Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.
21 April 2025
Recently trending
Reader: "Is one of very few places an investor can go and not have product rammed down their throat. Love your work!"
Reader: "An island of professionalism in an ocean of shallow self-interest. Well done!"
Reader: "Congratulations on a great focussed news source. Australia has a dearth of good quality unbiased financial and wealth management news."
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."
Ian Kelly, CFP, BTACS Financial Services: "Probably the best source of commentary and information I have seen over the past 20 years."
Reader: "Keep it up - the independence is refreshing and is demonstrated by the variety of well credentialed commentators."
Jonathan Hoyle, CEO, Stanford Brown: "A fabulous publication. The only must-read weekly publication for the Australian wealth management industry."
Reader: "Carry on as you are - well done. The average investor/SMSF trustee needs all the help they can get."
David Goldschmidt, Chartered Accountant: "I find this a really excellent newsletter. The best I get. Keep up the good work!"
Andrew Buchan, Partner, HLB Mann Judd: "I have told you a thousand times it's the best newsletter."
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."
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."
Ian Silk, CEO, AustralianSuper: "It has become part of my required reading: quality thinking, and (mercifully) to the point."
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"
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."
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: "Best innovation I have seen whilst an investor for 25 years. The writers are brilliant. A great publication which I look forward to."
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."
Australian Investors Association: "Australia's foremost independent financial newsletter for professionals and self-directed investors."
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: "Great resource. Cuffelinks is STILL the one and only weekly newsletter I regularly read."
Reader: " Finding a truly independent and interesting read has been magical for me. Please keep it up and don't change!"
John Pearce, Chief Investment Officer, Unisuper: "Out of the (many many) investmentrelated emails I get, Cuffelinks is one that I always open."
Rob Henshaw: "When I open my computer each day it's the first link I click - a really great read."
Noel Whittaker, author and financial adviser: "A fabulous weekly newsletter that is packed full of independent financial advice."
Reader: "It's excellent so please don't pollute the content with boring mainstream financial 'waffle' and adverts for stuff we don't want!"
Reader: "The BEST in the game because of diversity and not aligned to financial products. Stands above all the noise."
Where once it was difficult to differentiate between the superannuation policies of the two major political parties, the 2019 Federal Election will deliver some stark choices for voters.
Treasury is designing guidelines for retirement products which virtually preclude reversionary benefits, and yet these usually accrue to women when the male partner with more superannuation dies.
Enthusiasm for post-retirement investment products is growing, and the Government has just appointed an advisory group, but there are many reasons why the industry has not yet finalised the best outcomes.
The superannuation industry is facing a retirement outcome challenge, which is driving the need to develop products, strategies and solutions that better reflect members’ objectives and preferences.
Government-sponsored reviews often focus on costs and efficiencies because they are easier to measure, but far greater gains can be made if the super system is encouraged to innovate, even if it comes with costs.
It's laudable for government to fund important research but for it to really make a difference, industry participants and researchers need to engage and collaborate with the other. Research on ageing is a case in point.
An appeal for interested parties to contribute to the government's discussion paper on post-retirement products, now called 'MyRetirement' solutions, to be offered within the superannuation system.
Super funds have Chief Investment Officers charged with optimising investment returns, but should they also appoint a Chief Retirement Income Officer (CRIO) to achieve the best retirement outcomes?
In this update of the 'winners versus losers' investment hypothesis, momentum is the winner - again. It's only a 'paper' portfolio but it suggests consistent behavioural biases among investors.
Highly respected author and academic David Blake makes a compelling case for a major overhaul of financial advice, especially the way in which projected outcomes are communicated to investors.
The unique and practical skills of actuaries will be essential for the superannuation industry to tackle such complex issues as providing adequate retirement outcomes and effectively managing big data.
Even the experts can slip up sometimes with insufficient diligence when making investment decisions, but it's important to self-assess mistakes to avoid a repeat experience.
The intergenerational wealth transfer, largely driven by a housing boom, exacerbates economic inequality, stifles productivity, and impedes social mobility. Solutions lie in addressing the housing problem, not taxing wealth.
With an election due by 17 May, we are effectively in campaign mode with the Government announcing numerous spending promises since January and the Coalition often matching them. Here's what the election means for investors.
With fixed term deposit rates declining and bank hybrids being phased out, what are the best options for investors seeking income? This goes through the choices, and the opportunities and risks involved.
The S&P 500's recent correction raises concerns about a bear market. History shows corrections are driven by high rates, unemployment, or global shocks, and that there's reason for optimism for nervous investors today.
The famed investor says the rapid switch from globalisation to trade wars is the biggest upheaval in the investing environment since World War Two. And a new world requires a different investment approach.
Trump's tariffs and China's retaliatory strike have sent the Nasdaq into a bear market with the S&P 500 not far behind. What are the implications for the economy and markets, and what should investors do now?