There are many different funds available to you in the Australian market-place.

In summary the main types of super funds are:

• Industry Super Funds
• Retail Super Funds
• Corporate Super Funds
• Self-managed Super Funds

We will shortly look at each one of these. Funds may be in either accumulation phase (funds are accumulating) or pension phase (funds are being drawn down in retirement). For funds that are in accumulation phase, member's benefits are determined via either a defined benefit approach or a contribution approach. These two different approaches will be discussed in a later section.

All superannuation funds are required to produce a 'product disclosure statement’, which details the main features of the fund including fees, investment options, insurance options and fund procedures. The product disclosure statement can be used when comparing funds.

To assist you as we go through this module, see if you can locate the product disclosure statement of your fund or your most recent super fund statement (provided to you at least annually by your fund).