Register For Our Mailing List

Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.

Home / 289

Summer Series Guest Editor, Bryce Doherty

At a time when we are overwhelmed with the negative views surrounding the financial services industry, it is important to take stock, reassess and ask ourselves: 'How did we find ourselves here?'

As an individual with kids of school age who needs to look beyond the here and now to the future, a key takeaway from the Royal Commission is how paramount financial literacy and sound and transparent financial products and advice is for all Australians to prepare for their futures. The amount of information or maybe disinformation available nowadays is overwhelming. Educational, well explained and accurate pieces are increasingly hard to come by for all investor segments.

Hence when Cuffelinks approached me to be a Guest Editor this year, I instinctively was drawn to pieces which seek to educate, with these five examples.

1. Superannuation planning is not a simple thing, and while Australia is well ahead of most developed countries in terms of planning for one's retirement, Wade Pfau & Jeremy Cooper's 'The Yin and Yang of retirement income philosophies' (21 November 2014) highlights the basic principles to retirement planning. Despite its 2014 vintage, the article still drives home for me why every Australian needs to understand the basics to achieve their end retirement/wealth accumulation goal.

2. Don Ezra's 10 November 2017 piece titled 'Three crucial mistakes about life expectancy' builds on the above fundamentals, "I've found that many people have a vague idea about how long life expectancy is, and that is typically underestimated." This basic mistake can be a fatal one in retirement planning, another issue I think all Aussies need to give serious consideration to when they are looking to plan for their futures.

3. Moving on from the basics now into portfolio construction there are a number of articles which resonated with me. As CEO of UBS Asset Management in Australia, portfolio diversification and optimisation is something that we are very focused on. Typically Australian investors are heavily weighted to onshore equity products, hence multi asset portfolios, emerging market portfolios, infrastructure portfolios and even portfolios which focus on factor investing are increasingly becoming the basis of our discussions as investors shy away from the big 4 Aussie banks.

A good bridge into this topic of portfolio diversification is via Jim Masturzo and Jonathan Treussard's 'Building portfolios: diversification without the heartburn' (5 October 2018). It highlights why diversification is important, and importantly that diversification is a balancing act.

4. And finally building on this diversification topic is Warren Bird's 'A journey through the life of a fixed rate bond' (5 March 2015) and ...

5. Greg Goodsell's 'Three Drivers of Attractive Infrastructure Opportunities' (21 April 2017).

These latter two are great examples of potential diversification sectors and people shouldn't shy away from less 'glamorous' areas.

 

Bryce Doherty is Head of UBS Asset Management, Australia and New Zealand.

UBS
banner

Most viewed in recent weeks

Australian house prices close in on world record

Sydney is set to become the world’s most expensive city for housing over the next 12 months, a new report shows. Our other major cities aren’t far behind unless there are major changes to improve housing affordability.

The case for the $3 million super tax

The Government's proposed tax has copped a lot of flack though I think it's a reasonable approach to improve the long-term sustainability of superannuation and the retirement income system. Here’s why.

Tariffs are a smokescreen to Trump's real endgame

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.

The super tax and the defined benefits scandal

Australia's superannuation inequities date back to poor decisions made by Parliament two decades ago. If super for the wealthy needs resetting, so too does the defined benefits schemes for our public servants.

Meg on SMSFs: Withdrawing assets ahead of the $3m super tax

The super tax has caused an almighty scuffle, but for SMSFs impacted by the proposed tax, a big question remains: what should they do now? Here are ideas for those wanting to withdraw money from their SMSF.

Getting rich vs staying rich

Strategies to get rich versus stay rich are markedly different. Here is a look at the five main ways to get rich, including through work, business, investing and luck, as well as those that preserve wealth.

Latest Updates

SMSF strategies

Meg on SMSFs: Withdrawing assets ahead of the $3m super tax

The super tax has caused an almighty scuffle, but for SMSFs impacted by the proposed tax, a big question remains: what should they do now? Here are ideas for those wanting to withdraw money from their SMSF.

Superannuation

The huge cost of super tax concessions

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.

Planning

How to avoid inheritance fights

Inspired by the papal conclave, this explores how families can avoid post-death drama through honest conversations, better planning, and trial runs - so there are no surprises when it really matters.

Superannuation

Super contribution splitting

Super contribution splitting allows couples to divide before-tax contributions to super between spouses, maximizing savings. It’s not for everyone, but in the right circumstances, it can be a smart strategy worth exploring.

Economy

Trump vs Powell: Who will blink first?

The US economy faces an unprecedented clash in leadership styles, but the President and Fed Chair could both take a lesson from the other. Not least because the fiscal and monetary authorities need to work together.

Gold

Credit cuts, rising risks, and the case for gold

Shares trade at steep valuations despite higher risks of a recession. Amid doubts that a 60/40 portfolio can still provide enough protection through times of market stress, gold's record shines bright.

Investment strategies

Buffett acolyte warns passive investors of mediocre future returns

While Chris Bloomstan doesn't have the track record of his hero, it's impressive nonetheless. And he's recently warned that today has uncanny resemblances to the 1990s tech bubble and US returns are likely to be disappointing.

Sponsors

Alliances

© 2025 Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved.

Disclaimer
The data, research and opinions provided here are for information purposes; are not an offer to buy or sell a security; and are not warranted to be correct, complete or accurate. Morningstar, its affiliates, and third-party content providers are not responsible for any investment decisions, damages or losses resulting from, or related to, the data and analyses or their use. To the extent any content is general advice, it has been prepared for clients of Morningstar Australasia Pty Ltd (ABN: 95 090 665 544, AFSL: 240892), without reference to your financial objectives, situation or needs. For more information refer to our Financial Services Guide. You should consider the advice in light of these matters and if applicable, the relevant Product Disclosure Statement before making any decision to invest. Past performance does not necessarily indicate a financial product’s future performance. To obtain advice tailored to your situation, contact a professional financial adviser. Articles are current as at date of publication.
This website contains information and opinions provided by third parties. Inclusion of this information does not necessarily represent Morningstar’s positions, strategies or opinions and should not be considered an endorsement by Morningstar.