Australia's fat cat super funds named
Is your super with a fat cat fund? The real fright of Halloween, and 1 in 3 to have a flutter on the cup. Here are five things you may have missed this week.
Is your super a fit cat fund - or a fat cat fund?
The Stockspot 2022 Fat Cat Funds Report has pinpointed Australia's best and worst-performing super funds.
According to Stockspot, Australians can boost their super by as much as $245,000 from age 35 simply by moving from a fund charging investment fees of 1.5% annually to one charging 0.5% per year.
The majority of workers have their super with a 'balanced' style of fund. Qantas Super topped the leaderboard for fit cat balanced funds, with 5-year returns averaging 6.10% annually.
The catch is that Qantas Super is only open to Qantas Group employees. Another fit cat fund - AustralianSuper, is open to everyone.
Some of the worst-performing balanced funds were way off the mark with returns. Stockspot says Zurich's balanced fund, which it described as a 'fat cat', earned 5-year returns of just 1.89% per annum.
The best performing 'fit cat' funds overall according to Stockspot were:
- Qantas Super
- UniSuper
- HESTA
- AustralianSuper, and
- IOOF
The worst-performing fat cat funds for 2022 were:
- OnePath
- Colonial First States
- AMP, and
- ClearView
Terrifying trash - the real horror behind Halloween
Halloween is set to deliver a $430 million spending boost for retailers according to Roy Morgan research.
One in four Australians say they'll be celebrating Halloween this year, with average spending of $86 per person.
But according to Clean Up Australia, the spookiest aspect of Halloween is the amount of waste it creates thanks to throwaway costumes, single-use decorations and excessive plastic packaging on lollies.
Clean up Australia says a few small tricks can cut down the waste, save money, and treat our kids - and the planet, to a frighteningly good "Hallowgreen".
It recommends scoping op shops for pre-loved costumes or having a costume swap with friends. Consider using compostable paper bags instead of plastic for trick or treaters to store lollies, and keep an eye out for confectionary brands that use the Australian Recycling Label on their packaging.
One in three Aussies poised to take a punt
We're galloping towards Melbourne Cup Day, and while the race may stop the nation, it doesn't trigger a nationwide punting habit.
A YouGov survey found only one in three Australians will place a bet on the Cup, and for the majority of people this means having a sweep with friends rather than heading off to a formal bookmaker.
If you are interested in having a flutter at Flemington, it could pay to forget the form guide and look at the barrier your horse has drawn. Barrier 18 has never produced a Melbourne Cup winner.
Of course, amid the spending on fascinators, frocks and cold chicken lunches, the biggest winners are likely to be the owners of the first horse past the post. They stand to pocket part of a purse worth $14 million, which could really see the owners rolling in clover.
Two Australian cities named in global wealthiest
Plenty of us may not be feeling especially wealthy right now, but two Aussies cities have made it into the Top 20 Global Cities with the Most Millionaires for 2022.
The list, compiled by Henley & Partners, is dominated by US cities. New York alone has close to 350,000 millionaires.
Sydney came in at 11th place, with 129,500 citizens holding wealth equal to at least $US1 million (including 16 billionaires).
Melbourne scraped into the top 20 at 17th place, with 97,300 millionaires and 12 billionaires.
ANZ to pay $211 million in missing customer benefits
The Federal Court has ordered ANZ Bank to pay a $25 million penalty for failing to provide a number of benefits to customers with offset transaction accounts or a 'Breakfree' package.
The missing benefits include fee waivers and interest rate discounts owing to about 689,000 customers between 2003 and 2021.
Money watchdog ASIC reports that ANZ's failure will result in over $211 million being paid in remediation to impacted customers.
ANZ is required to publish an adverse publicity order on its website and online banking page, but if you believe you could be owed money it may be worth contacting ANZ direct.
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