mFund wind down and closure

mFund wind down and closure

About this page

ASX has established this page as a resource to help business stakeholders of the ASX Managed Fund Settlement Service (mFund) to find key information about the wind down and closure of the service.

On 27 November 2023, ASX released its response to the July 2023 consultation paper on the future of the mFund. Having regard to the submissions received in response to the consultation paper, ASX announced its decision to wind down and close the mFund on 27 November 2023.

About the closure of mFund

Since launching mFund, there has been a notable shift in investor interest regarding unlisted managed funds which has coincided with a growing demand for Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).

The market for ETFs has been, and continues to be, strong and the evolution of Active ETFs in recent years has provided a new opportunity for fund managers to bring their open-ended active products to listed markets. ASX will continue to focus on growing the ETF market.

ASX has begun a process of engagement with industry participants impacted by this decision via an Industry Working Group to determine an appropriate transition process.

ASX expects that individual funds will be progressively removed from the mFund platform in tranches up to the proposed closure date of 31 May 2026. This represents a closure notice period of approximately 2 ½ years.

Resources

mFund removal schedule

This section provides the market with details of removal dates for mFund products.

The date upon which an individual mFund product is removed from the mFund platform is determined by each issuer.  

The following table shows the mFund products which have already been removed from the mFund, and those that are scheduled for removal. Only mFund products which have released an ASX announcement outlining its proposed removal date are included in the Upcoming Removals list. 

mFund product removals*
ASX security code Investment fund name Month/Year of removal
EAP01 Claremont Global Fund (Hedged) March 2024
EAP03 Claremont Global Fund March 2024
SCH42 Schroder Asia Pacific Wholesale March 2024
COP01 Cooper Investors Global Equities Fund (Hedged) May 2024
COP03 Cooper Investors Global Equities Fund (Unhedged)
 May 2024
AOS01 Aoris International Fund - Class B  May 2024
AOS02 Aoris International Fund - Class D  May 2024
FIL39 Fidelity Sustainable Water & Waste Fund May 2024
IAL16 Invesco Australian equity Efficient income Fund - Class A  May 2024
IBB03 Morning Star Global Property Securities (H) Fund May 2024
MPI01 Macquarie Global Infrastructure Securities Fund  May 2024
UAM07 UBS Tactical Beta Fund - Balanced  May 2024
UAM08 UBS Tactical Beta Fund - Growth  May 2024
UAM09 UBS Tactical Beta Fund - Conservative May 2024
MGB01 Macquarie Professional Series Global Altern Fund May 2024
NCE01 New Capital China Equity Fund May 2024
DSC01 Dalton Street Capital Absolute Return Fund May 2024
SHF08   Morgan Stanley Global Quality Fund May 2024
FIL64  Fidelity Global Short Duration Income Fund June 2024
IWM05   Alpha Moderate Fund June 2024
IWM06  Alpha High Growth Fund mFund  June 2024
AAF01  Alexander Credit Income Fund  June 2024
FEC01   Flinders Emerging Companies Fund – Class B June 2024
CFM02 Cromwell Phoenix Opportunities Fund  September 2024
ORB02 Orbis Global Balanced Fund September 2024
SCH45 Schroder Global Recovery Fund (Wholesale Class) September 2024
SHF01 SGH 20 October 2024
SHF03 SGH Property Income Fund October 2024
SHF04
 SGH Emerging Companies October 2024
SHF09 Morgan Stanley Global Sustain Fund October 2024
PMF06 PIMCO Unconstrained Bond Fund Wholesale Class (aka Dynamic Bond Fund) October 2024
FTR03 Firetrail Australian Small Companies A November 2024
LMA05 Martin Currie Diversified Income Fund December 2024
LMA21 Western Asset Macro Opportunities Bond Fund December 2024
Upcoming mFund product removals*
ASX security code Investment fund name Expected date of removal
UAM10 UBS CBRE Global Property Securities Fund 16 December 2024
UAM12 UBS Global Infrastructure Securities Fund 16 December 2024
CPG09 Capital Group New Perspective Fund (AU) 28 February 2025
CPG10 Capital Group New Perspective Fund Hedged (AU) 28 February 2025
CPG11 Capital Group New World Fund (AU) 28 February 2025
CPG14 Capital Group Global High Income Opporunities Hedged (AU) 28 February 2025
AGA01 Altrinsic Global Equities Trust 30 May 2025
ANT01 Antares Income Fund 30 May 2025
FEP01 Fairview Equity Partners Emerging Companies Fund 30 May 2025
INT01 Intermede Global Equities Fund 30 May 2025
MLC01 MLC WS Inflation Plus - Conservative Portfolio 30 May 2025
MLC02 MLC Real Return Moderate 30 May 2025
MLC03 MLC Real Return Asseryice (Class A) 30 May 2025
IBB01 Morningstar International Shares (Unhedged) Fund 31 October 2025
IBB04 Morningstar International Shares (Hedged) Fund 31 October 2025
IBB09 Morningstar Moderate Real Return Fund 31 October 2025
IBB10 Morningstar Balanced Real Return Fund 31 October 2025
IBB11 Morningstar Growth Real Return Fund 31 October 2025
IBB12 Morningstar High Growth Real Return Fund 31 October 2025
IBB13 Morningstar Multi Asset Real Return Fund 31 October 2025

