In brief
- Advocates say Australians may not be aware their superfund is investing billions into the gambling industry.
- Some super funds do not apply investment screens to gambling companies.
Australia's 20 biggest superannuation funds have almost $15 billion invested in gambling-related companies, despite growing concern about the social harm caused by the industry.
A report released on Thursday by the Alliance for Gambling Reform found the sector holds $14.8 billion in gambling stocks.
Australia's largest fund, Australian Super, has the biggest exposure at $4.9 billion — more than double any other fund — while Australian Retirement Trust, Colonial First State, UniSuper and Aware Super round out the top five.
Gambling company Aristocrat Leisure is just one of the companies into which retirement funds are flowing.
Despite many funds having responsible investment policies, approaches to gambling-related risks remain "limited, inconsistent and largely inadequate", according to chief executive of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, Martin Thomas.
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He said many Australians would be shocked to learn how much of their money was being invested into the industry.
"There's starting to be a realisation just of how socially damaging gambling is," he told AAP.
"We see bankruptcies, mental health issues, marriage break-ups."
Harms from gambling are not consistently treated the same way as harms arising from other industries such as tobacco and alcohol, he said, with the latter routinely screened out of superannuation investments.
Australians losing billions to gambling
Australians are losing more money per capita to gambling than any other country — about $32 billion a year.
A spokesperson for Australian Super said apart from its Socially Aware option, the fund does not apply investment screens to gambling companies.
"We invest to help members achieve their best financial position in retirement," they said.
"'We engage with certain ASX-listed companies either directly or with other investors to better understand their initiatives to deliver responsible gaming practices and appropriate governance practices."
Thomas called gambling a "blind spot" for superannuation companies.
Super funds could make more ethical choices about where they put their money, he said, noting gambling investment was a relatively small part of their overall investments, which may range in the hundreds of billions of dollars.
"There is so much opportunity out there for them to do the right thing," he said.
Thomas urged those who were concerned to contact their super fund to find out how much they were investing in gambling.
"We're not looking to ban gambling; we just think it's a harmful legal adult product and should be regulated," he said.
"But we do think it should be shunned by the investment community, particularly super funds, particularly because we're all made to contribute to these super funds."
Gambling reforms announced
Gambling reforms and government support for affected Australians were announced earlier this year.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed his government intends to table laws to limit gambling ads across various forms of media, including on online platforms unless users have been verified to be over the age of 18.
The federal budget itself has also identified specific measures.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said $39 million has been set aside over the next four years to improve the availability and reach of financial counselling services, while $28.7 million will be spent on BetStop, in part to strengthen data-matching systems.
The government plans to spend $22.4 million to develop a national online awareness campaign to encourage people affected by gambling harms to seek support.
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