58 fraud offences and one criminal group offence. Also pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud. His offences totalled more than $650,000. Due to be sentenced next month. Danielle O Brien Former NUW employee, pleaded guilty to 148 charges of fraud and two counts of participation in a criminal group for misusing union funds. Angelo Millena Business person associated with the NSW branch of the NUW, pleaded guilty to charges of participating in and receiving benefits from a criminal group. Maria Butera and Lisa Zanatta Former Cbus employees, found guilty of giving false and misleading evidence to the royal commission. Both given suspended sentences of 14 months imprisonment in March Tuungafasi Manase Non-financial member of the CFMEU, found guilty of giving false and misleading evidence to the royal commission. Sentenced to three months imprisonment in May Luke Collier CFMEU organiser, found guilty of obstructing a commonwealth official Kane Pearson CMFEU official, found guilty on three charges of obstructing a commonwealth official. Fined $3200 in August Three civil convictions James McGiveron and Richard Burton Former Transport Workers Union officials, found guilty of breaching their duties as registered organisation officials for misusing union funds. Transport Workers Union Found by Federal Court to have failed to properly keep a register of its members and failed to remove non-financial members from its register. This matter is under appeal as to penalty. ONGOING Criminal matters Kathy Jackson Former Health Services Union national secretary, charged with 70 counts of theft and deception offences totalling more than $500,000. Dave Hanna Former CFMEU official, along with two Mirvac employees, charged with secret commissions offences in regard to more than $150,000 worth of alleged free work done to Hanna s Cornubia house. Also committed to stand trial over the alleged destruction of documents relevant to the royal commission. Ralph Blewitt Former Australian Workers Union official, charged over alleged fraud offences relating to the AWU Workplace Reform Association fighting fund. Civil matters Michael Ravbar, Peter Close and Andrew Sutherland CFMEU officials, facing proceedings for coercion and adverse action against the Fair Work Act in regard to the company Universal Crane.

68 The Australian, Australia Author: Ewin Hannan Troy Bramston Section: Edition Changes - All-round First Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 18,976 Words: 1568 Item ID: Page 4 of 4 STUART McEVOY Victorian construction union leader John Setka in Melbourne yesterday after having blackmail charges dropped

69 The Australian, Australia Author: Andrew White Section: Edition Changes - All-round First Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 13,580 Words: 505 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 FINANCIAL SECTOR SUFFERS FROM A TRUST DEFICIT ASIC chair vows tougher action ANDREW WHITE REGULATION on notice that the Australian Securities & Investments Commission will use every inch of new powers to crack down on bad behaviour in financial services. New ASIC chairman James Shipton promised a new, more intensive supervisory approach by the regulator as he accused companies of failing to act as the first line of defence against bad behaviour and undermining the financial system and the corporate regulatory structure. Mr Shipton said Australian businesses and the finance sector in particular were suffering from a trust deficit of their own making and it was the responsibility of business to repair this. Just three month in the role, the former Harvard lawyer and Hong Kong securities regulator said he planned to use new regulatory powers as soon as they became available and confirmed he was in discussions with the government to get extra resources for enforcement and regulation. I am personally committed to using every inch of our powers and tools to get the outcomes that the community deserves, Mr Shipton said in a landmark speech to the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors conference. And while we have been trying to do our job, unfortunately, all too often, the firms who have failed in their first-line responsibilities have made matters worse by not co-operating with us and, in some unacceptable cases, actually obstructed our work. What s more, they have endangered the financial system they are meant to support. This cannot stand, because if firms continue to fail to step up to their responsibilities, the integrity of our regulatory structure, and our financial system, is undermined. Mr Shipton, who started with ASIC in February, said the regulator had done a good job on enforcement with the powers that it had, but needed new powers and a new approach to overcome a jarring trust deficit in the finance industry. Following shocking revelations in the royal commission that AMP and Commonwealth Bank had charged fees to customers for services they did not provide and, in CBA s case, that it had charged customers who had been dead, the federal government agreed to give ASIC substantial new powers and massive increases in fines. The government has also agreed to appoint an enforcement commissioner, with Daniel Crennan QC to become a second deputy chairman of ASIC. Mr Shipton, a former financial services executive in Australia, pointed yesterday to new powers, including for the first time a penalty for companies that fail to efficiently, honestly and fairly provide services. Mr Shipton said many of the issues emerging from the royal Continued on Page 30

70 The Australian, Australia Author: Andrew White Section: Edition Changes - All-round First Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 13,580 Words: 505 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 Australia s corporations, and the finance sector in particular, are suffering from a trust deficit. And this current predicament is of the sector s own making Because it is largely of its own making, the sector must be held to account and must take responsibility for its repair I am personally committed to using every inch of our powers and tools to get the outcomes that the community deserves JAMES SHIPTON, ASIC CHAIRMAN Federal government funding for ASIC $m * *Forecast Source: Bloomberg