*Last updated 11 December 2024

Where you can find more information

Any notices or announcements relating to an mFund product’s removal can be found on ASX's Historical Information page by typing the first 3 letters of the mFund product’s ASX security code.

 

Key ASX contacts

Please reach out to the ASX Investment Products team if you have any questions.

Andrew Campion

General Manager, Investment Products and Strategy, ASX
Andrew.Campion@asx.com.au

Rory Cunningham

Senior Manager, Business Development, Investment Products, ASX
Rory.Cunningham@asx.com.au

Ashley Parker

Project Manager, Investment Products, ASX
Ashley.Parker@asx.com.au

 

High level wind down and closure timetable

Stage Description Target date Potential milestones (non-exhaustive)
1. Initial wind down Limit expansion of the mFund service & commence industry engagement November 2023
  • Content released on ASX website to assist impacted parties e.g., FAQs.
  • Suspension of new mFund product admissions.
  • Fee relief relating to mFund with respect to broker/PISP transaction fees and issuer fees.
  • Establishment of the Industry Working Group
2. Removal of funds Liaising with mFund stakeholders to convert mFund holdings to direct ownership and remove funds from service. By the end of May 2026
  • Communicate and liaise with individual product issuers and registries to minimise disruption, e.g., synchronising mFund removal with rolling of PDS documents, avoid clashes with fund distribution dates.
  • Determine timing for the cessation of new applications and redemptions to existing mFunds with issuers and brokers. 
  • Removal of funds from mFund and conversion of fund holdings from broker sponsored to issuer sponsored via CHESS.
  • Conversion from mFund products to dual access ETF.
3. Final closure Final stages of legal and operational work to close the mFund service permanently.

By the end of August 2026
  • Removal of references to mFund from ASX website and other relevant sources.
  • Resignation of remaining PISPs and return of Settlement Bonds.

 

mFund Industry Work Group

In response to feedback received from respondents to the consultation, ASX has established an mFund Industry Working Group (IWG). The objective of the mFund IWG is to help coordinate and facilitate an orderly wind down of the service, and provide an open forum for communication between mFund stakeholders and ASX. 

mFund stakeholders invited to participate in the IWG include the following:

  • mFund brokers i.e. Trading Participants and Settlement Participants accredited for mFund
  • Product Issuer Settlement Participants
  • Product Issuers and/or investment managers with funds admitted to the mFund service

Stakeholders that would like to join the next meeting of the mFund IWG should contact Ashley.Parker@asx.com.au.

