K: Financial and Insurance Services

Legal loopholes exposed as cyclist runs down pedestrian at crossing

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Eryk Bagshaw
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 8 : 12-Jan-15

There is no legal requirement in New South Wales (NSW) for cyclists to hold compulsory third party insurance. This has become an issue in a number of cases where these road users have collided with pedestrians, and the latter were then unable to claim for compensation after suffering serious injuries despite the other party having been at fault and charged with negligent driving. The NSW Motor Accidents Authority in 2013 advised Roads & Maritime Services against a proposed scheme under which an insurance levy would apply at the point of sale of new bicycles

CORPORATES
NEW SOUTH WALES. MOTOR ACCIDENTS AUTHORITY, NEW SOUTH WALES. ROADS AND MARITIME SERVICES, NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT, CITY OF SYDNEY, LEICHHARDT COUNCIL, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, PEDESTRIAN COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, BICYCLE NEW SOUTH WALES INCORPORATED

ANZ backs exam for financial advisers

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joanna Mather, Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 12-Jan-15

The ANZ Bank’s submission to a Senate inquiry has supported a proposal to subject financial planners to an annual exam of their skills and knowledge. The bank’s submission cites a US Financial Industry Regulatory Authority exam as a model that could be considered in Australia. Centrepoint Alliance and Choice are among the other organisations that support exams for financial planners, although the Financial Planning Association does not

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIAN CONSUMERS’ ASSOCIATION, CENTREPOINT ALLIANCE LIMITED – ASX CAF, FINANCIAL PLANNING ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMICS, MACQUARIE PRIVATE WEALTH MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

AMP strategist says crude likely to hit $US40 before any recovery

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 22 : 9-Jan-15

The crude oil price is currently trading at about $US50 a barrel, but AMP Capital’s Shane Oliver says production is unlikely to be reduced until it falls to around $US40. He adds that historical analysis shows that any resulting rebound in the oil price is likely to occur gradually. Meanwhile, Oliver says investors should capitalise on any downturn in share prices as a result of the falling oil price

CORPORATES
AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, KAROON GAS AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX KAR, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AWE LIMITED – ASX AWE, BEACH ENERGY LIMITED – ASX BPT, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, SENEX ENERGY LIMITED – ASX SXY

Watchdog to beef up markets surveillance

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Annabel Hepworth
The Australian – Page: 18 : 8-Jan-15

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) in late 2013 launched its market analysis intelligence system, used to monitor the securities sector for insider trading and other misconduct. The cost of $A44m will now be added to with up to $A4m per annum until 2019, to enable ASIC to also crack down on problems in the areas of equity derivatives and contracts for difference. However interest rate, commodities, foreign exchange and credit derivatives traded over-the-counter will not be covered

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, NICK XENOPHON GROUP

Provident ‘the fault of trustees’

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Kylar Loussikian
The Australian – Page: 17 : 8-Jan-15

A class action suit is being launched by law firm Slater & Gordon on behalf of investors who lost funds in the mid-2012 collapse of Provident Capital. It will be alleged that Australian Executor Trustees was not diligent enough in its supervision of the debentures business, and should have realised in late 2010 that were insufficient reserves to secure the loans written by Provident. The equity ratio in 2008-09 was just 6.43%, compared with the Australian Securities & Investments Commission’s stipulated minimum of 20%

CORPORATES
SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, PROVIDENT CAPITAL LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN EXECUTOR TRUSTEES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL RESERVE LIMITED, FINCORP PTY LTD, MERIDIAN LAWYERS LIMITED

Spooked investors see local bond yields drop to record lows

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 24 : 8-Jan-15

The yield on 10-year Australian government bonds reached a record low of 2.65 per cent on 7 January 2015. Bond yields in Europe and the US have also fallen sharply amid a growing trend for investors to shun equities in favour of assets that offer lower risk. Charlie Jamieson of Jamieson Coote Bonds notes that Australian bonds remain appealing to global investors due to a relatively high yield and their "AAA" credit rating

CORPORATES
JAMIESONCOOTEBONDS PTY LTD, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK, ARDEA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FIDELITY WORLDWIDE INVESTMENT, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, CREDIT SUISSE AG

Charges laid over $110m loan fraud

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Chris Vedelago, Georgia Wilkins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 7-Jan-15

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has issued details on a case of two men allegedly committing fraud against the four main banks and other mortgage lenders. It is being claimed that the accused used the Footscray branch of Myra Financial Services to lodge loan applications with sham documents, causing a loss of a total $A110m across 350 mortgages. Prison terms of up to 15 years each may be imposed, on a charge of obtaining financial advantage by deception

CORPORATES
MYRA FINANCIAL SERVICES, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, CIGNA FINANCIAL PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FINANCE GROUP PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, MELBOURNE MAGISTRATES’ COURT, PREMIUM FINANCIAL SERVICES, RAMS HOME LOANS PTY LTD

Medibank on the way to $3

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 7-Jan-15

The shares of Medibank Private on 6 January 2015 closed 1.7% lower at $A2.35. The health insurer was recently floated with an issue price of $A2.15 for institutional investors and $A2 for small retail ones. Most analysts have placed negative or neutral recommendations on the stock, and the consensus price target is $A2.30. However Tim Lawson of Macquarie Bank is more bullish with $A2.62 and a "buy" rating, while Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s Toby Langley also recommends accumulating the stock and predicts it to reach $A3

CORPORATES
MEDIBANK PRIVATE LIMITED – ASX MPL, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MACQUARIE BANK LIMITED – ASX MBL, RAMSAY HEALTH CARE LIMITED – ASX RHC, HEALTHSCOPE LIMITED – ASX HSO, INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, SUNCORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUN

Aussie kids cashed up after Christmas

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 5-Jan-15

A Roy Morgan Young Australians Survey has found that 87 per cent of Australian children aged 6-13 receive cash gifts for Christmas. The survey, which was carried out in the year to June 2014, also shows that more than 22 per cent of children are given cash gifts totalling between $A50 and $A100, while 20 per cent receive between $A100 and $A200. Meanwhile, 24 per cent of boys have received cash gifts of at least $A200, compared with 20 per cent of girls

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED

ASIC in probe of senior trader

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 16 : 6-Jan-15

The alleged manipulation of the bank bill swap rate by financial institutions, including ANZ Bank, is being looked into by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission. Seven ANZ staff were stood aside on full pay by the bank in November 2014, pending the outcome of the inquiry. It has now emerged that among those accused of wrongdoing is interest rate derivatives pricing executive Paul Woodward, who joined ANZ from Deutsche Bank in 2008. Balance sheet trading head Etienne Alexiou is said to be another of the seven

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL MARKETS ASSOCIATION INCORPORATED, ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND GROUP PLC, UBS AG, BNP PARIBAS SA