Analysis

For many super funds fixed income portfolios can be their poor cousins in terms of integrating hard-fought ESG principles. A recent study looks at how funds can go about amalgamating ESG and fixed income. John Streur, the chief executive of US-based ESG specialist Calvert Research & Management, is visiting Australia in March to address this…

The ETF landscape continues to rapidly expand beyond the replication of major stock market indices such as the S&P/ASX 200 and S&P 500. Today’s investor can choose ETFs across different sectors, based on certain themes or even offering alternative weighting schemes, like yield or value, captured by the phrase smart beta.

by Greg Bright As the markets get more and more toppy the active-versus- passive, age-old argument, is swinging more toward the active managers. No-one wants to get caught in a bubble of cap-weighted index-hugging indices at the end of the longest bull market in history. So, what do you do? As an aside, Australia’s main…

APIR, the long-time provider of identifiers for managed funds, is enhancing its role as a utility in the funds management industry. It’s not an easy role to perform, but it’s an important one. And managed funds are not shrinking in number, as you’d otherwise suspect. According to Chris Donohoe, the chief executive at APIR, the…

When it comes to valuation, how ethical or not a firm is matters, according to an academic study by Augustin Landier, Professor of Finance at HEC Paris Business School, and his associates. People are prepared to pay more for an “ethical” stock and want to pay less for an “unethical” one. A new study by…

Over the last few weeks there has been a heightened level of debate concerning Listed Investment Companies (LICs) and Listed Investment Trusts (LITs). As always, industry experts have presented thoughtful, considered positions following ASIC’s analysis provided to Treasury on LIC performance.

I recently tried an experiment. I changed several light bulbs, and since one required a little rewiring, I sent my wife (also known as the majority shareholder) a bill for $110.50 (plus GST). In return, she sent me a bill of $457.98 for her preparation in late December of a sumptuous meal, plus her work managing all social connections associated with the holidays. 

Australia is in the midst of a bushfire crisis that will affect local communities for years, if not permanently, due to a national crisis of underinsurance.

by Greg Bright David Hartley seems to be on several missions at the same time. The chair of the investment committee and a director of the $9.5 billion Australian Catholic Superannuation fund has come up with a workable concept to ease Australia’s housing affordability crisis. Along the way, he has also developed thoughts on other…

Active long-only strategies will continue to drive revenues for a majority of fund managers around the world for the next five years, despite the continued encroachment by index managers and fee compression in several markets, such as Australia. But the total fee issue is not a truly global phenomenon, according to Casey Quirk. Globally, asset…

China’s private equity and venture capital (PEVC) sector grew by 36 per cent in 2018, its lowest growth rate since 2014, hitting US$600 billion. This lower growth rate is perhaps understandable as total GDP grew only 6.2 per cent that year, the lowest in 27 years. But such growth rates can be misleading. What matters…

We are used to being able to pay for things with legal tender. Other than in special circumstances, refusing to accept cash can have legal consequences.