Barnaby Joyce says ex-wife lost $400,000 in $1.1bn super fund collapse

Barnaby Joyce, a One Nation MP, used a new Choice podcast to denounce the government's inadequate response to the $1.1 billion collapse of the Shield Master Fund and First Guardian, which stripped roughly 11,000 Australians of their retirement savings. He revealed that $400,000 he gave to his ex-wife Natalie as part of their divorce settlement was lost in the failure. The investigation uncovered that investors were recruited through cold calls and social-media advertising, directing funds into speculative projects such as offshore hotels, a Lamborghini, and personal property mortgages.

Joyce urged the government to restore the full super balances of victims instead of offering a capped compensation package. Super Consumers Australia’s CEO Xavier O’Halloran said no payouts have yet been made under the scheme, which caps refunds at $150,000. ASIC is pursuing 14 court actions involving 31 individuals linked to the funds, but few have faced substantive accountability so far.