Bank-owned super funds get a rare win

Bank-owned superannuation funds had the rare distinction of notching up investment returns superior to those of their industry super fund rivals over the past year.

Superannuation industry research group SuperRatings reported that bank-owned funds' balanced portfolios produced an average return of 11.3 per cent over the 12 months to January compared with a 10.9 per cent return for industry funds' balanced portfolios.

In all other timeframes reported (three, five, seven and ten years) the industry funds had superior performance.

SuperRatings said the superior performance of bank-owned funds over the past year was due to their relatively high exposure to listed property securities.

The Australian Securities Exchange's real estate investment trust index rose 35.7 per cent over the year to January - the highest return among all the asset classes in which super funds typically invest.

Industry funds tend to invest in unlisted property assets (real property).