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21 May 2025
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Financial advice fee structures, institutions embracing bank hybrids, the varying costs of pension indexation, making super last through retirement, picking winners versus avoiding losers.
The Future of Financial Advice reforms have substantially addressed poor practices in the industry, and there's strong justification for different ways to charge fees for financial advice.
Until recently, institutional investors did not buy many bank hybrids, leaving issue size and margins subject to retail demand. But retail investors, including SMSFs, no longer have the market to themselves.
With the budget in deficit, debate about the sustainability of welfare and spending gathers pace. Looking at pension indexation alone, the two methods used differ by $300 billion in revenue between now and 2050.
Australian research on retirement withdrawal rates challenges the long-accepted ‘4% Rule’ used by many planning professionals when advising self-funded retirees. The optimal rate? Well, let's start a conversation.
Watching the market each day to pick a winner is not the best way to handle a retirement plan. A better and less stressful approach for your investment portfolio is to avoid losers, sit back and watch the grass grow.
Labor has announced a $2.3 billion Cheaper Home Batteries Program, aimed at slashing the cost of home batteries. The goal is to turbocharge battery uptake, though practical difficulties may prevent that happening.
The famed investor says the rapid switch from globalisation to trade wars is the biggest upheaval in the investing environment since World War Two. And a new world requires a different investment approach.
The boss of Australia’s fourth largest super fund by assets, UniSuper’s John Pearce, says Trump has declared an economic war and he’ll be reducing his US stock exposure over time. Should you follow suit?
Every crisis throws up opportunities. Here are ideas to capitalise on this one, including ‘overbalancing’ your portfolio in stocks, buying heavily discounted LICs, and cherry picking bombed out sectors like oil and gas.
While many chase high yields, true investment power lies in companies that steadily grow dividends. This strategy, rooted in patience and discipline, quietly compounds wealth and anchors investors through market turbulence.
Behind market volatility and tariff threats lies a deeper strategy. Trump’s real goal isn’t trade reform but managing America's massive debts, preserving bond market confidence, and preparing for potential QE.