Fix internal fund audit, says Deloitte

Superannuation funds need to align different committees on how their internal audit will function, according to Deloitte director of financial services assurance and advisory, James Oliver.

"Within your organisations, you have the board committee, the board, executive management, the board management group, and you have the internal auditors themselves, and each of those parties may have a slightly different view of internal audit," Oliver said at an Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) breakfast in Melbourne.

Frank discussions between all parties involved were necessary to come to that alignment, he said, as things would inevitably go wrong if it didn't happen.

It was important for super funds to reach a consensus on their purpose and remit before they started their internal audit function, according to Oliver.

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Funds with internal audit functions already in place may need to unwind them to achieve the consensus that was necessary, he warned.

However a clear charter towards that purpose may take some of the hassle out of having to rework internal audit processes.

Oliver said the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority had introduced the internal audit requirement because the industry was growing and becoming more complex, while funds had moved into the non-super space; were in-sourcing complex investment management; and building digital and social media strategies.