Smart money weekly; NRL partnership, Pivot AFSL, tax-saving strategies, and we’re hiring

Ben Nash

Hey team

Happy Sunday and this is a huge week of announcements.

Firstly, I’m totally STOKED to announce that Pivot Wealth is today kicking off a partnership with the National Rugby League and the Rugby League Players (RLPA) association to deliver a comprehensive Financial Wellbeing program for all professional male and female NRL players. We love seeing forward-thinking groups like the RLPA and NRL driving true financial wellbeing for their people, and we feel the scope of this program and vision of the NRL will make a significant impact on the lives of not just the players, but their families and ultimately wider communities. Watch this space for more updates.

Secondly, after what seems like a mountain of thought, planning, and execution, I’m stoked to have received confirmation from ASIC that we’ve been issued with our own Australian Financial Services Licence. We’ve always been deeply committed to avoiding any pressure from the big end of town when it comes to the support we deliver, and having this licence is another leap toward our goal of being the go-to place for people looking to invest smarter to create a life not limited by money. Thanks to all our amazing clients for being part of the change and supporting Pivot’s ongoing journey to deliver exceptional financial advice. A special shout out to a few of my incredible Pivot legends Charmaine Melhem, Richel Commission, Yennie Wu & Maryanne Tran for nailing all the behind the scenes prep and execution of this huge project, and to Nadia Docker and Charlie Huang for making sure the process has run as smoothly as possible. So excited to watch where this journey continues to take us

Thirdly, with so much happening, I am on the hunt for the next group of superstars to join the Pivot Wealth family. And to make sure we get the very absolute best person in Australia, I want to cast the net wide and I’d love it if you could help me by spreading the word. We are on the hunt for:

🚀 Senior Client Services Officer
🚀 Advice Associate / Associate Adviser
🚀 Senior Financial Adviser
🚀 Marketing Specialist
🚀 Sales / Relationship manager
🚀 General Manager
🚀 Executive Assistant

We’re looking for individuals to help drive what’s been awarded Australia’s Best Client Service, and be part of the growth of a brand that’s all-in on having a true and deep impact on the lives of our amazing clients. In my totally unbiased opinion, this is a pretty epic opportunity. For details of the roles and for how to apply, click on this link.

Giving update of the week
I mentioned in my update last week that this month team Pivot is getting behind Steptember steps to raise awareness and money for Cerebral Palsy. My September was off to a slow start being in isolation as a COVID close contact, but this week I’ve been let back into the wild and trying to make up for lost ground… I have to admit though that I’m struggling to keep pace with our two Pivot powerhouse walkers Ems Gorada and Emily Djeckovic who have each cranked out over 200k steps EACH so far this month. Stay tuned to see if I can bridge the gap. If you want to get involved you can get behind our 1-1 Money Breakthrough sessions where we’re donating all money raised to this very worthy cause hereMore information about our giving here.

Share market wrap
Australian shares took a dip on Friday, with iron ore plunging toward $US100 a tonne. BHP and Rio Tinto each tumbled in both London and New York.

On Wall Street, shares ended mixed with the Dow and S&P 500 finishing lower, while the Nasdaq held on to a modest gain.

Key sharemarket numbers:

  • The ASX ‘All Ords’ (top 500 shares in Australia) finished the week -0.2% lower than last Friday, on 7,702.90 points.
  • The US ‘S&P 500’ (Top 500 shares in America) finished the week -0.73% lower than last week (Friday AEDT), at 4,473.75 points.
  • The US ‘Nasdaq’ (Top 2500+ mainly tech shares in America) finished the week -0.9854% lower than last week (Friday AEDT), on 15,181.92 points.
  • The Global FTSE ‘All World’ index (largest 3100 companies in the world) finished the week 0.09% higher than last week (Friday AEDT), at 7,027.48%
  • The S&P Cryptocurrency ‘Mega Cap’ Index (tracking market value of Bitcoin and Ethereum) is currently at 1.53% for the month, up 5,249.97 from last week

Investment story of the week: Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)
Wesfarmers sits in the Top 10 of the ASX 200 with a market cap of over $61 billion. Wesfarmers was in the news this week as it put in a bid to buy Australian Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: API), the mob behind Priceline. From where I’m sitting, it’s easy to see how this makes a lot of sense when it comes to the fact that Wesfarmers are experts in retail, supply chain management and procurement with their experience across Bunnings, Kmart and Target. As a result, the API share price received a 15% uplift, with investors’ interest peaking as Wesfarmers increased their bid from $1.38 to $1.55 per share. We’ll keep a close eye on how this one plays out.

Upcoming events:
A big shout out to those of you that joined our event during the week. If you missed it, here’s a link to the full session of ‘Finding the right investment for you’. Coming up, we’re covering everything from financial advice 101 right through to avoiding key money mistakes. Check out the full list below and click through to register:

Event schedule and links to book here:
💰WTF is financial advice?: Thursday 30th September 1.30 pm
💰How a trust can cut your tax bill by $100k+: Thursday 7th October 11:30 am
💰How to be smarter with money: Thursday 14th October 11:30 am – 12:30 pm AEST
💰How to maximise your employer share plan: Wednesday 27th October 12 pm
💰Avoid key money mistakes: Thursday 4th November 11:30 am – 12:30 pm AEST
💰How to buy your $3m Bondi dream home: Thursday 18th November 12 pm
💰What next after making your first million dollars?: Thursday 2nd December 12 pm
💰Why you need a financial adviser if you make more than $250k p.a: Thursday 13th January 12 pm
💰How to use property equity to invest when your LVR is below 50%: Tuesday 25th January 12 pm
💰How to invest if you’re saving more than $5k monthly: Thursday 24th Feb 12 pm
💰Employer share plan tax hacks and mistakes to avoid: Thursday 10th Feb 12 pm

Money Hack of the week: Taking the time to see your financial future clearly
Prepare to be shocked. If you haven’t seen our financial modelling yet, you’d be much like Sarah, who was startled to see how her money could be multiplied through different investing methods. She’s amazed by the difference between her cash sitting in a bank and the gains she’ll get from investing. Check out our full chat here.