 

Converting a fund to an Exchange Traded Product (ETP)

To assist mFund issuers to evaluate if their fund can be converted to an ETP, ASX has prepared an ETP Preliminary Assessment Questionnaire. Completion of the questionnaire will assist ASX in providing early guidance to prospective issuers on whether a fund can be converted from the mFund Settlement Service and admitted as an Exchange Traded Product (ETP) under the ASX AQUA Product Rules.

Further information about the requirements to be an ETP issuer can be found on the following section of the ASX website.

If you have any questions or would like to have an initial discussion with ASX about the process and requirements to convert your fund to an ETP please contact Ashley.Parker@asx.com.au.

 

Frequently asked questions

Can I continue to settle / redeem my existing customer mFund holdings?

Yes, mFund will remain open for applications and redemptions for products admitted before 27 November 2023 until further notice. No new products will be admitted to the platform after this date.

 

ASX will begin a process to engage with industry participants impacted by this decision to determine an appropriate transition process. Stakeholders will be given the opportunity to provide input into the closure plan and give feedback on proposed closure procedures. Subject to industry feedback, we don’t expect the closure to have full effect until 31 May 2026.
Will ASX CHESS Ops continue to support queries and request relating to existing mFund holdings?
Yes, please contact CHESS Ops via email on ChessSupport@asx.com.au
How do I communicate ASX’s decision to end this service to my clients?

ASX has prepared the following suggested text to assist in your communication with clients.

 

Dear [insert name],

 

We wish to inform you that ASX has decided to discontinue the Managed Fund Settlement Service (mFund).

 

This decision does not affect you in the immediate term and there is no urgent action required. The service will be wound down over an extended timeframe with full closure expected by 31 May 2026.

 

We are working with ASX to ensure an orderly transition and wind down of the service.

 

We will continue to provide further updates on timing and next steps and there will be plenty of time for you to make any necessary adjustments to your portfolio. We will provide further updates and instructions to you as we continue to engage with the ASX.

 

If you have any concerns or would like to discuss potential options for your investments, please reach out to [insert details]. 

 

Regards,

 

Please also refer to the investor-related FAQs.
Can I add new products to the mFund platform?
No, new products will no longer be admitted to the mFund platform.
Can my firm still enter into new mFund transactions? If so, until what date?

Yes, mFund will remain open for applications and redemptions for products admitted before 27 November 2023 until further notice.

 

ASX will begin a process to engage with industry participants impacted by this decision to determine an appropriate transition process. Stakeholders will be given the opportunity to provide input into the closure plan and give feedback on proposed closure procedures. Subject to industry feedback we don’t expect the closure to have full effect until 31 May 2026.
How will ASX communicate the formal wind down plan of this service to my firm?
Formal communication of the wind down plan will occur via ASX Participant notices, email and information posted to this webpage. ASX will begin a process to engage with industry participants impacted by this decision to determine an appropriate transition process.
What will happen to clients who retain mFund holdings up to and beyond the end date of this service?
Clients who wish to retain their holdings beyond the service closure date will be able to hold their units directly with the product issuer (as opposed to on CHESS), subject to any issuer decisions in connection with the future of their funds.
Can I convert existing participant sponsored holdings to issuer sponsored now? 
Yes, this option is available.
Will ASX be communicating to underlying holders regarding the end of this product offering and the impacts to / options for their mFund holdings?
ASX intends to communicate its plans regarding the wind down of mFund with Trading Participants, Settlement Participants, PISPs and product issuers. ASX believes that participants and issuers are best placed to communicate with underlying holders. We will endeavor to provide collateral to support your communication with clients impacted by the closure.
Will there be any fee amnesty with the ASX fees associated with any proposed wind down activities?
Yes, ASX intends to suspend certain participant and issuer fees relating to mFund. As part of its upcoming engagement with industry in relation to the mFund closure, ASX intends to seek feedback on how best to introduce fee relief for affected participants and issuers.
     
SGH 20
SGH Emerging Companies