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3 September 2026
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In a talk with MBA students, legendary investor Howard Marks suggests forecasting and economists are a waste of time. He prefers to understand investor psychology and security pricing to get the edge in markets.
The billions and trillions in the funds management industry show the extent of its influence, but who controls the money, and how do platforms, managed funds, superannuation, listed and unlisted funds fit together?
While the ATO has many ways to watch taxpayer transactions and ensure tax is collected, for some unknown reason, it is legal to select from four different cost base treatments for capital gains tax. It's costing billions.
Harry Markowitz died last week at the age of 95. He was the 1990 Nobel Laureate and the father of Modern Portfolio Theory. He explained to me the magic moment when he realised how risk-return in portfolios works.
SMSF trustees want control over their investments and think they can perform better than professional investors. Claims of an impending fall are not supported by the data, and older trustees are investing even more.
Platforms are an integral part of the financial advice process, delivering efficiencies to advisers and allowing them to cover more clients. But one platform will never be the holy grail as every client is different.
Conventional wisdom encourages retirees to preserve superannuation. But if those likely to qualify for the Age Pension later in life spend a little more today, it may deliver higher lifetime income and a more stable retirement.
The ban on borrowing to buy residential property inside a self-managed super fund was framed as closing a loophole for the wealthy. Yet ATO data suggests its effects may be felt more heavily on members with moderate balances.
What if investment success depends less on picking the right assets and more on understanding the decisions of other investors? A principle borrowed from game theory offers a different perspective on markets.
Gold is back in the headlines but investors may be asking the wrong question. Before deciding where prices are headed next, it's worth considering whether the investment you choose will deliver the outcome you're actually seeking.
For decades, investors looked the other way as government debt ballooned. But a reckoning may be beginning. Bond markets are stirring and the consequences could reach far beyond markets into everyday life.
A little-known corner of the property market may be quietly benefiting from powerful demographic and healthcare trends. Could this specialised sector offer investors something increasingly difficult to find: enduring demand?
Is retirement really an identity crisis, or is something else at play? New insights challenge conventional thinking and reveal why some retirees struggle to fully embrace life after work.