The Minister for Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law, Chris Bowen MP, has welcomed the announcement of a landmark industry-led initiative that will benefit millions of superannuation fund members.
Australia's largest superannuation fund administrators, AAS, Pillar Administration and Superpartners, have agreed to use a common set of protocols to cover the movement of data and money between funds. The agreement will make easier and more efficient to transfer money between funds, which will result in lower costs for millions of fund members.
The three administrators have noted that this move comes in the wake of opportunities presented by the Cooper Review and the Government's decision to appoint Medicare Australia to operate a small business clearing house.
The CEO of Pillar Administration, Peter Beck, said that "The Government decision to appoint Medicare to operate a Clearing House provides a unique opportunity for the industry and has facilitated an agreement on the protocols for the efficient and secure transfer of data and money."
"The Government welcomes this important industry initiative and its potential to improve the simplicity and efficiency of the superannuation system," Mr Bowen said
"The Government's decision to appoint Medicare Australia as the small business clearing house has been an important catalyst for this initiative.
"It will build on the work Medicare is doing to reduce red tape for small businesses and bring about greater efficiencies and reduced costs in the processing of payments within the superannuation system.
"This of course is all depending on the passage of the Government's small business clearing house measure through the Parliament, which the Coalition has suggested could be blocked in the Senate.
"The Coalition needs to indicate today that they will allow this important measure to go through the Senate so small businesses can start to access the free clearing house, and the savings that will flow for them, from 1 July this year."
11 March 2010