Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.
9 July 2025
Recently trending
David Goldschmidt, Chartered Accountant: "I find this a really excellent newsletter. The best I get. Keep up the good work!"
John Pearce, Chief Investment Officer, Unisuper: "Out of the (many many) investmentrelated emails I get, Cuffelinks is one that I always open."
Eleanor Dartnall, AFA Adviser of the Year, 2014: "Our clients love your newsletter. Your articles are avidly read by advisers and they learn a great deal."
Reader: "I can quickly sort the items that I am interested in, then research them more fully. It is also a regular reminder that I need to do this."
Noel Whittaker, author and financial adviser: "A fabulous weekly newsletter that is packed full of independent financial advice."
Reader: "An island of professionalism in an ocean of shallow self-interest. Well done!"
Reader: "Carry on as you are - well done. The average investor/SMSF trustee needs all the help they can get."
Reader: "Congratulations on a great focussed news source. Australia has a dearth of good quality unbiased financial and wealth management news."
Professor Robert Deutsch: "This has got to be the best set of articles on economic and financial matters. Always something worthwhile reading in Firstlinks. Thankyou"
Reader: "The BEST in the game because of diversity and not aligned to financial products. Stands above all the noise."
Reader: " Finding a truly independent and interesting read has been magical for me. Please keep it up and don't change!"
Ian Silk, CEO, AustralianSuper: "It has become part of my required reading: quality thinking, and (mercifully) to the point."
Rob Henshaw: "When I open my computer each day it's the first link I click - a really great read."
Reader: "It's excellent so please don't pollute the content with boring mainstream financial 'waffle' and adverts for stuff we don't want!"
Jonathan Hoyle, CEO, Stanford Brown: "A fabulous publication. The only must-read weekly publication for the Australian wealth management industry."
Don Stammer, leading Australian economist: "Congratulations to all associated. It deserves the good following it has."
John Egan, Egan Associates: "My heartiest congratulations. Your panel of contributors is very impressive and keep your readers fully informed."
Scott Pape, author of The Barefoot Investor: "I'm an avid reader of Cuffelinks. Thanks for the wonderful resource you have here, it really is first class."
Reader: "Love it, just keep doing what you are doing. It is the right length too, any longer and it might become a bit overwhelming."
Ian Kelly, CFP, BTACS Financial Services: "Probably the best source of commentary and information I have seen over the past 20 years."
Andrew Buchan, Partner, HLB Mann Judd: "I have told you a thousand times it's the best newsletter."
Reader: "Great resource. Cuffelinks is STILL the one and only weekly newsletter I regularly read."
Reader: "Is one of very few places an investor can go and not have product rammed down their throat. Love your work!"
Steve: "The best that comes into our world each week. This is the only one that is never, ever canned before fully being reviewed by yours truly."
Reader: "I subscribe to two newsletters. This is my first read of the week. Thank you. Excellent and please keep up the good work!"
Reader: "Best innovation I have seen whilst an investor for 25 years. The writers are brilliant. A great publication which I look forward to."
Reader: "Keep it up - the independence is refreshing and is demonstrated by the variety of well credentialed commentators."
Australian Investors Association: "Australia's foremost independent financial newsletter for professionals and self-directed investors."
Since the rise of ETFs, there has been a focus on fees. Yet, investors should also understand the different indices that funds are benchmarked against and the ETF managers because these too can impact investment outcomes.
There's bad news for those who believe current inflation is transitory: history suggests once inflation peaks above 8%, as the US and much of Europe did this year, it takes a median 10 years to get the rate back to 3%.
Smart beta funds are based on predetermined factors or investment methodologies, not stock selections by fund managers. The funds are transparent and rules-based, usually at a cheaper cost than active managers.
The five main types of smart beta ETFs are all represented on the ASX, bridging the gap between active and passive funds at an attractive price point and grabbing market share.
Non price-weighted index investment strategies, commonly dubbed 'smart beta', are growing in popularity, but as one fund can be structured differently from the next, are there any features to watch out for?
Capital-weighted index funds have been providing investors with low cost exposure to equity markets for 40 years. Now we have the potential of smart beta to consider as an alternative to active and index funds.
Smart beta strategies are now common but they were a quirky idea when Rob Arnott set up his first fund. This veteran of US investing talks about asset allocation, demographics and the state of the asset management industry.
Smart beta strategies are rules-based, transparent and claim to outperform the market over the long term. But investors may need to tolerate short term underperformance (Photo: Adam chats to Harry Markowitz).
Both The Economist and The Financial Times have recently run articles on 'smart beta', suggesting it is time for all pension trustees to consider the merits of this alternative to traditional indexing and active funds.
* 'Smart beta' strategies could reach one-third of all equity allocations by 2017, according to The Financial Times of 15 July 2013.
You've no doubt heard about Division 296. These case studies show what people at various levels above the $3 million threshold might need to pay the ATO, with examples ranging from under $500 to more than $35,000.
The $3m super tax could be put down to the Government needing money and the wealthy being easy targets. It’s deeper than that though and this looks at the factors behind the policy and why more taxes on the wealthy are coming.
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.
Business investment and per capita GDP have languished over the past decade and the Labor Government is conducting inquiries to find out why. Franking credits should be part of the debate about our stalling economy.
With Div. 296 looming, is there a smarter way to tax superannuation? This proposes a fairer, income-linked alternative that respects compounding, ensures predictability, and avoids taxing unrealised capital gains.
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.