This is the final selfmangedsuper newsletter for the year and as such we would like to thank you, our readers, for your support throughout 2014.

The operations and in turn the inherent characteristics of accounting practices would need to change in the next decade as their core activities, such as SMSF compliance, were eroded through technological development, according to an accountancy consultant.

MLC has forged an alliance with the SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia (SPAA) to ensure the wealth manager’s advisers obtain the highest level of SMSF advice accreditation, training and support.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) decision to amend the wholesale investor classification that will allow some SMSF trustees to be included in this category has been described by a superannuation consultant as unusual in comparison to the general protectionist attitude towards the sector.

The Financial System Inquiry’s (FSI) concern over lack of portfolio diversification within superannuation funds, resulting in a recommendation to ban the use of gearing inside SMSFs, was a worrying development, according to an industry expert.

Fractional property investing could provide the solution for SMSF trustees looking to invest in the asset class if the government acted upon the Financial System Inquiry’s recommendation to ban limited recourse borrowing arrangements (LRBA), according to the head of a funds management house.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has issued two interpretive decisions reinforcing its stance on zero interest loans issued to SMSFs. ID 2014/39 and ID 2014/40 both deal with situations where an SMSF acquired assets via a zero interest loan; the first being a limited recourse borrowing arrangement (LRBA) of several million dollars to purchase shares […]

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has cancelled 440 SMSF auditor registrations for not satisfying the competency exam needed to retain their registration.

The SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia (SPAA) has thrown its support behind the government’s announcement that the register of financial advisers would include information about the practitioner’s qualifications and any memberships of professional associations.