K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

Australia warned it is lagging behind on cryptocurrency regulation

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Original article by Rhiann Whitson
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 26-Nov-24

The Australian cryptocurrency sector contends it is high time that the sector was properly regulated by means of legislation, with both businesses and consumers let down by a lack of regulation. The lack of legislation means that the Australian Securities Investment Commission is forced to take action case by case, with ASIC taking a number of enforcement actions against cryptobusinesses, claiming they have breached existing laws such as the Corporations Act. ASIC has noted that there are around 400 digital currency exchange changes registered with AUSTRAC, but that only about 40 crypto-related businesses are currently licensed with ASIC

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE

ASX tipped to test 8600 after shares surge

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 20-Nov-24

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 briefly rose above 8,400 points for the first time on Tuesday. The local bourse’s rally has prompted Morgan Stanley to upgrade its forecast for the ASX 200 at the end of 2025 to 8,500 points; its previous year-end target was 8,100. Tony Sycamore from IG Markets is more bullish, suggesting that the ASX 200 could potentially be trading at 8,600 points by the end of next year. However, JP Morgan recently forecast that the index will fall to 7,900 points by the end of 2025.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, IG MARKETS LIMITED, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED

US election may hurt dealmakers

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 15 : 6-Nov-24

Mergers and acquisitions lawyer Sandy Mak from Corrs Chambers Westgarth says it is "hard to predict" just how the outcome of the presidential election will affect US investment in Australia and other countries. US companies are one of the largest foreign investors in Australia, and Mak says they could put plans to invest in Australia on hold if the election results in geopolitical uncertainty; she notes that corporate America has historically been wary of investing offshore in times of volatility and uncertainty.

CORPORATES
CORRS CHAMBERS WESTGARTH

Investors call time on ASX’s record rally

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 23-Oct-24

The Australian sharemarket has retreated from the record high of 8,384.5 points that it reached last week. The pullback follows a gain of 20 per cent over the last year, although Wall Street has risen by 39 per cent over the same period. Meanwhile, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200’s price-earnings ratio has risen from 14.4 times to 18.3 times over the last year. There is growing speculation that the market’s rally cannot be sustained, given that earnings growth is tipped to be flat in 2024 and just five per cent in 2025.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX

Fears ASX may have peaked after killer quarter

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Original article by Joshua Peach, Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 21 : 1-Oct-24

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 gained 6.5 per cent during the September quarter, with Zip Co, Orora and Guzman y Gomez among the best-performing stocks during the period. September was also a strong month for the local bourse, which reached new record highs in seven separate trading sessions and delivered the best return for the month since 2013. However, Jason Steed from JP Morgan is amongst those who believe that the Australian sharemarket may struggle to post further gains, noting that the earnings outlook is relatively weak.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, ZIP CO LIMITED – ASX ZIP, ORORA LIMITED – ASX ORA, GUZMAN Y GOMEZ LIMITED – ASX GYG, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Weak conditions to put a dampener on dividends

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 13 & 16 : 11-Sep-24

Australian-listed companies paid out more than $80bn worth of dividends in 2023-24, which is five per cent higher than the previous financial year. However, Ryan Felsman from CommSec warns that shareholders should expect lower dividend payouts in 2023-24. He says that energy, consumer discretionary and real estate stocks in particular are likely to deliver lower dividends in the current fiscal year. A report from CommSec has concluded that despite some headwinds, returns on Australian shares are still attractive compared with alternatives such as bank deposits, bonds and international equities.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH SECURITIES LIMITED

Call to simplify IPO process to revive market

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 18 : 6-Aug-24

Neil Pathak from law firm Ashurst has called for an overhaul of ASX Limited’s procedures for undertaking an IPO. He contends that the process for listing on the Australian sharemarket is too lengthy, noting that an IPO can take four months while a capital raising can be initiated and completed within two weeks. Data from the London Stock Exchange Group shows that a total of $US372.9m has been raised via IPOs in Australia so far in 2024; this is slightly higher than the same period in 2023, but well below the 2021 figure of $US3.9bn.

CORPORATES
ASHURST AUSTRALIA, ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE GROUP

Investors brace for bruising earnings season

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Original article by Sarah Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 30-Jul-24

Factors such as the cost-of-living crisis and high interest rates are expected to weigh on the August corporate reporting season. Macquarie has forecast a six per cent decline in earnings across the market for 2023-24, although the broker anticipates earnings growth of 10 per cent in 2024-25. Jun Bei Liu from Tribeca Investment Partners in turn expects the earnings season to be one of the softest in recent times, stating that revenue and margins are likely to have remained under pressure due to factors such as high labour costs and slowing economic growth.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, TRIBECA INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD

Financial stress through the roof as interest rate hikes come home to roost

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Original article by David Taylor
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 9-Jul-24

The National Debt Line received 145,166 calls in the 2023-24 financial year, the highest number of calls in four years. Financial counsellor Mike Dunkley says he is experiencing his busiest time since he has been with the NDL, with calls increasing over the latter half of 2023 as the impact of interest rate increases began to take their toll. Dunkley says that most of the calls that the NDL gets are about mortgages and rents, while it has also been getting some calls about the Australian Taxation Office in recent months. For his part, Financial Counselling Australia CEO Peter Gartlan notes that the demand on financial counsellors has gone through the roof in recent times

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, FINANCIAL COUNSELLING AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Local class-action litigation now second only to the US

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Original article by Jack Quail
The Australian – Page: 3 : 2-Jul-24

A report produced by the Menzies Research Centre has concluded that Australia’s litigation funding industry is now worth more than $200m, following huge growth over the last five years. The Liberal Party-aligned think tank notes that the litigation funding sector is "cashed up and thriving" amidst a lax regulatory environment. The MRC has urged the federal government to pursue greater regulation of litigation funders; amongst other things, it has recommended capping their fees at 30 per cent of a class action payout.

CORPORATES
THE MENZIES RESEARCH CENTRE LIMITED, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA