Beware creep of cancel culture into super funds

The prudential regulator is calling for the consideration of perceived conflicts of interest and reputational risks when appointing directors, and while it's easy to think of cases where this would be appropriate, Gilbert + Tobin partner Luke Barrett told Financial Standard care must be taken in how it's done.

- Andrew McKean

"A perceived conflict of interest isn't necessarily a real one. If it were an actual conflict, there's already an obligation to manage it. So, when a regulator talks about factoring in perceived conflicts, care needs to be taken that we're not opening the door to far-fetched, fanciful considerations..." Barrett said.

"It would be a concern if a shifting focus to perceived conflicts of interest and reputational risks – arising from changes in an individual's personal circumstances - became code for virtue signally, 'woke,' or knee-jerk reactions to current events playing out in the news.

"When APRA says a change in personal circumstances should trigger a reassessment of someone's fitness and propriety, what kind of circumstance are we talking about?"