Strange as it might seem, financial advisers might be on the cusp of a golden era. Not only will it enhance their bottom lines, but it will increase the market valuations of their practices. For those that focus on senior Australians, the financial rewards could be even more pronounced. There are myriad reasons for asserting... Read more
26
Feb
2021
Discussions on carbon metrics are fast becoming a popular topic in investment circles. Carbon exposure is typically seen as a proxy for transition risk. Transition risk is a subset of climate risk associated with systematic shifts in regulation and consumption due to climate change.[1] Institutional investors, risk professionals and fund managers are increasingly looking to... Read more
26
Feb
2021
Professional standards reforms for financial advisers were introduced to the Corporations Act 2001 in March 2017 to raise the education, training and ethical standards of people providing personal advice to retail clients. In this second article of 2021’s Ethics Series, proudly sponsored by GSFM, the parallels between FASEA’s Code of Ethics and the Corporations Act will be... Read more
25
Feb
2021
A cautionary tale…. Imagine, just briefly, a small financial planning practice in Australia. And imagine that firm was infiltrated by an invisible cybercriminal, possibly from overseas, who gained unauthorised access to that firm’s network server, containing highly sensitive personal information on their clients, including account details, passwords, tax file numbers. Imagine, further, that cybercriminal spent... Read more
17
Feb
2021
To state the obvious, 2020 was a year like no other. The COVID-19 pandemic presented challenges the likes of which individuals, businesses and governments have never experienced before. The impact of this was to push an otherwise pretty robust global economy into recession, force lockdowns and create social dislocation on a previously unimaginable scale. Despite... Read more
15
Feb
2021
The recent economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic provides another example of the resiliency of dividends. As in the past, they held up better than earnings, with the most severe pressure in specific sectors. This article from equity income specialists Epoch Investment Partners, discusses the importance of dividends to any prudent capital allocation policy.... Read more
09
Feb
2021
Forecasting outcomes for the year ahead is challenging in the best of times, let alone during a global pandemic. This year, Chris Rands adopted an alternative strategy for determining where interest rates could land in 2021 and what that could mean for fixed income performance. “What if?” scenarios Typically when creating our fixed income outlook... Read more
09
Feb
2021
Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), Listed Investment Companies (LICs) and Unlisted Managed Funds are all popular vehicle structures amongst investment managers to deliver portfolios to their clients. While there are similarities between each structure, there are also a number of key differences that clients must be aware of, as these differences ultimately determine the most suitable... Read more
08
Feb
2021
On 1 January 2020, FASEA’s Code of Ethics became enforceable by law, requiring advisers to comply with its 12 detailed standards. By the end of 2020, it was announced that FASEA (but not its Code of Ethics) would be disbanded. This article, proudly sponsored by GSFM, examines the importance of upholding these standards and how... Read more
08
Feb
2021
Financial control, a form of financial or economic abuse, is unfortunately an increasingly common occurrence across a range of age and socio-economic groups. During financially and emotionally challenging times, such as those experienced by many during the COVID-19 pandemic, financial abuse tends to rise. Whether it’s in the form of financial control in a relationship,... Read more
14
Dec
2020
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