This Month
Westpac CEO wants super on a level playing field
The bank boss said comments by Apollo Capital Management should force an urgent rethink on regulatory rules for super funds.
- James Eyers
- Exclusive
- Property development
Red tape puts Labor’s $10b HAFF housing plan at risk
The federal government, set to fall 300,000 homes short of its 1.2 million target, faces another hurdle over workplace health and safety certification.
- Michael Bleby
Buy now, pay later surges as Dorsey realises Cash App vision
Block’s BNPL volumes are rising as Afterpay is rolled into Cash App, which has 24 million active users in the US. The stock jumped more than 10pc on Friday.
- James Eyers
April
Ex-SFE boss warns ASX a threat to financial stability
Former SFE boss Les Hosking says ASX is a ‘single point of failure risk’ threatening financial stability. Joe Longo says he’s ready to act.
- James Eyers
ASIC chairman ‘very disturbed’ about CBA’s bonus move
Joe Longo said he had raised concerns about CBA’s breach of bonus caps directly with the bank’s chairman Paul O’Malley and urged the bank to reconsider.
- James Eyers and Lucas Baird
Big super splits on performance test reforms
Labor announced it was reviewing the test after several funds said the current rules stopped them investing in the “nation building” initiatives the government wanted them to bankroll.
- Hannah Wootton
Start-ups, dentists drain retirement savings in ‘super scam’
The value of super withdrawn for dental treatments nationally jumped 373 per cent to $313 million from 2019 to 2023, and Labor has warned of a potential crackdown.
- Hannah Wootton
Inquiry puts blame on regulator, RBA for ASX failure
ASIC and the Reserve Bank should conduct more thorough audits to avoid a repeat of the bungled CHESS replacement project.
- James Eyers
Companies at risk of ‘state-sponsored greenwashing’, Senate told
The ACCC has not yet signed off on the government’s Climate Active carbon neutrality certification even though more than 500 companies already use it.
- Hannah Wootton
Suncorp discovers stress-test flaws, files regulatory breach
The insurance-banking conglomerate says it is dealing with APRA about the problem but no penalty will be applied.
- Liam Walsh
- Opinion
- Opinion
Regional banks dying a slow death
The country’s smaller banks have a bleak future due to higher cost of funds, excessive capital requirements, costly technology upgrades and lack of scale. But will regulators do anything about it?
- Tony Boyd
Merger shake-up threatens to ‘kill off the start-up sector’
Tech leaders have warned that proposed merger laws will kill deals before they close, starving the sector of the capital it needs to continue to grow.
- Tess Bennett and Paul Smith
The three big changes to merger laws and why they matter
In Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ landmark merger law proposal there are two key changes that will shift how deals are done, and one crucial area he did not touch.
- Hannah Wootton
Strata reforms send bills soaring from just $5000 to $60,000
The NSW government made sweeping changes to prevent horrific development failures. Did it go too far?
- Deborah Cassrels
Big business break-up powers ‘would be useful’: ACCC chief
Gina Cass-Gottlieb says she would welcome new powers to break up big business, but her priority is strengthening merger laws and new powers to tackle unfair practices.
- Patrick Durkin
- Exclusive
- Federal budget
Budget to fast-track investment approvals
Treasurer Jim Chalmers is close to finalising a package to get capital flowing for the stuttering energy transition and other Labor priority projects.
- John Kehoe
March
Vanguard guilty of greenwashing in ASIC’s first major court win
The funds management giant could be on the hook for millions of dollars in damages, though the court rejected aspects of ASIC’s case.
- Hannah Wootton
Teals brand Labor’s $3m policy a ‘cash grab’
Teal MPs say changes to taxation of super funds with balances larger than $3 million could drive investment away from start-ups and leave retirees worse off.
- Hannah Wootton
Government contracts on the line if gender targets not met
Companies like BAE Systems, Microsoft, SAP and the big consulting firms stand to lose billions in government contracts if they can’t prove they’re meeting targets.
- Hannah Wootton
Keep AI on a tight leash or embed bias, experts say
AI’s potential to reinforce discrimination is one of its most worrying effects. New regulations aim to keep the powerful technology in check.
- Alexandra Cain