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Wednesday, 15 July 2020
Recently trending 11 lessons from my lousy $50K profit on AfterpayHow much bigger can the virus bubble get?Which companies will do well in the turmoil of 2020?Why are we convinced 'this time it's different'?Howard Marks' anatomy of an unexpected rally
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Arguments between segments of the super industry do not foster public confidence. SMSFs are suitable for many who seek control of their own financial destiny, but it's not a competition.
Investors overlook that they are charged more as the market rises. Far more financial services should cost a flat fee, with portfolios dominated by index exposure backed by a few active managers.
Internal emails from the regulator released under an FOI request reveal warnings about advice conflict when selling fees are paid on LICs. Investors need to understand the consequences of the debate.
How can an adviser who is receiving a significant fee for selling a product be in a position to offer good, impartial advice to their client? They can’t, and the industry will slowly accept this.
The overhaul of financial advice practices affects not only advisers but also their clients. Legislative changes are coming by mid next year and too few people are considering them.
Statements by Brian Hartzer, CEO of Westpac, confirm that financial advice delivered by advisers to the mass market is not financially viable, and technology is the solution if most Australians are not to miss out.
In a response to Graham Hand's article on why roboadvice is struggling, the case is made that conventional financial advice will increasingly confine itself to the wealthy, and the mass market needs another solution.
‘Suitability’ of financial advice is something unlikely to be addressed by the Royal Commission, but its adoption and regulation is crucial to the improvement of the wealth management industry.
Many people have changed their minds on whether the Royal Commission was a good idea. What the fact-finding reveals though is an age-old lesson in economics: outcomes gravitate toward incentives.
The characteristic tone of the Royal Commission was set on the first day focus on financial advice, and no witness has been able to defend commissions to advisers and the vertical integration model.
Grandfathering and the implications for commissions has become a major flash point, and the Royal Commission is focussing on problems created when advisers are given the wrong incentives.
Following the Ripoll Inquiry in November 2009, the Labor Government formulated the Future of Financial Advice proposals. A lot has happened since, and the Royal Commission is dealing with the consequences.
Afterpay listed at $1 in 2016 and traded recently at $70. How should an investor treat a small holding in a 70-bagger when each new level defies the experts? Should true believers let the profits run?
Stocks have rallied hard creating a virus bubble, but will this run for years or collapse in a matter of months? The market is giving a second chance to leave so head for the exit before there's a rush.
While the shutting of Australia’s borders to international travellers and quarantine measures is damaging to certain sectors of the economy, it is not uniformly negative for all companies.
Investors tend to overstate the impact on investments when something significant happens and they assume the future will be different. COVID-19 has been dramatic, but is it really that unusual?
Markets can swing quickly from optimism to pessimism, and while there are more positives now than in the bleak early days in March, the market is ignoring many negatives. Risk is not rewarded at these levels.
The stock market continues to defy most equity pundits and push through fears of ongoing recession, job losses, business closures and a second virus wave. But if there's one factor in Australia specifically that is seriously underestimated, it is the loss of stimulus from population growth and immigration.