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21 February 2026
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The current net annual cost of superannuation tax subsidies is around $40 billion, growing to more than $110 billion by 2060. These subsidies have always been bad policy, representing a waste of taxpayers' money.
Most superannuation products offered to working-age Australians are now performance-tested, and there are calls to extend these tests to account-based pensions. It's likely to result in more pain than gain, though.
A Grattan Institute report suggests lifetime annuities as a solution to people not spending their super balances. The issue is whether underspending is the real problem or a sign of more fundamental failings in our retirement system.
The benefits in retirement come at the cost of consumption in prior years and this trade-off should be the focus in making reforms to super. Otherwise, the system will continue to benefit the rich at the expense of the poor.
New research on Australia's retirement income policy argues many people (and the Budget) would be better off without compulsory super, especially when the welfare benefits of increasing home ownership are considered.
Professor Bird and Dr Gray highlight the dominance of the financial sector in Australia’s economy in their submission to the Financial System Inquiry and question whether bigger is necessarily better.
A more rational taxation system that supports home ownership but discourages asset speculation could provide greater financial support to first home buyers.
Every investing cycle has its Ozempic moment, a narrative shock so compelling that the market briefly forgets that incumbents can and do adapt to transformative technology like AI.
The best way to deal with the incoming Division 296 tax on superannuation is likely doing nothing. Earnings will be taxed regardless of where the money sits, so here are some important considerations.
It is almost impossible to identify a bubble in real time, and history shows they last far longer than we think, giving investors (perhaps misplaced) hope and short-sellers seemingly endless pain before the share price collapses.
Dealmaking appears to be on the mend, but investors could be well served to look through near-term trends toward six major themes that we think may drive private markets for years to come.
Retail investors have the worst trading record, according to a study of trading performance. Institutional investors weren't at the top either. Here are 6 ways to improve your odds.
A counterpoint to today’s prevailing narrative that Melbourne is the capital of a failing state defined by its strained public finances, COVID hangover and an opposition obsessed with undermining its own credibility.