Advisory firm VFS Group has launched a socially responsible investment (SRI) portfolio with SMSFs in mind as trustees’ need for greater control begins to progress into opportunities that better align with their values.

A former Sydney financial adviser has been formally charged in the Local Court of New South Wales with 19 counts of engaging in dishonest conduct with SMSF funds.

Wealth management groups Evans and Partners and Dixon Advisory have merged to create a new combined business, Evans Dixon.

LT Management has paid a $10,800 infringement notice penalty imposed by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) after making potentially misleading statements about the cost of setting up an SMSF using the services of RS Capital Partners, trading as My SMSF Property.

The proposed reduction in the non-concessional contributions cap from 1 July 2017 in the amended budget package provides a number of opportunities when considering re-contributions strategies in this financial year.

Research shows it takes around nine months to travel from Earth to Mars, history tells us it’s the equivalent time of an average gestation period, and financial planning nous tells us that’s how much time there is to maximise the benefits from the federal government’s super changes, which will take effect from 1 July 2017.

The federal government’s non-concessional contribution (NCC) maximum threshold of $1.6 million has uncovered a set of new issues for the industry, with SMSF practitioners looking for answers to take back to their clients following the backflip on the lifetime NCC measure last week.

The federal government’s move to scrap the backdated limit of the $500,000 lifetime non-concessional contributions (NCC) cap for superannuation is mostly good news for retirement income planning, the Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) has said.

The SMSF Association believes the federal government’s new policy for superannuation non-concessional contributions (NCC) will reduce administrative complexity, as well as increase opportunities for adequate retirement savings.