Latest news with #LindsayFox
The Australian
7 days ago
- Business
- The Australian
Transport moguls threaten super sell-off over Labor's unrealised gains tax
Transport moguls Kim Lindsay and Neil Mansell have revealed they are considering liquidating part of their self-managed super funds in response to Labor's tax on unrealised capital gains, as billionaire Lindsay Fox declares that Jim Chalmers' cornerstone tax policy will backfire. Concerns have been raised that superannuants would change their investment and retirement structures before Labor introduces the tax, jeopardising Treasury's forecast that it will reap as much as $43bn over the next decade and help the Treasurer avoid deeper deficits. Labor wants to introduce an unrealised capital gains tax starting with $3m superannuation accounts without indexation. The Greens, who will be needed to approve the tax, want the threshold to be even lower at $2m. Mr Fox, a longstanding friend of Labor who had Anthony Albanese fly in his private helicopter to a five-hour barbecue with him and former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews, said he thought Labor might change its mind on unrealised capital gains tax. 'I just think it is a bad policy,' Mr Fox told The Australian. 'I don't know why they would do it. It won't work. 'Everything the government does backfires. I just don't believe they will end up doing it.' The intervention from Mr Fox, who did not reveal his own superannuation circumstances and whether he would try to avoid paying the tax, comes as participants of Dr Chalmers' economic reform roundtable have criticised the tax grab on unrealised gains. One of the country's most respected business leaders and a key figure in Kevin Rudd's 2008 productivity summit, Warwick Smith, has warned Anthony Albanese to pursue any reforms agreed upon at the upcoming roundtable slowly, as the Prime Minister seeks to wrest back control of the summit from warring unions and corporate groups. The comments by the Howard-era minister and Dr Rudd's 2011 pick for the Australia-China Council come ahead of Labor seeking to legislate the unrealised gains tax once the roundtable is concluded. Asked about the concept of taxing unrealised capital gains and his reflections from Labor's last major productivity summit, Mr Smith said the government should learn from how John Howard implemented reform. Mr Lindsay – recently retired chief executive of ASX-listed trucking company Lindsay Australia – said he was considering whether to sell down assets in his superannuation fund to reduce the balance below the $3m threshold. 'Its absolute bullshit,' Mr Lindsay said. 'People may as well just go on the pension. It's a disgrace. We are considering what we will do and whether to sell part of it.' Trimming the size of the self-managed super fund below $3m is an option many are considering as they wait to see where Labor's threshold will land. 'Paul Keating introduced super and they encouraged us to get into it. But this tax will be a hell of a mess,' Mr Lindsay said. Mr Mansell, who operates a 500-truck transport business, says he was encouraged by government to use a self-managed super fund years ago and is frustrated by the about-face of introducing unrealised gains tax. He is now actively considering selling assets out of it not only to avoid being captured by the tax, but to raise money to pay it if he is liable. 'It's a terrible idea,' Mr Mansell said. Years ago we were pushed into this to save for our own retirement. I put a lot of it into industrial land but these are assets, how do you pay for the tax? So I think I might have to sell and if you sell you also have to pay capital gains. I can't believe Labor will go with it.' The tax is expected to start with 87,000 individuals, but Labor's policy is forecast to affect at least 500,000 Australians by the time they reach retirement, according to the Financial Services Council. The tax office has said it is aware that many of superannuants would seek to minimise their tax if the new laws were introduced. 'We have seen some early suggestions that private groups may seek to alter their arrangements to limit their exposure to the proposed Division 296 tax in case the legislation is passed at a later date,' an ATO spokesman said. 'Our focus is on understanding emerging issues and ensuring we are well-positioned to respond to any risks that may arise. 'We analyse this intelligence to identify potential tax risks and determine how to tailor our support and engagement activities to address these risks.' Embedded in Labor's legislation for the tax, which is yet to be reintroduced but will likely have a backdated start of July 1, are clauses that allow parameters of the tax to be adjusted. In Labor's new super plan, known as the Better Targeted Superannuation Concessions and other Amendments Bill, is the clause 'section 296-60' which gives the Treasurer power to modify super tax rules further after the original bill is approved by parliament. Some tax experts have suggested that concessions have been too generous for those with high net-worth accounts and that Labor's tax plan for unrealised gains was about righting a historic wrong. Professor Miranda Stewart, who was a visiting adviser in the Treasury last year, said superannuants should, 'just relax and pay the tax'. 'It's fixing a wrong. It's fixing a policy that has caused a significant problem we need to solve,' Professor Stewart said. 'How do you deal with the lag effects of what has been done in the past, which it feels like at least the Treasurer's reforms are partly trying to get to.' PM prefers small steps, not Chalmers' giant leaps Politics Business leader Warwick Smith has warned Anthony Albanese to hasten slowly with any reforms agreed upon at the upcoming economic roundtable, amid warring unions and corporate groups. Politics Anthony Albanese has dampened expectations ahead of the economic reform roundtable, insisting his government will not outsource decision-making to business leaders and unions.
