CSC wins best medium sized super fund at AsianInvestor Institutional Excellence Awards

We received accolades across multiple categories in the AsianInvestor award for 2021, topping the award charts for the 4th consecutive year.

First and most importantly, we were awarded the Institutional Award for best Pension fund small/medium across Asia Pacific. This award was judged not only on investment returns, but also robustness and depth of investment approach, excellence across all aspects of portfolio management and innovative operational improvements that focus on the team’s capacity to sustain long-term outcomes for customers.

In addition, in the underlying proficiency categories, we were awarded:

• best in class for alternative investing, which recognises the evolution of our exposure to alternative and private assets, as well as the innovative way we’re identifying early opportunities into businesses of the future to capture first mover profits for customers.
• best in class for ESG engagement, acknowledges the maturity of our ESG thinking and portfolio integration as well as the effectiveness of our engagement approach to give that thinking effect by supporting our investee companies in their adoption of better environmental, social and governance practices.
• best in class for investing in progress and innovation for our future-focused approach to investing our customers’ savings. This award recognises how we are leading the industry, thinking differently from peers, and adapting how we invest to safeguard customers’ nest eggs through market setbacks.

As leaders in innovation, we continuously re-invest and improve our own capability in global best-practice – this began with our investment governance framework as a sustainable foundation from which to build innovative investment strategies.

What do the awards mean for customers?

These awards recognise the work of our team in designing fit-for-life stage investment portfolios that make it simple for customers to invest in an option that is suitable for each phase of their career journey, and our default investment option that is designed to help every customer retire with enough income to live comfortably.

We have also been acknowledged for our stance as a first-mover when it comes to investing in future-fit and high-quality assets. We were the first Australian super fund to invest in private assets almost 3 decades ago; the first to deploy a bottom-up risk process for portfolio analysis in the mid-2000s; an early investor into renewables and data-centre infrastructure; and an early provider of seed capital to investment management businesses. This award also speaks to our ability to safeguard and influence those assets, which not only supports wealth creation for our customers, but also higher-quality growth for the whole economy.

Many of our customers have told us that ethical and sustainable investing matters – it’s important that their money is invested in businesses and industries that do good, and do no harm. This is why we’re especially pleased to have been recognised for our work in ESG engagement. The concept of ‘ethical investment’ differs from person to person, but to us it means doing the right thing and doing what we say we will.

We actively promote transparent corporate and self-reporting; and connect consistent delivery of our customers’ financial objectives with sustainable environmental and social outcomes – meaning our customers can choose any one of our investment options, and know that their money is helping to support sustainable futures globally. Our inroads to pricing ESG risks across the Australian market were recognised with a UN award for innovation in 2003, and inclusion in the Bretton Woods II most responsible global asset allocator lists in 2017 and 2019.

Our team have a long history of being awarded for our investment approach, and these awards are recognition of the dedication and innovative work they do for customers every day. We’ll continue to look toward the future, to innovate and search for the most appropriate opportunities to improve retirement outcomes for our customers while contributing to the greater good.