Investment Growth Bonds: helping clients build wealth beyond super
As more clients reach super contribution caps and seek tax-effective ways to build and transfer wealth, our refreshed Investment Growth Bond (IGB)(under the Acenda Life brand) offers a flexible solution for wealth accumulation beyond super.
Why choose us for Investment Growth Bonds?
- Competitive fees from 0.55% p.a. across selected investment options, with no buy/sell spreads. This positions the offer among the lowest fee investment bond solutions in the market.
- A tax-effective investment structure that can help your clients continue to build wealth outside super, with no annual personal tax reporting requirements.
- Tax-paid withdrawals after 10 years (subject to the 125% contribution rule).
- 10 investment options across diversified, sector-specific, and Capital Guaranteed strategies, with all investment options managed and supported by our specialist investment manager capability ($35 billion in AUM).
- Wealth transfer features – including child advancement strategies, beneficiary nominations, and a new Funeral Bond solution – making it easier to support estate planning and intergenerational wealth transfer objectives.
- A new streamlined adviser experience with digital applications, online administration, dedicated technical support, and refreshed adviser tools.
Whether your clients are looking to invest beyond super, transfer wealth to the next generation, or implement a long-term, tax-effective investment strategy, our refreshed IGB provides a practical and cost-effective solution.
To learn more, speak with an Acenda Life Retirement BDM.
Investment Growth Bond is issued by Resolution Life Australasia Limited and brought to market under the Acenda Life brand.
Genetic testing reforms: key changes for life insurance applications
What’s changing
From 8 October 2026, new legislation will change how genetic test results are treated in life insurance underwriting. Under this legislation, insurers will no longer be able to request, require, or use genetic test results when assessing an insurance application.
What this means for you and your clients
While genetic test results can no longer be used, clients must still disclose other relevant information as part of the application process, including family medical history, diagnosed medical conditions, symptoms, and the results of other medical tests or investigations.
Clients can choose to voluntarily provide a genetic test result that shows they don’t carry a particular genetic variant. This information may be considered where it could lead to a more favourable underwriting outcome. It can’t be used to disadvantage the application.
No changes are required to current Product Disclosure Statements (PDSs) for Resolution Life Australia products, as these don’t reference genetic testing. We are, however, updating relevant application forms and questionnaires to reflect the new legislative requirements. Please ensure you use the latest forms for your clients from 8 October 2026.
Learn more
For further information about these changes, view the legislation introducing genetic testing protections for life insurance or speak with your BDM about how the reforms may impact your clients.
Enhancing our Life Stage campaigns
We send your clients our Life Stage communications about 90 days ahead of their policy renewal, reminding them of their cover’s value as their needs change through different life stages.
For clients in their 50s and 60s, we’re tailoring our messaging to the benefits of right-sizing their cover – whether that's adjusting their cover amount, reviewing the mix of benefits they hold, or changing how they pay. As always, we recommend they speak with you, their adviser.
Clients whose cover is well suited to their circumstances will receive lighter, value-focused content. Our intend remains to remind clients why their cover matters and that they can adjust it to their circumstances.
Further improvements to our Cover Adjustment Tool
We’ve recently enhanced our Cover Adjustment Tool so you can quote for clients who hold PremierLink and FlexiLink policies. This gives you greater control and flexibility when managing their cover through our portal.
What you can do with the Cover Adjustment Tool
The Cover Adjustment Tool allows you to:
- Increase or decrease your clients’ sums insured – all in one place.
- Modify waiting and benefit periods with ease.
- Remove cover from your clients’ policies.
- Instantly receive updated quotes and cover options to discuss with your client – no more waiting up to four business days for a quote!
- Initiate and submit a client quote to us directly.
Important information about using the tool
- If your client has existing health or smoker loadings on their policy, a Health Assessment pop-up will appear. To review these loadings, you can chat with us via the My Resolution Life website or call us.
- Streamlined process. When reducing cover, we only require the updated quote to be submitted – no underwriting required.
- Underwriting is required for all insurance increases and must be accompanied by a completed application form. We’ll then provide updates within 3-5 business days.
Eligible products
- Elevate Insurance
- Resolution Life Insurance
- Risk Protection Package
- Owner/Driver Income Protection
- Progressive Life Plan
We’ve created this step-by-step user guide to help you make the most of the Cover Adjustment Tool. For further assistance, please contact us.
