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15 October 2026
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Season 2, Episode 1
In this week's episode, we'll discuss how the new $3 million super tax will work with an important clarification, the impact on other investment pools, the headwinds for Aussie large caps, as well as the energy transition and its investment opportunities.
(For more details on the $3 million tax, read here).
The podcast is also available via our dedicated website page, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and BuzzSprout.
Please share with friends and colleagues, and a favourable rating would help spread the word. We welcome questions and suggestions at [email protected].
Grab a cuppa and settle in for our chat.
James GruberEditorial, Firstlinks and Morningstar
Good to hear the podcast again. Graham in your explanation of the $3m super cap, I realise you are focussing on the proportional part of the calculation which many people are missing, but you should also mention that the Super balance change over the financial year is also adjusted for withdrawals and applications. To be clearer, withdrawals are added back and contributions are deducted. The rationale is that people cannot make withdrawals to stay under the $3 million, but their contributions do not push them over $3 million. Important to watch.
Great to see the podcast back! My question is to Peter Warnes and his comments that nuclear power should be part of our energy mix and my thought that with the largest nuclear power station in Europe taken by an invading force, only three months of cooling water left in its cooling ponds with reports that the pond may be rigged with explosives and artillery shells and missiles wizzing all around it that a whole new risk to nuclear power stations has been uncovered and we shouldn’t be going down this path and that is before the financials and red tape are taken into account
Hi Michael, We have to put Australia’s nuclear options in context. We are talking about small Modular Reactors rated from 10MWe to 250MWe providing incremental additions to the National Electricity Market as fossil fuels are withdrawn. To compare Australia’s situation with what is occurring in Europe at present is drawing along bow. Our issue is how to replace fossil fuel generated baseload power and wind and solar cannot do that with the certainty required. We already have a nuclear reactor operating at Lucas Heights for the past 65 years (opened in 1958) without incident. Regards, Peter
A high-profile dividend cut and a prominent fund manager’s apology have reignited a long-running debate. If investors can access similar exposures more cheaply and efficiently elsewhere, what exactly is keeping LICs alive?
The fight over testamentary trusts looked settled. Then the draft legislation arrived. Hidden in a technical detail is a question that could force many families to rethink wills they thought were already future-proof.
For generations, Australian investors have backed banks, miners and dividends. But has that loyalty come at a cost? A look at the numbers raises an uncomfortable question about where future returns will come from.
Investors have long accepted one portfolio rule without much question. A major tax shift could change that calculation entirely, forcing difficult trade-offs between risk, discipline and an overlooked cost lurking beneath.
The value of a testamentary trust is not determined by wealth alone. Depending on circumstances, it can reduce the tax burden on inherited income, create efficiencies and help build intergenerational wealth.
House prices are sliding across Australia, yet the most dangerous ingredient for a housing crash is still missing. If job losses surge amid growing economic risks, today's correction could become a historic property downturn.
From the maths of retirement, estimating spending and picking the right asset allocation to survive a poor decade, here are the questions every retiree – current or future – should be able to answer for themselves.
The US market looks eerily similar to the dot-com era with soaring AI spending and tech giants dominating returns. But one difference separates today’s boom from the dot-com bubble and it could determine what happens next.
Trusts are facing a shake-up, but an overhaul may not be necessary. Families can explore restructuring strategies that preserve succession and the asset protection benefits that have made these structures valuable.
War, inflation and higher rates were expected to derail America. But has the market got it wrong? Three forces are driving the economy beyond expectations, revealing implications for stock prices and portfolio positioning.
Everyone talks about diversifying assets. Far fewer think about diversifying trust. As inflation, debt and market assumptions collide, the question is whether portfolios need greater protection from unexpected outcomes.
Seven months into retirement, I'm still uncovering surprises. This month was spent reflecting on the slow pace of health change, the myth of neatly scheduled part-time work and the unexpected persistence of retirement guilt.
The next chapter of technology may not belong to the companies or business models many expect. As the landscape shifts, some opportunities are emerging in places that remain surprisingly overlooked by global markets.