Find out everything you need to know about our superannuation investment choices.
Investing in your future
At Cbus, we offer a diverse range of super investment options to suit your goals, your time frame and your preferred level of risk.
Making an informed choice now can make a big difference to how much superannuation you’ll have in retirement. With the right planning, you’ll get your super working towards the retirement lifestyle you want.
Product Disclosure Statements
To read the Cbus product disclosure statements go to Forms and Publications.
Need advice?
We’re here to help you get your super working. Call us on 1300 361 784.
When you join Cbus, if you don't choose an investment option, your super will be invested in the Growth (Cbus MySuper) option.
Cbus MySuper dashboard
Use the dashboard to better understand the fees, risks and performance of our default investment option.
View the dashboardCompare our default option
Compare the Growth (Cbus MySuper) option to the average fund.
View the comparisonGrowth (Cbus MySuper) average annual return^
9.16%
over the last 32 years to 30 June 2016.
Investment options
You can compare risk and return by selecting an investment option below.
For all investment option objectives: Cbus expects all investment options to achieve their targeted after-tax returns 75 per cent of the time.
Investment warning: Investment returns can go up and down. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
Investment performance is based on the crediting rates, which is the return minus investment costs and taxes, the Trustee Operating Cost and reserves. Excludes administration fees.
Growth (Cbus MySuper)
Our default investment option is designed to suit most individuals. Suitable for those who can accept some years when returns are negative but who expect that over the long term, returns will be above inflation.
| Investment objective | |
|---|---|
| Deliver an after tax return of inflation plus | 3.25% p.a over rolling 10 year periods |
| Likelihood of negative annual returns | 3 in 20 years |
| Risk level | Medium high |
| Asset Allocation Ranges | Range % |
|---|---|
| Australian shares | 11.5 - 41.5 |
| International shares | 6.5 - 36.5 |
| Private equity | 0.0 - 17.0 |
| Opportunistic growth | 0.0 - 17.0 |
| Infrastructure | 0.0 - 21.0 |
| Property | 3.0 - 23.0 |
| Alternative debt (formerly credit) | 0.0 - 16.0 |
| Fixed interest | 0.0 - 24.0 |
| Cash | 1.0 - 20.0 |
| Historical returns % (crediting rate) to 30 June 2016 | |
|---|---|
| 1 year | 5.47% |
| 5 years p.a | 9.30% |
| 10 years p.a | 6.16% |
| Since inception p.a | 9.16% (01/07/1984) |
Cash Savings
Suitable for individuals who want to avoid negative returns, understanding that returns are expected to be less than other Cbus super investment options over the long term.
| Investment objective | |
|---|---|
| Deliver an after tax return of inflation plus | 0.75% p.a over rolling 10 year periods |
| Likelihood of negative annual returns | Negligible in 20 years |
| Risk level | Very low |
| Asset Allocation Ranges | Range % |
|---|---|
| Australian shares | - |
| International shares | - |
| Private equity | - |
| Opportunistic growth | - |
| Infrastructure | - |
| Property | - |
| Alternative debt (formerly credit) | - |
| Fixed interest | - |
| Cash | 100 |
| Historical returns % (crediting rate) to 30 June 2016 | |
|---|---|
| 1 year | 1.82% |
| 5 years p.a | 2.56% |
| 10 years p.a | n.a |
| Since inception p.a | 2.87% (01/04/2009) |
Conservative
Suitable for individuals who can accept lower returns on the basis that negative returns will be rare.
| Investment objective | |
|---|---|
| Deliver an after tax return of inflation plus | 1.75% p.a over rolling 10 year periods |
| Likelihood of negative annual returns | 1 in 20 years |
| Risk level | Low to medium |
| Asset Allocation Ranges | Range % |
|---|---|
| Australian shares | 1.0 - 21.0 |
| International shares | 0.0 - 19.0 |
| Private equity | 0.0 - 5.0 |
| Opportunistic growth | 0.0 - 5.0 |
| Infrastructure | 0.0 - 10.0 |
| Property | 2.0 - 12.0 |
| Alternative debt (formerly credit) | 0.0 - 13.0 |
| Fixed interest | 10.0 - 70.0 |
| Cash | 0.0 - 50.0 |
| Historical returns % (crediting rate) to 30 June 2016 | |
|---|---|
| 1 year | 4.83% |
| 5 years p.a | 6.55% |
| 10 years p.a | 5.71% |
| Since inception p.a | 6.16% (01/10/1999) |
High Growth
Suitable for individuals seeking the highest returns over the long term and can accept more years of negative returns.
