About ADF Super

Investment options

We provide three pre-mixed investment options, plus a Cash option. All are explicitly designed to work together or separately to allow tailored risk-taking appropriate to the different stages of your client's working life cycle and individual circumstances.

The one thing in common for all our investment options is the strength of our investment risk management. It enables us to consistently generate some of the highest net real returns to investment risk-taking in the industry¹.

MySuper Balanced (Default)

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

Income Focused 

Our ‘Income Focused’ option aims to limit capital loss while generating sustainable income that keeps up with inflation. Our Income focused option purposefully targets a lower level of risk compared to both the Balanced and Aggressive options, but has historically² still delivered very strong performance.

• Return objective: CPI +1.5% per year after fees and tax, over 10 years.
• Investment horizon (i.e. anticipated time to retirement): 5 years
• Life stage (general guidelines): Pre-retirement to retirement.
• Estimated number of negative annual returns over a 20-year period: 2 to less than 3

Aggressive

Our ‘Aggressive’ option is designed to grow sustainably. This option invests a greater share in higher-growth opportunities.

Our Aggressive option is a consistently strong performer compared to peers³. Our aggressive option accepts higher volatility compared to our balanced fund but only from targeted risks that we expect your client to be compensated for taking while avoiding unintended risks and diversifying to reduce the impact from risks that simply cannot be avoided. The result is strong relative returns regardless of market direction.

• Return objective: CPI +4% per year after fees and tax, over 10 years.
• Investment horizon (i.e. anticipated time to retirement): 15 years
• Life stage (general guidelines): Early to middle stage of working life.
• 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

Ongoing annual fees and costs

Administration fees and costs

All super funds charge Administration fees. At CSC we’re committed to keeping our fees affordable for all our members. CSC as a profit for member fund invests 100% of your Administration fees in the products and services we provide to you, our members. Administration fees cover operating costs, such as: the cost of running the call centre, and the types of enhancements members should expect across our products, services, and guidance, now and into the future, to aid you in optimising your retirement income.

• $4 per month

  • Charged monthly in arrears. Deducted from your super account at the beginning of the next month.
  • This fee is charged on a pro-rata basis, e.g. if you were not a member for the full month, you will be charged based on the number of days you were a member and not the full monthly fee.

• 0.05% of your account balance per year capped at $21 per month

  • Charged monthly in arrears. Deducted from your super account at the beginning of the next month.
  • The monthly asset-based administration fee is calculated using the average of your account balance at the beginning of the month, and at the end of the month.
  • This fee is charged on a pro-rata basis, e.g. if you were not a member for the full month, you will be charged based on the number of days you were a member and not the full monthly fee. 

• 0.00% p.a.

  • Paid from administration reserves.
  • These costs are not directly charged to your account but have reduced the reserve balance held by the Fund to cover future administration costs.
  • These costs are based on the costs deducted from the reserve in the 2024–25 Financial Year. The actual amount will change from year to year and may be different to the amounts shown.

Other fees and costs

Advice fees

As part of their ADF Super membership, members have access to simple advice at no extra cost. This advice is designed to help answer some commonly asked questions like; whether members have the right level of insurance or how they should be investing their super.

For more information, see Financial Planning.