News

Debby Blakey, the chief executive of HESTA, has joined the board of the International Corporate Governance Network, the overarching global body representing asset owners for the advancement of good governance. The prestigious appointment follows her other industry directorships at FEAL, ACSI and ASI. Hers was one of three appointments at ICGN announced last week (August…

Mark Lazberger, a founding director of the CFA Society in Australia and a former board member of the global CFA Institute, has returned to the governing body as its chair. Lazberger, who retired from full-time funds management positions in 2018, previously held two of the most senior roles in the industry, as a country and…

The merger between Media Super and Cbus has been delayed until the first half of next year due to several factors demonstrating the complexity of these transactions. In its first communication on the merger with its members since the December 2020 announcement, Media Super sent a note to them last week (September 1) advising them…

A new network of investment professionals has backed the ESG integration trend among both asset owners and fund managers with a report which draws on the views of leading investors including the Future Fund and NZ Super. Titled ‘Alpha with Impact’, the report was published last Friday (August 27) to coincide with the first member…

While Australia’s sovereign wealth fund has seen a massive return of 22 per cent, the good times won’t last. China tensions are weighing heavily on Peter Costello’s outlook. Rebounding from a negative 0.9 per cent return during the depths of Covid-19 is no small feat, but Peter Costello, Future Fund chairman, told media on Thursday…

You can do a lot with a well-thought-out nudge, but you probably can’t solve either of the crises of the moment, covid-19 and climate change, according to Richard H. Thaler. The behavioural economist and Nobel Laureate addressed a predominantly Australian webinar audience last week (August 24), organised by the University of Sydney Business School, where…

Early reports by ASX-listed companies under the Commonwealth’s Modern Slavery Act are positive but many have not responded to requests for information and some high-profile companies are exposed to greater risks than others. According to a new study by Martin Currie Australia (MCA), which manages almost $10 billion in Australian equities, 18 per cent of…

Sir Michael Cullen, the political force behind the establishment of NZ Super and the KiwiSaver scheme, has died at 76 after a battle with cancer. The NZ Labour politician, deputy prime minister and finance minister, will likely be remembered more widely for his liberal views, including legalised euthanasia, and generosity of spirit towards the less…

Affirmative Investment Management, a global fixed income manager specialising in impact bonds, has recruited Fiona Reynolds as a senior adviser and the first member of a proposed new advisory board. She starts the part-time role in London on October 1, prior to her scheduled return to Australia around Christmas, covid permitting. The London-based AIM already…

Magellan will continue to spend big on ventures like upstart investment bank Barrenjoey and fintech Finclear as it diversifies away from its cornerstone global equities business. With investors continuing to question the lacklustre performance of Magellan’s global equities strategy, which has been the focus of (occasionally unfair) media attention for going on a year now,…

Liberal senator Andrew Bragg believes the Future Fund should be made Australia’s default superannuation fund. But national superannuation is a political minefield. In conversation with Simon Cowan, research director at the Centre for Independent Studies, Bragg called compulsory superannuation a “fundamentally illiberal, paternalistic policy” and said that the Australian government should “take its responsibilities more…

Rob Arnott, the founder and chairman of Research Affiliates, addressed investors on the unanswerable question as to what happens next following the recent rebound in fortunes for value managers. His webinar, on August 5 (US time) begged the question of when it will happen, but he left the audience in no doubt about what was…