We’ve updated our privacy policy
We've updated both our privacy policy and privacy statement. This reflects Resolution Life’s change of ownership last year to Nippon Life Insurance Company (Nippon Life), and the subsequent establishment of the Acenda Group in Australia and New Zealand.
These updates outline new circumstances under which we may collect, use, and share a customer’s personal information, including with other entities in the Group.
You can read both the policy and the statement here resolutionlife.com.au/privacy.
This reflects our change of ownership
On 30 October 2025, Nippon Life acquired Resolution Life Group globally, including Resolution Life Australasia.
Together, the companies in the Group bring together over 175 years of experience from Acenda Life, Resolution Life Australasia and Asteron Life New Zealand – strengthened by our greater scale, deep experience and the long-term strength of our owner, Nippon Life.
We have already notified some of our customers about these changes as part of proposal to restructure our Statutory Fund No. 1.
Customers’ policies have not changed
There is no change to customer policies, benefits or claims as a result of these updates. We continue to manage their policies with the same care and commitment they’ve come to expect from us.
Keeping you informed
To help you support your clients, you can view a copy of the letter sent to policyowners.
Separately we’ve published some frequently asked questions for our customers on our website. You can share this link with clients who would like more information. We’ll continue to update these resources and keep you informed as the transition progresses.
If you have any questions, please contact your Strategic Partnership Manager or call the dedicated team we've set up to answer questions on 1800 631 600.
Investment market performance Q2 2026
Investment markets shifted through the second quarter of 2026 (1 April–30 June), presenting both headwinds and opportunities for investors. In this article, we look at how markets performed during this period, as well as some of the key economic developments that drove the movements.
Australia
Share market: The Solactive Australia 200 Index, which represents Australia’s top 200 companies, was up 4.1% in AUD terms over the quarter, though this was below global stock markets.1
In part, this lagging indices was due to the Australian market not having much exposure to the AI boom.
Interest rates: Australia’s inflation rate rose to 4.1% in Q1 (up from 3.6% in Q4 2025)2, which was above the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) target range of 2-3%.3 Core inflation – which excludes volatile items like food and energy – increased from 3.4% to 3.5%.4
Following a rate hike in February, the RBA further increased the cash rate in March to 4.1%.5 It increased again in May – to 4.35% – with the rate kept on hold in June.6
These decisions reflected persistent inflationary pressures earlier in the year, increased uncertainty linked to the Middle East conflicts, and higher fuel prices.
Housing market: As measured by Cotality's Home Value Index (HVI), the Australian housing market decreased 1.2% in Q2 2026 (following a 1.9% increase in Q1).7 This was due to several factors:
- higher interest rates
- stretched affordability
- a shift to a more cautious sentiment among buyers, and
- tax changes that have reduced investor demand.
Australian dollar: The AUD continued to recover during the first half of Q1. Against elevated interest rate expectations and strong commodity prices, it peaked in mid-May at 72.6 cents to the USD.8
Following a collapse in oil prices and reduced expectations of further hikes, the USD strengthened in June. By the end of Q2, the rate fell to 69.2 US cents – just 0.2 above its starting rate of 69 US cents.9
New Zealand
Share market: The Solactive New Zealand Top 50 Index saw a 5.6% increase in NZD terms over the quarter, outperforming Australia.10
The New Zealand market has a large portion of dividend-paying stocks, and these performed well. This is largely due to expectations that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) wouldn't need to hike rates as much as anticipated during the remainder of 2026. It also benefited from investor optimism, as the New Zealand economy showed signs of improving.
Housing market: Nationally, the QV House Price Index showed a 0.3% increase in house prices from March to May.11
House prices are currently 0.2% lower than the same time in 2025, with the average national property value now NZ$912,190.12
Interest rates: After cutting the official cash rate by 0.75% during Q4 2025 to 2.25%, the RBNZ kept rates on hold throughout the first half of 2026.11 On 8 July 2026, it increased the rate to 2.5%.13
At the end of Q1 2026, the New Zealand economy had seen an annual increase of 1.6%.14 The inflation rate in Q1 2026 remained stubbornly high at 3.1%, with markets anticipating two more interest rate hikes in 2026.15
United States
Share market: In USD terms, US stocks were up around 15% over the quarter, marking a strong recovery from a weak Q1. AI infrastructure spending accelerated, with AI-related companies seeing surging stock prices. Combined with strong corporate earnings and easing geopolitical tensions, this led to one of the strongest quarters for US stocks in over five years.
