While the government’s Your Future, Your Super (YFYS) reform package, which took effect last July, has been widely derided by the industry, it is the first step in a move to requiring the industry to improve its efficiency, transparency and accountability. One of the unexpected consequences of the YFYS changes is the fact that it…

Earlier this year, an army of small-time millennial traders successfully shook-up the US stock market and took on Wall Street.  A shorting attack on a company called GameStop (NYSE: GME), led by hedge funds, was outflanked by a frenzied buying assault from an online crowd centred on the the WallStreetBets “subreddit” chat-forum on Reddit. It…

This week saw the release of the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO’s) latest quarterly data on the self-managed super fund (SMSF) sector. The information provides a unique insight into what has been a sector under pressure for many years now, as both regulators and industry fund alternatives fine-tuned their focus.  The takeaway from the latest publicly…

The end of the financial year is closing in fast after what has been a tumultuous period for many in Australia. Despite a reasonably uneventful year for superannuation legislation and policy changes, opportunities abound for superannuants and investors of all kinds. One of the most important roles of a financial adviser is to prompt and…

SMSFs are not as expensive to operate as many, including ASIC and the Productivity Commission, have led us to believe, according to a report by consulting actuaries Rice Warner, and published to coincide with the start of ‘SMSF Week’. The report was commissioned by the SMSF Association (SMSFA) which has been continually irked by both…

It’s been a long time coming, yet it may finally be here. The arbitrary cap on the allowable number of SMSF members, limiting funds to just four people, appears set to be lifted. The legislation has been delayed due to the pandemic but the proposal to increase the maximum number of members from four to…

INSight #37 What are Insurance-Linked Securities (ILS) Exactly? with Chin Liu – Amundi Pioneer

With climate change being increasingly recognised as a systemic risk, the investment community is becoming more focused on supporting the transition to a net-zero-emissions economy and establishing sound transition plans The announcement by Cbus Super is the most recent example. Last month, the $54 billion building and construction industry superfund launched a new Climate Change…

In an environment of low interest rates and seemingly overvalued sharemarkets, advisers are naturally flocking to alternative asset classes to eke out returns. Yet not all alternative assets are created the same. The COVID-19 sell off and subsequent recovery has truly seperated the good from the bad. In this webinar, PIMCOs Chris Santore, will shine…

Clearly, we should have seen it coming. A launch party full of B-grade celebrities on a pristine beach in a cyclone ravaged region, it had all the hallmarks of a disaster. This week saw the regulator taking action against the Mayfair Platinum Group, including its subsidiaries IPO Wealth, Mayfair 101, and M-Notes among others. The…

INSight #7
Ned Bell – Bell Asset Management

Clients who have put off establishing a self-managed super fund due to the assumed high costs may be put at ease after the Australian Taxation Office released the median cost of an SMSF which is significantly lower than earlier reported figures. The ATO’s 2017-18 Statistical Overview of SMSFs shows the median operating expense of SMSFs…