Money mistake of the week: Not breaking out of the inaction trap
When was the last time you sat down and looked at all the interest you pay across your credit cards? It took Emma a significant loss in income before she had a good look at her expenses and chose what she could live without. Take a listen to my full chat with Emma to hear more about the catalyst for her to join Pivot Wealth. Check out our full chat here.

Jargon Buster of the Week: PROPRIETARY TRADER (Via Morgan Stanley)
A trader that creates direct profit and risk exposure for the bank by taking positions, as opposed to trading for a client and charging commission.

Podcast from last week:  #133 w. Kym Power – Mindset hacks to reduce stress and maximise performance
In this episode, I chat with Kim Power, who is a holistic wellbeing practitioner. She’s a mindset coach and she helps people basically improve their mindset, avoid stress and work at their peak performance.
She’s also a massage therapist at the stars, including users and Lady Gaga and a whole bunch of other people. She’s been in a space like 20 odd years or something and we unpack how to have a better mindset and how it can impact the money decisions as well as some of the other choices and relationships.

We sort of went a little bit down the rabbit hole with that, as well as some of Kim’s tips from her money journey and some of the lessons that she learned as a business owner along the way.

Kym Power is a Wellbeing, Mindset Coach & HolisticTherapist trusted by international celebrities such as Kylie Minogue, Lady Gaga, Russell Brand, Anthony Robbins, Bruce Springsteen and many other global stars. Kym supports stressed, stuck, overwhelmed, burnt-out business leaders and high achievers recharge their energy, health and wealth in business and life.

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Smart Money upside #35
Because people don’t often talk about the full ins and outs of their money, it’s hard to learn lessons from hearing what good and bad choices other people make. This story is from one of our clients to help you take your money game to the next level.

Numbers/Background
Individual, early 30’s; household income ~ 180k; total assets ~$750k;  savings ~ $3k annually

Frustrations
Lack of financial literacy
, risk creating uncertainty and lack of action
, no strategy around investments, unsure around what percentage of cash to keep in the bank.

What they wanted from us / the advice process
Loan structuring advice to drive tax efficiencies, 
long term investment plan w. clear goals, tax strategies.

What success looks like for them
On track to creating a passive income stream, dream home purchase while holding current property, flexibility to start own business.

What money strategy they were following before we went through the planning process
Nothing clear. Savings were limited and could have been higher. No long term plans around employer share plan.

What money strategy they chose to pursue from our planning work
Start to liquidate some employer shares while retaining a portion as a long term play.  Dream home purchase, ethical investment portfolio. Baking asset protection into strategy to protect against the potential for future relationship breakdown.

Key benefits of going through the process
Clear financial direction to financial security, tax efficiencies, financial confidence.

Value of advice after all advice fees year one: $38,100
Year 20 upside after advice fees: $887,058

If this story resonates and you want to chat about how to get these sorts of results, you can book an intro call here.

Be awesome,

Ben

 

PS: If you want a hand to get on the front foot with your money in 2021, check out our 45-minute one-on-one sessions here. We’re donating 100% of the money raised to charity, so you can up your money game and do something good on the planet at the same time.

 

Disclaimer:
I know you’re smarter than someone that would need me to write the words that come next, but our compliance peeps are real hard-asses so here we go… This information is not personal advice, poetry, or a map to where Jimmy Hoffa is buried. It may only be regarded as general advice, and definitely shouldn’t be considered something worthy of inclusion for Donna Hay’s next cookbook or the Archibald prize. This is actually just an email communication that has been sent to a bunch of people and doesn’t even have your name on it. Your personal objectives, needs or financial situation have not been considered when preparing this email, but I want you to know that I have spent a lot of time thinking about the Venn diagram intersection of poetry, landscaping, and essential oils – if you’re fascinated by this same phenomenon please reply so we can compare notes. You should consider the appropriateness of any general advice we have given you, having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs, and if necessary, seek advice before acting on it. You should also consider other people when getting on and off public transport, smiling more, eating healthy, and listening to your mum when she tells you that you’ve been working too hard. Where the information relates to a financial product, you should obtain and consider the relevant product disclosure statement before making any decision to purchase that financial product. Where the information relates to a hilarious joke I’ve made, you should consider belly laughing deeply. Worth noting also that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance when it comes to investments, and definitely not when it comes to the Wallabies. Financial services guide. All jokes aside and just to be clear, this information may only be regarded as general advice. That is, your personal objectives, needs or financial situations were not considered when preparing it.  You should consider the appropriateness of any general advice we have given you, having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs, and if necessary, seek advice before acting on it. Where the information relates to a financial product, you should obtain and consider the relevant product disclosure statement before making any decision to purchase that financial product. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.