A super review – looking back and ahead
Superannuation rules are constantly changing and 2013 was no different. Crissy Demanuele reviews the year that was for superannuation and how the changes will impact on advice strategies in the year ahead. The amount invested in superannuation in Australia grew by approximately 15.5 per cent over the past year to an estimated total of $1.62
December 13, 2013
New adviser group gains momentum
Self-licensed, Sydney-based financial planning firms WLM Financial Services, Northstar Financial Advisers and More4Life Financial Services will help spearhead the creation of a national association to promote the benefits of alternative investments and target return strategies. The formation of the Real Return User Group was confirmed at a meeting early this month which was attended by
December 12, 2013
The average practice, far from average
Almost 40 per cent of financial planning and accounting firms believe they will boost profitability by at least 20 per cent in 2014, while cutting back the number of clients they service. Preliminary results from the Macquarie Practice Consulting 2013 Financial Planning Best Practice Benchmarking Survey reveal that 83 per cent of advisers expect to
December 12, 2013
Advisers report a surge in confidence
Financial planners are the most optimistic and energetic they’ve been in years, with 94.5 per cent of advisers positively upbeat about the long term viability of their businesses, according to a new report. The latest Zurich Risk Adviser Sentiment Index, which was conducted by Beaton Research and Consulting, found risk advisers are currently the most
December 12, 2013
The Great Rotation
A year ago there was much talk of a Great Rotation out of bonds and into equities. As ever when a widely-held view is neatly captured by a snappy moniker, things didn’t pan out quite as expected. While bonds have not had the greatest of years, and equities have, it is less obvious that the
December 12, 2013
Is real estate in your super fund even worth it?
A lot of the debate about property in self-managed super funds has missed a bigger issue: is there a reasonable investment case for it being there in the first place? Dug Higgins explains. As we look back on 2013, if one thing will stick in my memory it’s the seemingly endless debate around geared property
December 12, 2013
UBS and Grocon in Australian real estate joint venture
UBS Global Asset Management, one of the top five real estate investment managers globally, and Grocon, Australia’s largest private development and construction firm, have announced the creation of an Australian-based full service real estate investment and asset management platform. The joint venture, based in Sydney, will combine UBS Global Asset Management’s global capital raising and
December 12, 2013
Retirement anxiety increases: CFS
Australian retail investors remained cautious towards domestic equities in the September 2013 quarter, despite a rebound in global equity markets, according to Colonial First State Global Asset Management (CFSGAM). The S&P/ASX200 Accumulation Index surged by 10.2 per cent over this period, as markets responded well to the US Federal Reserve’s decision not to reduce its bond-buying
December 12, 2013
BGL partners with Australia Post
BGL Corporate Solutions, Australia’s leading supplier of administration software to Self-managed superannuation funds, has partnered with Australia Post to provide SuperStream services to clients. The BGL / Australia Post service will provide signup and data delivery to Simple Fund 360 and Simple Fund Desktop. BGL managing director Ron Lesh said SuperStream was a huge project
December 12, 2013
Media blamed for alarmist SMSF reporting
Sensational media reports that claim a large and rapidly growing number of self-managed superannuation funds are gearing up to invest in property are unsupported by data, according to the latest SMSF data. The Heffron SMSF Borrowing Data Report showed only 12 per cent, or 208, of the 1,700 SMSFs administered by Heffron had a Limited
December 10, 2013
Investor/funds manager mismatch
Investors have no plans to increase their exposure to hedge funds and aren’t interested in buying multiple products from one funds manager, according to Ernst & Young’s seventh annual survey of the global hedge fund market. A new report by EY titled: Exploring pathways to growth, found a major discrepancy between the expectations of investors
December 10, 2013
It’s not what you know, but what you can prove
The 2012 case of Tomasetti v Brailey in the New South Wales Supreme Court examined a wide range of issues including negligence, misleading or deceptive conduct, breach of contract, and a breach of the Corporations Act. In this case, the plaintiff (Tomasetti) was a lawyer and the defendant (Brailey) was his accountant and financial planner.
December 10, 2013
