Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.
8 November 2025
Recently trending
Professor Robert Deutsch: "This has got to be the best set of articles on economic and financial matters. Always something worthwhile reading in Firstlinks. Thankyou"
Don Stammer, leading Australian economist: "Congratulations to all associated. It deserves the good following it has."
Rob Henshaw: "When I open my computer each day it's the first link I click - a really great read."
Ian Silk, CEO, AustralianSuper: "It has become part of my required reading: quality thinking, and (mercifully) to the point."
Reader: "I can quickly sort the items that I am interested in, then research them more fully. It is also a regular reminder that I need to do this."
Andrew Buchan, Partner, HLB Mann Judd: "I have told you a thousand times it's the best newsletter."
Reader: "Is one of very few places an investor can go and not have product rammed down their throat. Love your work!"
Reader: "Great resource. Cuffelinks is STILL the one and only weekly newsletter I regularly read."
Reader: "Keep it up - the independence is refreshing and is demonstrated by the variety of well credentialed commentators."
Reader: "An island of professionalism in an ocean of shallow self-interest. Well done!"
Steve: "The best that comes into our world each week. This is the only one that is never, ever canned before fully being reviewed by yours truly."
Noel Whittaker, author and financial adviser: "A fabulous weekly newsletter that is packed full of independent financial advice."
David Goldschmidt, Chartered Accountant: "I find this a really excellent newsletter. The best I get. Keep up the good work!"
Eleanor Dartnall, AFA Adviser of the Year, 2014: "Our clients love your newsletter. Your articles are avidly read by advisers and they learn a great deal."
John Egan, Egan Associates: "My heartiest congratulations. Your panel of contributors is very impressive and keep your readers fully informed."
Ian Kelly, CFP, BTACS Financial Services: "Probably the best source of commentary and information I have seen over the past 20 years."
Reader: "The BEST in the game because of diversity and not aligned to financial products. Stands above all the noise."
Reader: " Finding a truly independent and interesting read has been magical for me. Please keep it up and don't change!"
Reader: "Congratulations on a great focussed news source. Australia has a dearth of good quality unbiased financial and wealth management news."
Reader: "I subscribe to two newsletters. This is my first read of the week. Thank you. Excellent and please keep up the good work!"
Reader: "Best innovation I have seen whilst an investor for 25 years. The writers are brilliant. A great publication which I look forward to."
Jonathan Hoyle, CEO, Stanford Brown: "A fabulous publication. The only must-read weekly publication for the Australian wealth management industry."
Reader: "It's excellent so please don't pollute the content with boring mainstream financial 'waffle' and adverts for stuff we don't want!"
John Pearce, Chief Investment Officer, Unisuper: "Out of the (many many) investmentrelated emails I get, Cuffelinks is one that I always open."
Reader: "Love it, just keep doing what you are doing. It is the right length too, any longer and it might become a bit overwhelming."
Scott Pape, author of The Barefoot Investor: "I'm an avid reader of Cuffelinks. Thanks for the wonderful resource you have here, it really is first class."
Reader: "Carry on as you are - well done. The average investor/SMSF trustee needs all the help they can get."
Investing across many different managers may not deliver the expected portfolio diversification if managers invest in the same way. Watch for diversification redundancy.
We hear a lot about 'factors' but what are they? Both retail and wholesale investors are ploughing billions into these new ETFs and managed funds. Do they have a role alongside passive and active funds?
There are many ways to hedge against volatility, but often at a cost to the overall return of the portfolio. At what point is a smooth journey worth the impact on the destination?
The benefit of setting investment objectives is most apparent in times of market turmoil, but at any time, defining a preference for maximum returns or minimum risk will help to achieve the right outcome.
Often with multi-manager funds, each manager acts autonomously, unaware of what the others are doing. Funds that adopt a centralised approach can eliminate unnecessary trades and reduce tax inefficiencies.
Choosing a fund manager who outperforms the market on a pre-tax basis is good, but if you also consider the tax effect on that performance, you really start to identify who the best managers are.
A new academic study shows that almost all Australians agree that there is a housing crisis yet we can’t agree on how to fix it and are sharply divided along generational and ideological lines.
Thoughtful tax planning is a cornerstone of successful investing. This highlights 13 legal ways that you can reduce tax, preserve capital, and enhance long-term wealth across super, property, and shares.
Despite soaring retiree wealth, public spending on older Australians continues to rise. The result: retirees now out-earn the young, exposing structural flaws in the tax system and challenges for fiscal sustainability.
As a relentless fee war grips Australia’s ETF market, investors may be missing the real battleground. Beyond basis points, index design itself - not cost - may be the most powerful driver of returns.
It seems the mere mention of franking credits generates a lot of heat but not much light. Here's a guide to how franking credits work, and the impact they have on both companies and shareholders.
As the bull market revs up, some investors worry about a possible correction. History shows the real question isn’t timing the top, but whether you have the time and liquidity to ride out inevitable downturns.
The 2025 Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index shows Australia has dropped to its lowest ranking in the 17 years of the index. This explores why we're falling and what can be done about it.
High-profile wine regions don’t always see strong property growth - volume, exports, and infrastructure investment often matter more than reputation in driving regional property markets.