News
The Federal Government has announced changes to responsible lending laws in the hopes of boosting Australia’s flow of credit. Under the changes, consumers will be able to access credit more easily and quickly. Whilst responsible lending provisions do not apply to small business lending, these reforms have a large impact upon household credit. “As Australia […]
Aussie Broadband, Australia’s fifth largest provider of NBN services, is set to list on the ASX this October. The ISP will list with a $180.5m to $190.5m market capitalisation. The announcement comes at a time where activity in the IPO market has been hugely destabilised by the pandemic. “The coronavirus pandemic has impacted the appetite […]
Westpac has settled a case with financial crime watchdog AUSTRAC regarding more than 23 million alleged breaches of anti-money laundering laws by paying a record $1.3 billion penalty. The fine is the largest penalty in Australia’s corporate history. Last year Australia’s financial crime watchdog AUSTRAC said the bank had failed to properly report 19.5 million […]
The Federal Government has released a $4.5 bn network investment package, involving a $3.5 bn upgrade of the National Broadband Network (NBN). By 2023, more than 700,000 businesses and 6 million homes will have the option to pay extra for faster broadband. $3.5 bn will be allocated to network investments for homes and small businesses, […]
The Federal Government has announced new insolvency rules that will allow small businesses to stay afloat whilst restructuring debts. This new insolvency regime is proposed to start from 1 January 2021, following the lifting of temporary insolvency measures introduced in March 2020. Related: Government extends temporary insolvency and bankruptcy protections Incorporated businesses with liabilities less […]
With brick-and-mortar sales decreasing and e-commerce sales increasing, retailers should be looking to implement new methods and technologies to keep their physical stores relevant and productive. Baldeep Gill is the newly appointed CEO of Aisleplus, a service ecosystem dedicated to helping physical retail stores connect with the digital world. While Mr Gill believes that the […]
At Tesla’s “Battery Day” event on Tuesday, CEO Elon Musk announced the production of a US$25,000 electric vehicle (EV) “about three years from now”. Importantly these EVs will be powered by “tabless” batteries that Musk promises will be cheaper and more powerful. The new “tabless” batteries, called 4860 cells, will provide five times more energy, […]
NSW businesses can continue to trade and receive deliveries for 24 hours a day. Until 25 March 2021, businesses can adjust their hours of operation to continue providing food, medical supplies and household goods to the community. In March 2020, the NSW government amended the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and the State Environmental […]
The NSW Government has revealed it has allocated $400m of its $3 billion Jobs and Infrastructure Acceleration Fund to regional projects. Last week, the government announced $2.4 billion in funding, which included $1.4 billion in accelerated funding for regional projects. This brings the total spend so far to almost $1.8 billion for regional projects. Premier […]
Drone autonomy company, Emesent, has announced a new investment from In-Q-Tel (IQT), the investment arm of the US intelligence agency the CIA. The strategic investment will help power Emesent’s expansion into new industries including defence, security, and emergency response. “This investment from In-Q-Tel and the strategic support it offers is a boon for our continued growth and the […]
Working from home has increased the use of residential energy across Australia, leading experts to call for households to switch to renewable sources. Through April, residential energy in New South Wales increased by 10 per cent, and in Victoria by 12 per cent. Ross Sharman, the founder of EnergyIQ and an integral member of the […]
There are 12 days to go until the Australian Treasury closes public consultation of the Foreign Investment Reform (Protecting Australia’s National Security) Regulations 2020 (Exposure Draft Regulations) and the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Fees Imposition Regulations 2020 (Exposure Draft Fees Regulations). The draft reforms under consultation have been made to give further effect to the major reforms of the Foreign […]
Fewer women are running the country’s top 200 ASX-listed companies in 2020 compared to the last four years, according to the Chief Executive Women (CEW) ASX200 census report released last week. The report found that the amount of female CEOs of the ASX200 companies has declined from 14 to 10 since 2018. It also found […]
If trade bought prosperity to all corners of the world, then COVID-19 is showing the dark side of an interdependent world. Media interest in COVID-19 is increasingly shifting from the public health aspects of the crisis to the economic consequences of the biggest global pandemic in over a century. Often the issues involved in fighting the […]
Official ABS figures released today show that the unemployment rate has fallen to 6.8 per cent in August, down from 7.5 per cent in July. This drop contrasts widespread predictions of rising unemployment. Despite stage 4 lockdowns in Melbourne and stage 3 lockdowns across regional Victoria, national employment increased by 111,000 people between July and […]
Alfresco dining will become the norm this summer, with NSW government agencies banding together in a task force dedicated to activating the state’s outdoor hospitality spaces. This announcement comes off the back of the Victorian government’s announcement of a $290 million package for Melbourne restaurants to expand outdoors in a growing national trend to see […]
Qantas will start referring business frequent flyers to lending platform Valiant Finance. This partnership helps Qantas members access working capital, asset finance and commercial loans. It will be enabled by Qantas Business Rewards, the airline’s frequent flyer program for SMEs. Olivia Wirth, Qantas Loyalty CEO, hopes that this move will help support businesses throughout the […]
The NSW Government have committed $160 million as part of the federal JobTrainer program, to help people reskill for jobs in the health, manufacturing and construction sectors. In a statement released on Wednesday, Premier Gladys Berejiklian has said: “COVID-19 has presented an unprecedented challenge to our State, and Skilling for Recovery complements our current skills […]
The NSW Government have revealed plans for the $3 billion Jobs and Infrastructure Acceleration Fund to deliver more projects and create up to 20,000 more jobs. The fund, that was initially announced in May, will be put towards more than 30 new and fast-tracked health, education and transport and roads projects to be delivered across […]
Facebook’s Small Business Grants Programme is offering USD $100 million in cash grants and ad credits to small businesses. Up to 30,000 eligible small businesses in over 30 countries may receive a grant. Eligible businesses must: Be a for-profit company Have between 2 and 50 employees as of 1 January 2020 Have been in business […]
