APRA Asks Whether Some Super Fund Data Should Stay Confidential — With Submissions Closing Friday

Sonal Goyal

04 November 2026 04:52 PM AEDT

APRA Asks Whether Some Super Fund Data Should Stay Confidential — With Submissions Closing Friday

Image Source: Shutterstock

You are reading a free article with opinions that may differ from the recommendation given by Kalkine in its paid research reports. Become a Kalkine member today to get access to our research reports, in-depth technical and fundamental research. Learn more

Start Your Free Trial Now!

Key Highlights

APRA's consultation on confidential super fund data closes on Friday, 6 November 2026.
The consultation covers whether data reported under SRS 604.0 should be confidential.
APRA says it plans no change to what it publishes or how it publishes it.
Earlier draft standards on asset allocation and membership profiles were also part of the wider consultation.

The prudential regulator is asking whether some information that super funds report about themselves should be kept confidential, and the window to comment closes on Friday, 6 November. The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) says it wants to keep publishing the same super statistics in the same format. The consultation matters for transparency: the data underpins the fund-level figures that members, journalists and researchers use to compare funds.

What APRA is consulting on

On 23 October 2026, APRA said it had started a consultation to "determine the confidentiality of specified data collected under Reporting Standard SRS 604.0 RSE Licensee Profile".

SRS 604.0 is one of the reporting standards that registrable Superannuation entity (RSE) licensees, the trustees of APRA-regulated super funds, use to report information to APRA. As its name suggests, it relates to information about the Trustee as a licensee, rather than about individual members. It is part of APRA's Superannuation Data Transformation program, in a stage APRA calls "Phase 2 Depth".

APRA says the relevant data is already published in its annual fund-level superannuation statistics and its annual superannuation bulletin, for 2025 and earlier years.

What APRA is, and isn't, proposing

The key line in APRA's announcement is reassuring for anyone worried about less disclosure: "APRA is not proposing any changes to the scope of data published or the format of these publications."

Instead, APRA is proposing a formal determination. According to APRA, "The proposed determination would enable APRA to maintain the existing format of these publications."

In other words, the consultation is about putting the legal status of the data on a clear footing as reporting moves to new standards, rather than about cutting back what members can see.

APRA has invited "feedback on whether any of the specified data should be considered confidential". It wants respondents who argue for confidentiality to explain any detriment to commercial interests that publication could cause.

Explainer: why confidentiality matters in super data

Information that APRA collects from regulated entities is generally protected by law. APRA notes that non-public information about an APRA-regulated entity, marked confidential, is protected under section 56 of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority Act 1998.

For APRA to publish fund-level figures, it needs a clear legal basis that the specific data items are not confidential. Without one, data that is currently in public statistics could, in principle, be harder to publish.

That is why a consultation that sounds technical can affect what the public sees. If a trustee successfully argued that particular profile data was commercially sensitive, the data might be treated differently. APRA's stated proposal, however, is to keep the existing publications as they are.

Fund-level data is used in many places, from comparing how large a fund is and how many members it has, to analysis of fees and outcomes. It also supports public scrutiny of trustees at a time when the sector is under heavy regulatory focus.

How to make a submission

With two days left for comment, the process is aimed mainly at trustees and industry bodies, although APRA invites feedback from any interested party.

APRA's standard rules on submissions apply:

APRA publishes all submissions unless the respondent tells it in writing that all or part of a submission is confidential.
An automatically generated confidentiality statement in an email does not count as such a request.
Confidential material should be placed in a separate attachment marked "confidential".
Submissions can be the subject of a request under the Freedom of Information Act 1982.

The closing date is Friday, 6 November 2026.

A reporting deadline pushed back, amid wider scrutiny

In a separate but related move, APRA released its response on 27 October to a consultation on moving superannuation data collections from its older Direct to APRA (D2A) system to the newer APRA Connect platform.

The consultation, which opened with draft standards on 8 July and closed on 21 August, covered SRS 533.0 Asset Allocation, SRS 610.2 Membership Profile and associated definitions in SRS 101.0. APRA also proposed revoking SRS 001.0 Profile and Structure (Baseline).

APRA's consultation page lists six submissions, including from ASFA, the Financial Services Council and the Australian Custodial Services Association. According to industry analysis, APRA said the submissions were "broadly supportive" and that it "will provide a two-month extension to the due date for SRS 533.0 submissions" for the period ending 31 December 2026, making them due by 31 March 2027.

