News
A cabinet reshuffle has been announced by Prime Minister, with Michaelia Cash named Minister for Jobs and Innovation, and Craig Laundy promoted to Minister for Small and Family Business, Workplaces and Deregulation. Cash, formerly the Minister for Employment and Women, assumes responsibility for a new portfolio focused on jobs creation as part of her reassignment. […]
The Australian Government’s proposal to make it easier for digital-first challenger banks to compete against industry incumbents is could be improved, according to the peak body for fintech startups. FinTech Australia has lodged a submission with the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) in response to its discussion paper, entitled “A phased approach to authorising new entrants to […]
SME operators not only predict a lack of sales over the Christmas retail period, they also expect to be short on spare time, according to MYOB. The cloud accounting provider’s latest SME snapshot reveals that business confidence is down due to the threat of bigger and online retailers entering the market from overseas. The majority […]
Businesses are being encouraged to promote their commitment to good payment time practices by signing up to the National Payment Transparency Register, established this week by the Australia Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO). The Ombudsman, Kate Carnell, first called for a national register in her report into payment times and practices, published in […]
Innovations implemented by Australian businesses over the past year have contributed $110 billion to the economy, according to research undertaken by the Commonwealth Bank The second annual CommBank Business Insights Report, which looks at innovation practices and performance of companies with two or more employees and an annual turnover greater than $500,000, indicates that businesses […]
The decision by the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) to use distributed ledger technology for its settlement and clearing system for equities transactions has been welcomed by industry association FinTech Australia. Distributed ledger technology developed by Digital Asset will replace CHESS (Clearing House Electronic Subregister System), which ASX currently uses to record shareholdings and manage the […]
A parliamentary committee recommendation for banks to reduce ‘tap and go’ transaction fees has attracted support from the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Kate Carnell. The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics recommended that banks let merchants send tap-and-go payments from debit cards through eftpos instead of credit, and that regulatory action be taken […]
Investors who back startups in the BlueChilli portfolio will now enjoy an immediate tax deduction plus capital gains tax exemptions. This follows a private ruling by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) approving BlueChilli as the nation’s first accelerator program with Early Stage Investment Company (ESIC) accreditation. Under ATO rules, investors who have met the agency’s sophisticated […]
The passage of anti-money laundering legislation through Parliament on Thursday will facilitate further growth in Australia’s local blockchain and digital currency industry, according to local fintech leaders. The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Bill 2017 will extend anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regulation to digital currency exchanges. The legislation requires these exchanges to monitor […]
The “deliberate”, “repeated” and “systemic” exploitation of three overseas workers has resulted in a West Australian cleaning company, including its husband and wife operators, being hit with nearly $511,000 in penalties for Fair Work breaches. Catherine Paino-Povey, Mark Povey and their company– Commercial and Residential Cleaning Group Pty Ltd – were fined $77,400, $72,240 […]
A lack of training and career development is fuelling employee dissatisfaction amongst Australia’s IT workers, with 49% actively looking for new work and a further 40% open to jumping ship for the right offer. These findings are from a survey of nearly 2000 tech workers undertaken by IT workforce solutions specialists Greythorn, which gathered data […]
Federal Government agencies are paying 96% of their small business contractors within thirty days of receiving an invoice, according to a new report. Minister for Small Business, Michael McCormack said the latest Pay On-Time report also found agencies were paying 60% of invoices up to $1 million within 20 days, and that the overall results […]
To help small businesses get online and reach new markets through digital platforms, the Federal Government has overhauled its Australian Small Business Advisory Services (ASBAS) program, Minister for Small Business Michael McCormack has announced. McCormack said the redesigned program will allocate $18 million in grants over three years to specialist advisers who will engage with […]
With organisation preoccupied with the security challenge posed by malware, cybercriminals are switching impersonation attacks to bypass email security systems, according to research undertaken by Mimecast. The global email and data security company has released its latest Email Security Risk Assessment (ESRA), which revealed that while most organisations are treating malicious attachments and spam as […]
Global retail giant Amazon has today officially entered Australia’s $300 billion retail market, with ‘millions’ of products across 23 categories – from books and music through to consumer electronics and clothing – now available for purchase through its local website. Here’s Amazon Australia at a glance… Orders fulfilled by Amazon Australia are being shipped from […]
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will conduct an inquiry into the effect digital platforms such as Facebook and Google are having on competition in media and advertising services markets. ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said the commission will examine whether digital search engines, social media platforms and other digital content aggregation platforms are exercising […]
The Small Business Ombudsman has launched an inquiry into access to justice for small businesses, explaining the current legal system puts them in “no man’s land”. According to Kate Carnell, small business operators are at “the wrong end of a power imbalance” in dealings with big business and governments. “Consumer protections don’t always apply to […]
Although it’s becoming easier for startups to raise capital in Australia, high-growth companies are hamstrung by a shallow pool of global talent, warned Alex McCauley, CEO of StartupAUS and lead author of the 2017 Crossroads Report. The report, a comprehensive review of the nation’s startup ecosystem, features a state-by-state brief on the progress of local startup […]
The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman has today released a study into factors impacting small to medium enterprise investment. According to Ombudsman Kate Carnell, SME investment is being impeded by limited access to capital as well as red tape and energy prices and that removing these barriers would “give them confidence to grow […]
With Amazon having its soft launch in Australia, today, Dynamic Business spoke with Dominique Lamb, the CEO of the National Retail Association (NRA) who admitted the ecommerce giant was a ‘worthy opponent’ for local retailers but one that can’t satisfy demand for ‘retail as entertainment’. [Related: Let’s Talk… Ecommerce and If you can’t beat them, join […]
