Our Money in Their Hands

To the envy of the world, Australia’s superannuation system has grown from modest beginnings in the 1980s into one of the largest and most influential retirement savings systems on the planet. Today, it manages trillions of dollars in assets and plays a central role not only in the financial security of working Australians, but in the nation’s economic strength and global investment reach.

Our Money in Their Hands chronicles the remarkable rise of an industry that transformed retirement from reliance on the Age Pension to a system built on dignity, independence, and long-term investment. It traces the political battles, policy breakthroughs, visionary leaders and institutional innovation that shaped compulsory superannuation into a global model.

But this is more than a financial history.

It is the story of how superannuation reshaped Australia itself – directing capital into local and global markets, supporting infrastructure and innovation, creating jobs, and building an investment ecosystem that now influences economies far beyond its shores.

Part historical record and part political and economic narrative, Our Money in Their Hands is a must-read for anyone interested in public policy, finance, investment management and the stewardship of retirement savings.