Super changes spark more conservatism with SMSFs
The spate of legislative changes hitting the super sector are encouraging SMSF trustees to be even more conservative, research from one major bank suggests.
CommSec found that while overall trading volume for the year remained the same, a trend towards smaller deal sizes has emerged.
“The beginning of this trend correlated with the budget announcement, suggesting SMSFs were more cautious with their investment strategies due to the uncertainty,” Commonwealth Bank head of SMSF customers Marcus Evans said.
“As investors waited to see whether the proposed changes would be legislated by Parliament, they also reduced their voluntary contributions.”
Mr Evans said voluntary contributions decreased in the September quarter, with CommSec’s analysis finding the average voluntary contribution falling from $10,750 to $3,040.
CommSec’s analysis also found that SMSFs were “the largest net investors in the ASX top 20” in 2016 and were the most active investors in the retail sector, trading 30 per cent more in this segment than non-SMSFs on average.
