Financial Standard

Advised cover faces claims data test

VINNY VUCAGO   Group superannuation insurance appears to outperform individual advised cover on some claim's measures, raising questions about the value of advice when it comes to protecting clients against disability.

ASIC stalls Sequoia bid to ditch cross guarantee deed

KARREN VERGARA   ASIC is again putting up roadblocks to Sequoia Financial Group's attempt to revoke the deed of cross guarantee with InterPrac Financial Planning, asking more questions and requesting more information before the group rids itself of all liabilities arising from the Shield and First Guardian disaster.

GDG sales hit record as FUM grows 29%

VINNY VUCAGO  |    12:17PM   Generation Development Group (GDG) reported stronger funds under management (FUM) across its wealth business in the September quarter, led by record investment-bond sales at Generation Life despite more cautious investor and adviser activity.

Magellan sheds name, enters new focus as Barrenjoey

KARREN VERGARA  |    12:13PM   Magellan Financial Group will retire its name and rebrand to Barrenjoey Capital Partners, as the newly combined group heightens its focus on investment banking, institutional sales, trading and execution services.

TPD claims drive insurance disputes

VINNY VUCAGO   Australia's life insurers continue to accept most claims, but total and permanent disability (TPD) and disability income insurance claims remain the main sources of disputes and delays, according to the latest data from APRA and ASIC.

Genetic testing ban takes effect for life insurance

VINNY VUCAGO   Australians can access genetic testing without risking discrimination in life insurance under a new ban that took effect on October 8, with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) also updating its rules to handle complaints involving adverse genetic test results.

Guaranteed income gives retirees 'licence to spend': JPMAM

RIDDHIMA TALWANI   Retirees with a higher share of guaranteed income spend 44% more, according to J.P. Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) portfolio manager and head of target date strategies Daniel Oldroyd.

Rent stress threatens retirement security

VINNY VUCAGO   Declining home ownership is deepening Australia's housing divide, with lower-income households facing growing rental stress and potentially entering retirement with significantly less wealth, according to the Actuaries Institute.

Affordable housing eligibility routinely overlooked: CEDA

KARREN VERGARA   New research shows Australia is not targeting its affordable housing stock correctly, leaving about 19,000 families on social housing waitlists that truly need and are entitled to it.

Executives prioritise protecting capital, managing macroeconomic volatility: MSCI

KARREN VERGARA   Protecting access to capital and absorbing macroeconomic volatility are top of mind for the executives of publicly listed companies amid ongoing uncertainty and rapidly changing capital markets, a new survey shows.

ASIC ups thresholds for NTA requirements

KARREN VERGARA  |    12:09PM   ASIC has introduced new rules that will require managed investment schemes (MISs) to increase minimum financial thresholds in their net tangible assets (NTAs).

ASIC investigates potential $138m scam

ELIZA BAVIN   ASIC has confirmed it is actively investigating potential failures linked to MGF Capital, and its sole director - a former Goldman Sachs trader - over concerns at least $138 million of Australian investor funds have been lost.

Merricks Capital operating chief joins PC firm

MATTHEW WAI  |    12:02PM   Former Merricks Capital chief operating officer has joined a specialised private credit firm after overseeing Merricks Capital's financial and operational businesses for the past six years.

Natixis creates new division, adds to C-suite

MATTHEW WAI  |    12:01PM   Natixis Investment Managers has created a new C-suite role to oversee a fresh business division which will serve client markets, partnership functions globally, including Australia.

The risks keeping APRA's new deputy chair up at night

RIDDHIMA TALWANI  |    12:24PM   The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority's (APRA) new deputy chair David Bradbury said the risks that keep him awake at night are those with the potential to threaten the financial stability of the super system or cause catastrophic losses for members.

Early access undermines super's purpose: Mulino

RIDDHIMA TALWANI  |    12:19PM   Assistant treasurer Daniel Mulino took an aim at plans by the opposition to let Australians dip into their super early, stating weakening preservation would undermine intergenerational protections and hurt the most vulnerable.

Advice firms lacking AI integration: Iress

VINNY VUCAGO   Artificial intelligence (AI) is delivering productivity gains across financial advice, but only 7% of practices have embedded the technology across most of their workflows, research from Iress has found.

Finura brings AI engineering in house with merger

MATTHEW WAI   Finura Group has merged with a software engineering business to bring artificial intelligence agent technology and sovereign cloud services in house.

Australia's family offices surpass $323bn in assets

RIDDHIMA TALWANI   Family offices in Australia have surpassed $323 billion in assets, according to data from Rainmaker Information.

Mining, property fuel Aussie billionaires' wealth

KARREN VERGARA   Australian billionaires' riches are highly concentrated in mining, financial services, technology and property, accounting for 0.7% of the total US$15.1 trillion in global wealth studied by the 2026 Billionaire Census.