Two of Australia's largest wealth management players, Superhero and Praemium (ASX:PPS), have reportedly taken the extraordinary step of lodging formal complaints with the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority against their trustee, Diversa Trustees.
Sources familiar with the matter indicate that the complaints, filed separately, allege Diversa improperly deducted fees from member reserves without adequate justification.
Both firms claim Diversa has actively blocked their attempts to transition to alternative trustee providers, citing its authority to determine if such moves align with the "best interests" of members.
The dispute creates a fresh headache for Diversa as it continues to reel from the $300 million collapse of the First Guardian Master Fund.
APRA previously imposed strict licence conditions on the firm following the scandal, mandating an independent governance review.
During a recent Senate inquiry, Liberal senator Dave Sharma raised further alarms, questioning whether Diversa had been "self-dealing" by billing members for undisclosed services at its own discretion.
While Diversa maintains it has acted in "strict compliance" with its legal obligations, the firm faces a potential exodus.
Superhero, which manages $3 billion for 400,000 members, and the ASX-listed Praemium, with $70.5 billion under administration, represent a significant portion of Diversa’s portfolio.
At the time of reporting, Praemium's share price was $0.63.