A spokesperson for the Minister for Financial Services, Bill Shorten, has said all but $3 million of the government's $55 million Trio Capital (Trio) compensation funds have been paid to eligible fund members.
"The government understands that all but $3 million of the $55 million compensation has been paid to members," Shorten's spokesperson said in a statement to InvestorDaily.
In February this year, the federal government began releasing compensation payment to select Trio investors.
In a statement from Shorten at the time, more than 5,300 Australians can expect to receive their share of compensation monies, with money progressively credited to member's superannuation accounts in mid-February.
The government granted the $55 million in financial assistance to benefit the members of four Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) regulated superannuation funds that were formally under the trusteeship of Trio.
The assistance was granted under Part 23 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 and is for members of the Astarra Superannuation Plan, the Astarra Personal Pension Plan, the My Retirement Plan and the Employers Federation of NSW Superannuation Plan.
On the same day Shorten announced the release of funds, the acting trustee of the four Trio funds, ACT Super Management, informed members it was preparing another application for government financial assistance after its examinations into the losses suffered by select Trio Capital (Trio) funds increased to around $65.5 million.
Asked whether the government had received such an application, Shorten's spokesperson said: "The Acting Trustee is responsible for keeping members updated on any future claims."
ACT Super Management director Mike Hill declined to make any direct comments in relation to the progress of the group's Trio investigations.
Hill would also not be drawn on whether ACT Super had lodged a request to government for further financial assistance.
In a letter to members of four failed Trio funds, dated 8 February, ACT Super Management said while recalculating investors' losses as part of finalising compensation payment monies to select investors, shortfall of around $10.5 million was discovered.
The increase is largely represented by the additional costs of the various acting trusteeships through to their estimated completion, the letter, dated 8 February, said.
