Your investment options
Take the time to really understand your investment options.
Everyone’s financial situation is different. That’s why it’s so important to understand how investment may impact your superannuation.
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Everyone’s financial situation is different. That’s why it’s so important to understand how investment may impact your superannuation.
How is your super invested?
CSC pools your super with that of other members in a pooled super trust and invests it according to the investment options you choose. By pooling your savings with all CSC members, your super has more purchasing power. This scale also means that we can manage costs to ensure you get value for money.
We use your super money to buy ‘assets’ we believe will either:
- increase in value over time creating capital growth
- provide investment income returns through interest, rent or dividends.
So, when you make or receive a super contribution, your money doesn’t just sit there like it might in a bank. We invest strategically―purchasing assets with the view that they’ll grow in value over time to fund your future.
Super, like any investment, has risks—and you should feel comfortable with the potential risks and fluctuations associated with the investment option(s) you choose.
Your investment options
You can mix and match your investment options in a number of different ways to suit your retirement needs and goals.
Transition to retirement income stream
You can choose to invest in one or more of our four investment options—TRIS Cash, TRIS Income Focused, TRIS Balanced (default) and TRIS Aggressive.
Standard retirement income stream
You can choose to invest in one or more of our four investment options—CSCri Cash, CSCri Income Focused, CSCri Balanced (default) and CSCri Aggressive.
Your investment options
CSS members can switch components of their super between the default and cash investment options.
-
Default Balanced
The 'Balanced' option offered aims to balance savings between higher-growth opportunities and capital-preserving assets, while managing downside risk, with the goal of achieving a comfortable retirement for the longer term and a greater diversification of risk than most peers.
- Return objective: CPI +3.5% per year after fees and tax, over 10 years.
- Investment horizon (i.e. anticipated time to retirement): 10 years
- Life stage (general guidelines): Middle to late stage of working life, or pre-retirement.
- Estimated number of negative annual returns over a 20-year period: 4 to less than 6
-
Cash
Our ‘Cash’ option focuses on preserving capital, so it’s expected to have lower risk and lower return compared to other options.
- Return objective: Bloomberg AusBond bank index rate of return, net of fees.
- Investment horizon (i.e. anticipated time to retirement): 1 year
- Life stage (general guidelines): Retired.
- Estimated number of negative annual returns over a 20-year period: Less than 0.5
1 SuperRatings universe
2 Past performance is no indication of future performance.
3 SuperRatings universe
Investment risk considerations
We build portfolios by considering the underlying assets’ risk profiling, and the role they have in the portfolio, rather than their asset class ‘label’.
Grouping investment risk into growth/defensive categories is simplistic and can be misleading. Because there is no industry standard, grouping investment risk into these categories is subjective. In order to measure risk and estimate the probability of achieving customers’ retirement outcomes more effectively, we assess growth/defensiveness as a spectrum, and aggregate each asset’s weighting to defensive vs growth characteristics.
- Defensive quality is measured by the asset’s capacity to protect capital when conditions deteriorate.
- Growth quality is measured by the asset’s capacity to sustainably grow savings over time. Growth is not the same as capital-loss risk.
| Option (CSCri) | Growth % | Defensive % |
|---|---|---|
| CSCri Cash | 0 | 100 |
| CSCri Income Focused | 30 | 70 |
| CSCri Balanced | 55 | 45 |
| CSCri Aggressive | 70 | 30 |
| TRIS Cash | 0 | 100 |
| TRIS Income Focused | 30 | 70 |
| TRIS Balanced | 65 | 35 |
| TRIS Aggressive | 80 | 20 |
Choosing your investment option
The decisions you make now about your super can help you reach your retirement goals. Take the time to understand your options, taking your personal objectives, financial situation and needs into account.
For example, you should consider the:
- impact investment performance has on your account
- amount of time your money will be invested before you need it for retirement
- level of risk and fluctuation in the value of your investment that you can tolerate.
Until you make a choice to switch your investment option, your super balance and contributions will be invested in the Balanced option.
Making a switch
You can make two switches* each financial year, and then pay $20 per additional switch. You can switch to a different investment option(s) any time to suit your needs and objectives. To switch:
- log into the CSC Navigator; or
- download, complete and return an Investment choice form.
More information about switching between investment options is available in the CSCri Product Disclosure Statement.
*Buy/sell spreads apply to all switches made.