Interest rates: During Q2 2026, the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged at a target of 3.50%-3.75%.16 This is in line with the Reserve’s goals of achieving maximum employment and price stability.
The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation rate stood 4.1% at the end of May 202617, while core inflation was at 2.9%.18
A review of Q2 2026
After negative returns in Q1, financial markets saw positive returns in Q2. Concerns around war and inflation receded, and investors returned to focusing on AI-driven earnings growth and the infrastructure behind it, leading to a very strong quarter for global stocks.
Bond returns had a much more muted quarter. Stronger economic growth led to expectations of higher interest rates, dragging down returns.
We continue to monitor the major drivers of markets and their impact on Resolution Life portfolios. While investing always involves uncertainty, the current environment is particularly difficult to predict. For well-performing portfolios, the best form of defence is diversification, with exposure to a range of asset classes that can help during volatile times.
Sources:
1. Solactive Australia 200 Index Performance
2,3,4,5,6. Reserve Bank of Australia Monetary Policy
7. Australian House Prices – Cotality Home Value Index
8, 9. FactSet
10. Solactive New Zealand Top 50 Index Performance
11, 12. NZ house Prices – QV House Price Index
13, 14, 15. Reserve Bank of New Zealand Official Cash Rate
16. Bloomberg Federal Reserve, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
17. US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index
18. Bureau of Labour Statistics Data.
It sounds like your client… but is it?
AI voice cloning is changing what we can trust on the phone.
With only a short sample of audio from a voicemail, social media video, webinar, podcast, or other recording, AI tools can create a convincing imitation of someone’s voice.
For financial advisers, this creates an important new risk: a caller may sound exactly like your client, without actually being your client.
What might a voice-cloning scam look like?
The technology may be new, but the social engineering techniques are familiar.
A caller who sounds like a genuine client may:
- Request an urgent withdrawal or transfer.
- Ask to change bank account or contact details.
- Request sensitive information or documents.
- Claim they are travelling, distressed, or unable to follow the normal process.
- Pressure you to act quickly or make an exception.
- Discourage you from contacting them through another channel.
The voice helps establish trust. Urgency and manipulation do the rest.
A familiar voice is no longer verification
Even if you’ve known a client for years, you shouldn’t treat recognising their voice as proof of identity.
For any sensitive, unusual, or high-risk request:
- Do not approve transactions or disclose sensitive information based solely on an inbound phone call.
- Be cautious if a client asks you to bypass normal processes.
- Independently call the client back using a trusted number already in your systems.
- Apply additional verification for unusual requests, particularly changes to payment details, withdrawals, or transfers.
- Escalate anything that does not feel consistent with the client’s normal behaviour.
Importantly, do not simply call back the number that contacted you, as caller ID can also be spoofed.
Consider the information they provide
AI-enabled scams can become particularly convincing when criminals combine a cloned voice with information gathered from social media, data breaches, or other sources. This could include personal details you might ask for, including their date of birth, home address, or other personal details.
They may know the client’s name, family members, adviser, employer, recent travel or other personal information. This means traditional cues such as “they sounded like them” or “they knew things only my client would know” are becoming less reliable.
Be AI aware
AI is making impersonation more convincing, but the defence remains straightforward:
Do not rely on whether something sounds real. Verify that it is real.
A few extra moments of independent verification could prevent a significant financial loss for your client and business.
Earning CPD points through our Education Hub
There’s still time to build your CPD points in 2026 through the Acenda Life Education Hub, with practical webinars designed to support client conversations and risk advice outcomes.
Upcoming webinars
- 15 October – Straight from the source: Data and insights from the regulator Register now
There are more live webinar opportunities available in the Education Hub throughout October and November.
Plus, earn CPD points at a time that suits you in our growing library of on-demand webinars.
Important information
Where the information on this website is factual information only, it does not contain any financial product advice or make any recommendations about a financial product or service being right for you. Any advice is provided by Resolution Life Australasia Limited ABN 84 079 300 379, AFSL No. 233671 (Resolution Life), is general advice and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on this advice, you should consider the appropriateness of the advice having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs, as well as the product disclosure statement and policy document for the product. Any guarantee offered in the product is only provided by Resolution Life. Any Target Market Determinations for our products can be found at resolutionlife.com.au/target-market-determinations.
Resolution Life does not make any representation or warranty as to the accuracy, reliability or completeness of material on this website nor accepts any liability or responsibility for any acts or decisions based on such information.
The contact details for Resolution Life can be found at resolutionlife.com.au/contact-us.
