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20 July 2025

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Who curates Firstlinks?

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Firstlinks is a community sharing both the knowledge and the battle scars of experience from an informed and impartial point of view, without pushing products or promoting services.

Firstlinks (originally Cuffelinks) was founded in 2012 by Graham Hand and Chris Cuffe, with Leisa Bell joining as assistant editor in 2013. The business was acquired by Morningstar Australasia in 2019. James Gruber joined the team in 2022 to allow Graham to focus more on writing and in 2024, Joseph Taylor came on board as an additional writer. Tragically, at the end of 2024, Graham passed away, 13 months after receiving a terminal brain tumor diagnosis.

Firstlinks is Graham's legacy to Australian investors, for which we will be forever grateful.

James Gruber, Writer and Editor

James has spent almost 15 years in senior investment and media positions. He was an Equities Portfolio Manager and sell-side analyst in Asia and Australia for seven years. And he also worked as a producer and chief-of-staff for ABC television and radio news. He is now the Editor of Firstlinks.

Joseph Taylor, Writer and Investment Specialist

Joseph's early career included stints at a defence policy thinktank in Warsaw and at a commodity trading house in London. In 2020, he followed his interest in writing and markets to start a content business catering mainly to clients in financial services. Over the next four years, Joseph wrote on behalf of several leading investment commentators and fund managers across equities, fixed income and alternative assets.  Joseph joined Firstlinks in April 2024 and also works as an Investment Specialist at Morningstar.

Leisa Bell, Assistant Editor

Leisa has spent most of her career in the banking and finance industry, from specialising as a credit analyst to financial publishing. For 15 years, she worked across multiple levels of banking (retail, business, treasury, corporate and investment banking), both domestic and international. After a career break to raise children, she spent five years managing a small finance consultancy before joining a fledging Cuffelinks in 2013, assisting with editing, publishing and business administration.

 

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