A for effort as the ECB finally delivers on QE
While the quantitative easing (QE) measures recently announced are better than hoped for, more needs to be done to address the eurozone’s structural problems. What action has the European Central Bank (ECB) taken? On 22 January, the ECB announced a massive program of QE. They’ve decided to purchase €60 billion of financial assets – mostly
February 20, 2015
Recreo goes live: new administrative opportunity for Australia’s super industry
A combination of new technology and industry experience have come together to launch a new investment model, Recreo Financial Technologies. “We have a good mix of technological expertise and industry experience in our Recreo team,” said Matthew Crooks, Co-Founder and Managing Director. “The growing SMSF sector is seeing a rise in the number of increasingly
February 19, 2015
Big four group risk insurers consolidate market share as profit margins continue slide
Australia’s top four wholesale (group) insurers by annual premium income have increased their combined market share, growing from a collective 67 per cent market share at June 2013 to 73 per cent for the June 2014 period. This market domination by a small group of insurers is one of several key findings to emerge from
February 18, 2015
2015 SMSF Association National Conference
The 2015 SMSF Association National Conference is again set to deliver a quality line up of local, national and international speakers with a focus on technical, legal and strategic SMSF topics. Professional Planner is an official media partner of the event, and producer of the conference Daily News.
February 18, 2015
Zenith rates Mercer LifetimePlus APPROVED
Mercer LifetimePlus (MLP) is a newly developed product designed to provide participating superannuation funds access to longevity solutions to their members. MLP sits as an investment option within a participating super fund and is designed to be accessible to those members with Account Based Pensions. MLP represents a new innovation in the search for longevity solutions
February 18, 2015
Australian Greens Senator surveys the financial planning battleground
Much to the dismay of many practitioners, financial services and politics are closely intertwined. This was highlighted like never before last year, when the influence of micro-party senators played a major role in the eventual disallowance of the Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) regulations. The Australian Greens has also been increasing its involvement in the
February 18, 2015
MEMO TO ALL ACCOUNTANTS: Your licensing options start…here
A independent service to help guide accountants through the apparent maze of licensing options has been launched by a former financial planning policy adviser and manager for CPA Australia and former head of the AMP-owned licensee SMSF Advice. Kath Bowler, chief executive officer of Licensing For Accountants, says if accountants start to work out the best
February 18, 2015
New Praemium SMSF functionality to reduce fund breaches
Praemium’s new SMSF functionality will assist accountants and advisers to reduce instances of breaches by fund trustees. This is especially important now that the ATO has been given additional regulatory compliance powers. Breaches of contribution caps or pension limits often occur when accountants and advisers work from different and incomplete information, meaning neither might have
February 17, 2015
Australian Ethical’s Smaller Companies fund wins a top spot in SuperRatings
Australia’s leading, independent superannuation research firm, SuperRatings, has released a new report which shows Australian Ethical Super has topped a number of performance rankings in 2014, with superior returns to some of our most well-known, mainstream, super funds. Investing in ethical companies listed on the ASX, with a focus on ‘small cap’ stocks, produced a
February 17, 2015
Changing regulations and investor pressure shape alternatives sector
Research house Lonsec has released its Alternatives Sector Review, highlighting that a changing regulatory environment and investor requirements have continued to shape the alternatives sector during the past year. Lonsec’s review of the alternatives sector encompassed 33 products covering both hedge funds and private equity. The report found that many alternatives products have failed to
February 17, 2015
AFA first choice for younger advisers
In its eighth year, the Association of Financial Advisers’ (AFA) GenXt initiative has had a dramatic effect on the membership demographics of the AFA with around 30% of the AFA’s adviser members now under 40 years of age. AFA CEO Brad Fox says that is proof that the AFA has become the association of choice
February 17, 2015
Millinium’s “Avoid the Losers” Strategy Puts it First in Aussie Shares Yet Again
Millinium Capital Managers has once again come top of the rankings in Australian Shares strategies in the latest Morningstar survey. Millinium was the top performing strategy in Morningstar’s Institutional Sector Survey for the 12 months to December 31 2014, returning 15.1%, well ahead of the market return of 5.3% (S&P/ASX300 TR index). The next best
February 17, 2015
