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10 October 2026
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Paul Keating on company tax and imputation, a critique of APRA's Standard Risk Measure, do we really need super?, self managed super's best kept secret, insurance essentials and calculating performance.
The super industry should have a jaundiced view of reductions in the existing company tax rate but, more than that, remain vigilant in protecting ‘dividend imputation’. And superannuation is about de-risking the future, so people should be encouraged to salary sacrifice in later life.
Super fund Product Disclosure Statements now include a measure of risk called the ‘Standard Risk Measure’, or SRM, but it has some important shortcomings, especially ignoring the size of losses.
We will have a significant retirement funding problem for at least the next 30 years. We need super to reduce the future tax burden on those employed who will be asked to support an ageing population.
If ‘SMSF’ were a corporate brand, its marketing department would be the most successful in superannuation history. The major retail funds always had a strong response to SMSFs in their kit bag, but they didn’t explain it to enough customers.
Protecting your wealth and standard of living is just as important as building it in the first place. You are gambling with your financial future if you do not have adequate insurance.
The arithmetic mean of the annual returns of the ASX/S&P200 since 1980 is 13.9% per annum, while the geometric mean is 11.6% per annum. This is an annual 2.3% gap. Which returns have you been watching?
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.
A high-profile dividend cut and a prominent fund manager’s apology have reignited a long-running debate. If investors can access similar exposures more cheaply and efficiently elsewhere, what exactly is keeping LICs alive?
The fight over testamentary trusts looked settled. Then the draft legislation arrived. Hidden in a technical detail is a question that could force many families to rethink wills they thought were already future-proof.
For generations, Australian investors have backed banks, miners and dividends. But has that loyalty come at a cost? A look at the numbers raises an uncomfortable question about where future returns will come from.
Investors have long accepted one portfolio rule without much question. A major tax shift could change that calculation entirely, forcing difficult trade-offs between risk, discipline and an overlooked cost lurking beneath.
The value of a testamentary trust is not determined by wealth alone. Depending on circumstances, it can reduce the tax burden on inherited income, create efficiencies and help build intergenerational wealth.