APRA says it "is updating the reporting standards to ensure consistency with other collections in APRA Connect".

For members, these system changes are largely invisible. For trustees, they mean changes to reporting systems and timelines.

The consultation also comes as APRA steps up its supervision of the sector. APRA Chair John Lonsdale told a Senate committee on 29 October that APRA's latest reforms are the next phase of its focus on "lifting Investment governance standards across the superannuation industry, particularly within the platform trustee segment".

APRA Deputy Chair David Bradbury said in a speech on 22 October that about $3.4 trillion is held in APRA-regulated funds, according to industry analysis summary of the speech.

Those investment governance proposals, released on 30 September, are open for submissions until 3 February 2027, with commencement expected from 1 January 2028, subject to consultation.

With that much retirement savings involved, consistent and comparable public data is one of the main tools members and commentators have for holding trustees to account.

What to watch: key dates

Friday, 6 November 2026: submissions close on the SRS 604.0 confidentiality consultation.
After the consultation: APRA's decision on whether to make the proposed determination, and whether any data items are treated as confidential.
Coming months: publication of APRA's next annual fund-level superannuation statistics and superannuation bulletin, and whether their format stays the same, as APRA proposes.
31 March 2027: the extended due date for SRS 533.0 reporting for the period ending 31 December 2026.
3 February 2027: submissions close on APRA's separate proposals to strengthen trustee investment governance.
Ongoing: further stages of APRA's Superannuation Data Transformation program.

Download Free Report – Explore 3 Stock Ideas & Industry Insights

Unlock 3 stock ideas and key industry insights in our free report. This information is general in nature and does not consider your personal objectives, financial situation, or needs. It is not financial advice.

All investments involve risk—consider independent advice before making any investment decisions.

View 3 Research Reports

Disclaimer:

This article (“Article”) has been prepared by Kalkine Pty Limited (ABN 34 154 808 312) (Australian financial services licence number 425376) (“Kalkine”) and its related bodies corporate who are authorised to provide general financial product advice. Kalkine.com.au and its associated pages are published by Kalkine.

Any information/advice provided in this article is general in nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should therefore consider whether the information is appropriate for your objectives, financial situation and needs before acting upon it.

There may be a Product Disclosure Statement, Information Memorandum or other offer document (“Offer Document”) for the securities or other financial products referred to in Kalkine articles. You should obtain a copy of the Offer Document and consider it before making any decision about whether to acquire the security or financial product.

Kalkine strongly recommends that you seek advice from a financial adviser, stockbroker or other professional (including taxation and legal advice) before acting on any advice/information in this Article or on the Kalkine website. Not all investments are appropriate for all people.

The information in this Article and on Kalkine website has been prepared from a wide variety of sources, which Kalkine, to the best of its knowledge and belief, considers accurate. Kalkine has made every effort to ensure the reliability of the information contained in its articles (including this Article), newsletters and websites. All information represents our views at the date of publication and may change without notice.

The information in this Article does not constitute an offer to sell securities or other financial products or a solicitation of an offer to buy securities or other financial products.

Kalkine does not issue, sell or deal in any financial products.

This Article may contain information on past performance of particular investments. Please note past performance is neither an indicator nor a guarantee of future performance.

To the extent permitted by law, and excluding any dishonesty or gross negligence by Kalkine, Kalkine disclaims and excludes all liability for any direct, indirect, implied, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential loss or damage arising from the use of or reliance on this Article, the Kalkine website and any information published on the Kalkine website without any warranties or representations by Kalkine to you. To the extent the law prohibits or limits this exclusion, Kalkine limits its liability to the resupply of services.

Please also read our Terms & Conditions and Financial Services Guide for further information.

Employees and/or associates of Kalkine and its related entities may hold interests in the securities or other financial products covered in this Article or on the Kalkine website. Any such employees and associates are required to comply with certain safeguards, procedures and disclosures as required by law.

Some of the images/music that may be used in the Article are copyright to their respective owner(s). Kalkine does not claim ownership of any of the pictures displayed/music used in the Article unless stated otherwise. The images/music that may be used in the Article are taken from various sources on the internet, including paid subscriptions or are believed to be in public domain. We have used reasonable efforts to accredit the source wherever it was indicated or was found to be necessary.

Kalkine Media Pty Ltd, an affiliate of Kalkine Pty Ltd, may have received, or be entitled to receive, financial consideration in connection with providing information about certain entity(s) covered on its website.