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27 December 2025
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The ASX is shrinking not by accident, but by design. A governance model that rewards detachment over ownership is driving capital into private hands and weakening public markets.
BWT Trust has moved to bring management in house. Meanwhile, many of the properties it leases to Bunnings have been repriced to materially higher rents. This has removed two of the key 'snags' holding back the stock.
As the July school holiday break nears, here are some investment classics to put onto your reading list. The books offer lessons in investment strategy, financial disasters, and mergers and acquisitions.
High-profile Australian stock market listings, like Guzman Y Gomez's IPO in 2024, are rare. ASIC aims to streamline the IPO process to boost listings, but faces barriers like share structures and governance.
A resurgent Japanese stock market has a new generation of investors asking if shareholder-friendly governance reform is finally embedded into corporate culture there. This explores the issue and what it means for investors.
The Reserve Bank Review spells out why the current Board structure has led to multiple policy errors, and explains why it needs to change. Alternative opinions from internal experts did not reach the Board.
Companies with a boys’ club approach to leadership are a red flag for investors. On the other hand, companies that walk the talk on women in leadership roles perform better, potentially making them better investments.
A topic that was once considered niche is now an enduring component of the investment decision-making process. Here we cover the fundamental investment approaches and strategies that consider ESG matters.
A fund that is 'passive' does not mean its managers merely invest as directed by the index with little concern for ESG risks. Good stewardship is valued as much by 'indirect' investors as direct shareholders.
Many professional investors thought that environmental, social and governance trends would take a step back in the pandemic, but the opposite occurred. It highlighted factors with a material impact on financial results.
Try having a direct conversation with a board member without going through the company's PR team. Boards can become managed and co-opted by company executives and forget who they work for.
If ESG, ethical investing, philanthropy and CSR aren’t creating the magnitude of change needed, is there an alternative way of bridging the gap between profit growth and social benefit?
Retirement isn’t a clean financial arc. Income shocks, health costs and family pressures hit at random, exposing the limits of age-based planning and the myth of a predictable “retirement journey".
The superannuation system has succeeded brilliantly at what it was designed to do: accumulate wealth during working lives. The next challenge is meeting members’ diverse needs in retirement.
Two years ago, I wrote an article suggesting that the odds favoured ASX shares easily outperforming residential property over the next decade. Here’s an update on where things stand today.
I am a professional real estate investor who hears a lot of opinions rather than facts from so-called experts on the topic of property. Here are the largest myths when it comes to Australia’s biggest asset class.
In an interview with Firstlinks, CEO Mark Freeman discusses how speculative ASX stocks have crushed blue chips this year, companies he likes now, and why he’s confident AFIC’s NTA discount will close.
It might not be quite an ‘everything bubble’ but there’s froth in many assets, not just US stocks, right now. It might be time to stress test your portfolio and consider assets that could offer you shelter if trouble is coming.