Editor's Choice
The 'blind spot' costing advisers nearly $10bn: Research
Research from Elemnta indicates financial advisers do not realise they are expending nearly twice as much effort on non-advised operations, highlighting a perception gap and challenges related to data collection and access, which cost 6000 practices about $9.36 billion in "destroyed enterprise value".
Canadian pension giant takes 20% stake in La Trobe
Canadian public pension fund OMERS has taken a minority stake of nearly 20% in La Trobe Financial from Brookfield.
ASIC issues another stop order for private credit fund
ASIC has issued an interim stop order on the Murdoch Clarke Mortgage Fund, issued by Murdoch Clarke Mortgage Management, prohibiting it from offering, issuing, selling or transferring interests in the fund.
Inheritors struggle to act on financial advice: Survey
Australia's wealthy inheritors are making major financial decisions before they feel ready, with new research highlighting a gap between receiving professional advice and having the confidence to act on it.
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Expert Feed
When geopolitics becomes a portfolio risk
Geopolitics is back - again - and Australian investors can no longer treat it as distant background noise.
Does association membership still matter?
With all the changes the advice sector has experienced in recent years, such as regulatory reform and increased education and professional standards ...
Digital assets and where they stand in 2026
So far in 2026 digital assets have captured the headlines largely for the wrong reasons, but that doesn't tell the full story.
Rethinking default design in a changing market environment
The evolution underway in the US DC system highlights the value of periodically reassessing default design assumptions.
Featured Profile
David Sharpe
CHAIRMAN
FINANCIAL ADVICE ASSOCIATION AUSTRALIA
FINANCIAL ADVICE ASSOCIATION AUSTRALIA
A family man, business owner, cricket fanatic and financial adviser, David Sharpe has many facets. One of his biggest legacies, as he steps down as chair of the Financial Advice Association Australia, is leaving the profession stronger than he found it.
The Financial Standard podcast Tune in each week as we discuss the latest developments in Australia's wealth management industry. |  |
I'm not sure if it's a fair comparison to line up shares options next to balanced MySuper defaults. Comparing ESG shares options to standard shares options would be a better comparison, and would show a different story (from a strictly financial perspective)
Focusing on balanced options within workplace super funds, in the year to 30 June 2018 ESG options out-performed regular balanced options on average by 0.7%, by 0.1% pa over three years and by 0.5% pa over five years. Sure it's marginal but that's the point. The message to us at Rainmaker is that well-run investment options be they ESG or regular perform similarly. There are two subsidiary points. First is the massive range that exists within the sector. Eg, over five years, the performance of regular balanced options ranged from 2% pa to 12% pa while the performance of ESG balanced options ranged from 7% pa to 12% pa. Second is that funds should not use ESG as an excuse for under-performance. Put another way, all of us should stop drinking our own Koolaid.