financial adviser

ASX200 jump again, BHP (ASX:BHP) records broken, Ansell (ASX:ANN) demand continues The ASX200 had another strong day, this time a combination of energy (1.34%) and IT (2.54%) sending the price higher. It seems overseas investors may have identified Afterpay (ASX:APT) as a cheaper alternative to their own Affirm (NASDAQ:AFRM) with the company hitting another all-time high today. BHP Group (ASX:BHP) released their…

ASX finishes higher, broker upgrades galore, Bingo (ASX:BIN) gets a private equity bid The ASX200 (ASX:XJO) finished 1.2% higher on Tuesday, benefitting from increasing corporate activity and a round of broker upgrades for mining and retail companies. The discretionary retailing sector finished 2.0% higher on the back of an 8.0% increase in Domino’s Pizza (ASX:DMP), whilst the industrials sector…

The beginning of 2020 has been dominated by headlines of mass adviser departures from the industry, with the number of registered advisers having fallen to levels of five years ago. While this may make for great headlines, it says little about the progress being made in the professionalisation of the financial advice industry, particularly in…

Tim Townsend, like many in the 1990s, fell into the world of finance, but fast forward through a 25-year career and Townsend highlights the decision to invest in himself, founding Townsend Cobain, with business partner Rod Cobain, as his best. Beginning his career at the Credit Union in Victoria when they had just developed a…

Quantitative easing, negative interest rates, and modern monetary theory (MMT) have all but forced the end of the 30-year bull market in government bonds; or have they? As we enter 2021 the chorus of commentators warning of significant capital losses on long-term bond investments and the reducing diversification benefits of that holding continues to grow….

Global investment manager Pacific Investment Management Corporation (PIMCO) released the results of an extensive survey of Australian investors this week. The first of what will be a regular temperature check for investment markets, questioned 2,500 individual investors aged over 35 with liquid assets exceeding US$100,000 on key market indicators. The survey spanned five key Asia…

2021 may be shaping up as the ‘Year of the Financial Adviser’. After what has been a tumultuous and stressful few years for the industry, promises of a more streamlined regulatory framework may finally be coming to fruition. Assistant Minster for Superannuation and Financial Services, Jane Hume, and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg had a business day…

Leading global ‘distressed debt’ manager Howard Marks and his Oaktree Capital firm are well-known for their sometimes combative and private equity approach to investment. The firm has increased its work in Australia in recent years after achieving some success buying-out and breaking-up the Blue Sky Alternative Asset Management empire, and more recent involvements with Virgin…

The Banking Royal Commission was a watershed moment for the financial advising industry, and almost two years on, has there been change? In one word, yes. Too much change. So much change, that Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Morrison government, along with a long list of industry leaders are all  saying  that…

Words, words, words * Many of us spend quite a bit of time reading commentary and reports from fund managers. At times it feels like a desperate search for truth, or at least a unique insight that comforts one that investing has fundamental foundations. There are a large number of big-picture reports which are typically…