Fox In Chicken Coup Ad Branded As “Irresponsible Bank Bashing”

Fox In Chicken Coup Ad Branded As “Irresponsible Bank Bashing”
B&T Magazine
By B&T Magazine



A new advertising campaign by the not-for-profit Industry Super Funds has been labelled as “political” and nothing more than “bank bashing” by opponents.

In the ad, which comes with its fair share of scare mongering, the banks are portrayed as foxes about to raid a chicken coup and the government is portrayed as a man who opens the door to the coop, letting the foxes attack.

Industry Super Funds want to highlight how the big banks want to cajole workers away from industry funds and over to bank funds that come with higher fees and charges. Check out the ad below:

However, prominent businessman and chairman of the financial system inquiry (FSI), David Murray, has said the ad is nothing more than a case of bank bashing and was offensive to bank employees.

Murray told The Australian Financial Review: “It is a political campaign. Why should members of a super fund be asked to pay for the ad?” he said, adding the campaign was even “more denigrating” than previous advertisements, which showed bank staff profiting from cross-selling financial products.

However, Industry Super Australia CEO David Whiteley has defended the marketing, saying Australians should be aware that the banks have been actively petitioning the government to dismantle the not-for-profit super funds sector.

“The carefully calculated changes lobbied for by the banks will have two clear effects. First, they aim to increase opportunities for banks to boost their market share and profitability from compulsory super,” Whiteley told The AFR.

“Secondly, and more importantly, they could reduce members’ super nest eggs by disrupting and undermining the model used by top-performing, not-for-profit super funds.”




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