Education

Our definition of assets and their economic value has been changing over time. In the 20th century, machines, factories, and transportation were the assets on a company’s balance sheet. Today, value is dominated by “intangible” assets. Brands, technologies, patents, copyrights, synergies, and business models determine the lion’s share of company worth. At this point, 90%…

China is far and away the world’s largest carbon dioxide emitter, accounting for close to 30% of global carbon emissions, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) – double the 15% for the US and 9% for the European Union. Robeco’s Jie Lu has released a detailed research report which takes a thorough look at…

Dwindling financial adviser numbers have dropped below the 20,000 mark, hitting a five-year low.  And although it’s been a difficult few year for some wealth managers, others have evolved during the pandemic, finding themselves head and shoulders above the rest. Sequoia Financial Group (ASX: SEQ) is one of these, having recently acquired Topdocs Legal, a…

After a hellish close to 2021 that saw the departure of one of Magellan’s largest institutional clients, the pressure will be on for Hamish Douglass to do what he says he won’t: prioritise the short-term. The closing months of 2021 were likely the harshest of Douglass’ public career. Criticisms of Magellan’s underperformance since the 2020…

One of the most powerful, and potentially long-standing, impacts of the pandemic was the so-called democratisation of investing. With over a billion people stuck at home, many of whom were in secure work, or alternatively the beneficiaries of the largest stimulus package in history, a large portion turned to investing to fill the time. At…

Melbourne-based global equity manager, Bell Asset Management, best known for its small and mid-cap equity strategies, has a launched a new ‘sustainable’ equity strategy. The Bell Global Sustainable Fund will add to the firm’s growing suite of products and offer another option for diversification, as a number of leading equity managers continue to underperform. With…

Thanks in part to the pandemic, employers now have sufficient awareness of mental health problems in the workforce, their human and economic costs. Now is the time for programs to solve them. A multi-country, multi-industry webinar last week (December 9) looked at how employers should learn from the impact of Covid-19 and put in place…

“An Albanese Labor government will properly recognise your experience,” were the words of Labor spokesman Stephen Jones this week when presenting at the Independently Owned Financial Advisers in Australia (AIOFP) conference. The AIOFP has been among the staunchest critics of the massive increase in compliance and regulatory requirements being placed onto the sector, so it…

These days, becoming a financial adviser is no easy feat. Following the banking and financial services Royal Commission, the bar was raised, with higher education and professional standards put in place to lift the education, training and ethical standards of financial advisers. Financial advisers must be licensed (hold an AFSL) and new advisers must have…

If the financial advice industry needed a passionate advocate, it only has to call on Eleece Quilliam. The National Manager of Invesco Consulting in Australia is impressively adamant in her belief in the importance of advice. “I love working with advisers, because I genuinely believe that what they do is up there with the likes…

Tackling climate change is high on everyone’s agenda, with awareness growing that time is running out to protect the planet. With the UN bringing world leaders together at the 26th conference focussed on tackling global climate change, net zero emissions became part of the debate on action and a part of most news reports. But…

Western Asset expects US and global growth to decelerate from their cyclically driven highs as we move into 2022. Contributing factors include a sharp reduction in global fiscal stimulus, a reduction in monetary accommodation by key central banks such as the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and the European Central Bank (ECB) and the persistence of…