SMSF

Does diversification really matter for your super fund, and do you really need to hit the magical $500,000 level before your self-managed super fund (SMSF) can start generating any meaningful returns? According to new research conducted by the SMSF Association, many of these myths have been debunked. With some 1.1 million trustees, and more than…

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…

The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) was established in 1 November 2018, combining the Financial Ombudsman Service, Credit and Investments Ombudsman (CIO) and Superannuation Complains Tribunal (SCT) into a more efficient and well resourced group. Covering most aspects of the financial services industry, the data was naturally tilted towards complaints against the banking sector and…

PIMCO Australia last night (February 22) warned advisers nationally that its name had been used in bond scams which ASIC uncovered in January. They are “raising millions of dollars”, ASIC said. The scam, targeting Australian investors, involves an offer of unrealistically high returns on the supposed investment in bonds, which the big manager says are…

According to Chant West Research, the median ‘Balanced’ industry super fund delivered a return of 3.0% for the entirety of 2020; not a bad result but not shooting the lights out either. There is little doubt it was a very difficult year for investors and the world in general, faced with a health crisis that…

WLTH is a brand-new financial services neo-platform providing Australians with a smarter, sustainability-focused solution to financial products but particular residential and commercial loans. WLTH is the latest ‘non-bank’ digital lending and payments platform seeking to disrupt the financial services industry in Australia. The launch follows the recent shutdown of neo-bank Xinja after it failed to…

The Kiwi counterpart of US online direct investment platform Robinhood is sounding out the Australian market for possible expansion. Brooke Roberts, co-founder of the Wellington-based Sharesies, said the firm was recruiting an Australian country manager. “We are looking at launching Sharesies in Australia,” she said. “But at the moment we’re working on a product that…

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…

New retail investors entered the sharemarket in droves over the first six months of the pandemic’s impact. Contrary to widely held views, for the most part, on average, they did very well. Very well indeed. But one has to be careful of averages. They can often mask skews from big single numbers and rarely do…