| Investment objective | |
|---|---|
| Deliver an after tax return of inflation plus | 3.75% p.a over rolling 10 year periods |
| Likelihood of negative annual returns | 5 in 20 years |
| Risk level | High |
| Asset Allocation Ranges |
Range % |
|---|---|
| Australian shares | 23.5 - 53.5 |
| International shares | 15.5 - 45.5 |
| Private equity | 0.0 - 20.0 |
| Opportunistic growth | 0.0 - 20.0 |
| Infrastructure | 0.0 - 14.0 |
| Property | 0.0 - 18.0 |
| Alternative debt (formerly credit) | 0.0 - 10.0 |
| Fixed interest | - |
| Cash | - |
| Historical returns % (crediting rate) to 30 June 2016 | |
|---|---|
| 1 year | 4.51% |
| 5 years p.a | 9.90% |
| 10 years p.a | 5.82% |
| Since inception p.a | 6.96% (01/01/1998) |
Cbus Self Managed
Suitable for eligible members who are comfortable taking an active role in managing their super savings.
| Investment objective | |
|---|---|
| Deliver an after tax return of inflation plus | varies by member based on investment selection |
| Likelihood of negative annual returns | varies by member based on investment selection |
| Risk level | varies by member based on investment selection |
Investments available
- a range of Australian shares
- Exchange traded funds (ETFs)
- Term deposits
- Managed investments including property and infrastructure.
Refer to Cbus Self Managed for further information
Investment warning: Investment returns can go up and down. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
Investment performance is based on the crediting rates, which is the return minus investment costs and taxes, the Trustee Operating Cost and reserves. Excludes administration fees.
Cbus also offers a range of super income stream options for members who are nearing retirement, or fully retired.
Read about super income stream investment options.
Investment performance
Super investment option performance to 31 May 2017*
| 1 month (%) | Since 30 June (%) | 1 year (%) | 3 year p.a (%) | 5 years p.a (%) | 10 years p.a (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growth (Cbus MySuper) | 0.67 |
11.69 |
10.87 |
9.34 |
11.63 |
5.84 |
| Cash Savings | 0.10 | 1.38 |
1.50 | 1.84 |
2.09 | n/a |
| Conservative | 0.59 |
5.74 |
5.94 |
5.81 |
6.78 |
5.39 |
| High Growth | 0.64 |
14.73 |
13.08 |
10.28 |
13.48 |
5.45 |
*Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Investment performance is based on the crediting rates, which is the return minus investment costs and taxes, the Trustee Operating Cost and reserves. Excludes administration fees.
Current weekly crediting rates
FY15/16 performance and crediting rates (PDF)
Historical annual returns (PDF)
Crediting rates are the investment earnings for each investment option. Cbus calculates crediting rates and declares these on a weekly basis. Crediting rates go up and down during the year, reflecting movements in investment markets.
Learn about crediting rates (PDF)
Changing investment options
If you’re considering changing how your super is invested, it’s important to think long term.
In times of higher share market volatility, it may be tempting to invest your super in lower risk options to try to minimise losses over the short term. However, reacting to short-term changes may reduce your super balance over the long term.
So while monitoring your investment performance is important, frequent switching between options may not benefit you in the long run.
Read about changing options in response to short-term share market movements or watch our video to understand more about share market volatility and how Cbus invests.
Before you change how you invest your super, it’s important to understand the range of investment options available, your investment time frame and the impact of changing investment options.
We’re here to help you work through your options and answer your questions about investments.
Call the Cbus Advice Team on 1300 361 784.
How do I change my investment options?
At any time, you can change the investment option for your super contributions. Changes for future contributions occur as soon as they are received.
You can change the investment options for your account in two ways. One is to change which options your whole account is invested in, another is to change how you direct your contributions.
Your application to change your investment options must be received by close of business Tuesday (or midnight Tuesday for online applications). The change is effective from the start of the following Thursday, but will not be seen in your account until the first business day of the following week.
Log in to your online account to change your investment options.
If you haven't logged in before, it's easy to register now.
Alternatively, complete the Investment choice form (PDF)
Or call us on 1300 361 784 and we’ll post you a form.
Further reading
You can read more about the information covered on this page by clicking on the links to view relevant further reading on our website.
We’re here to help
Call our Cbus Advice Team on 1300 361 784
Press 4 to be connected
8am to 8pm Monday to Friday AEST/AEDT
Email: advice@cbussuper.com.au
Or use our online form to book a time for our Advice Team to call you.