Daily Mail
21-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Sacrifice Aussies may need to make if they want to keep using cash
Australians may have to go back to paying fees again for using rival bank ATMs like they did a decade ago if they want to keep having access to cash, a finance expert says. The Big Four banks in 2017 agreed to scrap those $2 fees for customers who used the automatic teller machines of a competitor. While it was regarded as good news, that policy is threatening the future of cash in Australia with very few consumers now using banknotes to pay for everyday goods and services. Australia's key cash-in-transit company Armaguard, owned by billionaire transport magnate Lindsay Fox's family, needs $50million a year in handouts to survive and now federal regulators are proposing Australia have a new minister for cash. In just seven years, the number of ATMs have more than halved, plunging from 13,814 in June 2017 to just 5,476 in June last year, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data showed. The Commonwealth Bank , Westpac , NAB and ANZ used the abolition of rival ATM fees to take away those cash dispensing machines and squeeze Australia's cash-in-transit companies during contractual negotiations. This has made distributing cash unprofitable with the Big Four banks, supermarket giant Woolworths and retail group Wesfarmers - the owner of hardware chain Bunnings, Kmart and Officeworks - last week announcing they would provide a $25.5million lifeline to Armaguard from July to December. Jason Bryce, the founder of Cash Is Welcome, said Armaguard wouldn't need to be subsidized by the banks and the supermarkets if those old fees for using rival ATMs still existed - and generated $500 million a year in revenue. 'I think it was a bad, short-sighted move - I don't want to prescribe the answers - but the problems date from that decision,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'There's no doubt the $2 ATM fee for customers of other banks kept the cash distribution system paid for and viable in Australia - since 2017, since that decision, the cash industry has contracted and been under pressure. 'There needs to be some kind of structural change to provide support, go forward, to cover the $50 million-odd per year that Armaguard is now getting. 'There should be no need for $50million a year - the problem has been created by the banks and the supermarkets.' Mr Bryce said the abolition of those rival ATM fees had led to the big banks putting extra pressure cash deliverers, to the point that Spanish group Prosegur in 2023 merged with Armaguard to survive. 'The two big companies have merged into one and that one company is on the verge of bankruptcy,' he said. Peter Fox, the executive chairman of Armaguard, told The Australian Financial Review its 'shortfall in revenue' was 'caused by the four major banks and two retailers which slashed their margins to Armaguard in a period of cut-throat competition'. Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn last year admitted the banks were 'very, very aggressive' towards Armaguard. 'The banks drove Armaguard to the brink of bankruptcy,' Mr Bryce said. 'Matt Comyn says the banks underpaid Armaguard for cash-in-transit.' 'It's really up to the banks to pay more. 'So banks now don't really have much of a leg to stand on when they complain about handing over $25million for six months.' The disappearance of major bank ATMs saw the appearance of third-party ATMs that charge $3 fees for use. 'There's less bank-owned ATMs and there's more third-party ATMs that charge $3 or so,' Mr Bryce said. The Council of Financial Regulators - which includes the RBA - and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is proposing a new federal minister in charge of cash distribution who would have oversight over a registered entity that would 'provide critical cash services to a significant part of the market'. 'Despite the rise of digital payments, cash remains vital for many Australians, particularly in regional and remote communities,' it said in a consultation paper. 'Cash supports secure, inclusive, and resilient transactions for those who prefer or rely on it.' The federal government last year announced a cash mandate would be coming into force on January 1, 2026 requiring businesses to offer customers a cash option.
Daily Mail
21-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
The major sacrifice Aussies will need to make if they want to keep using cash
Australians may have to go back to paying fees again for using rival bank ATMs like they did a decade ago if they want to keep having access to cash, a finance expert says. The Big Four banks in 2017 agreed to scrap those $2 fees for customers who used the automatic teller machines of a competitor. While it was regarded as good news, that policy is threatening the future of cash in Australia with very few consumers now using banknotes to pay for everyday goods and services. Australia's key cash-in-transit company Armaguard, owned by billionaire transport magnate Lindsay Fox's family, needs $50million a year in handouts to survive and now federal regulators are proposing Australia have a new minister for cash. In just seven years, the number of ATMs have more than halved, plunging from 13,814 in June 2017 to just 5,476 in June last year, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data showed. The Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, NAB and ANZ used the abolition of rival ATM fees to take away those cash dispensing machines and squeeze Australia's cash-in-transit companies during contractual negotiations. This has made distributing cash unprofitable with the Big Four banks, supermarket giant Woolworths and retail group Wesfarmers - the owner of hardware chain Bunnings, Kmart and Officeworks - last week announcing they would provide a $25.5million lifeline to Armaguard from July to December. 'Major banks and major retailers have reached an agreement with Armaguard to extend their financial contribution for a further six months,' the Australian Banking Association said. Armaguard needs to be subsidised to the tune of $50million a year despite having a 90 per cent share of Australia's cash-in-transit market, with the Reserve Bank estimating cash now makes up just 13 per cent of in-person transactions. Jason Bryce, the founder of Cash Is Welcome, said Armaguard wouldn't need to be subsidised by the banks and the supermarkets if those old fees for using rival ATMs still existed - and generated $500million a year in revenue. 'I think it was a bad, short-sighted move - I don't want to prescribe the answers - but the problems date from that decision,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'There's no doubt the $2 ATM fee for customers of other banks kept the cash distribution system paid for and viable in Australia - since 2017, since that decision, the cash industry has contracted and been under pressure. 'There needs to be some kind of structural change to provide support, go forward, to cover the $50million-odd per year that Armaguard is now getting. 'There should be no need for $50million a year - the problem has been created by the banks and the supermarkets.' Mr Bryce said the abolition of those rival ATM fees had led to the big banks putting extra pressure cash deliverers, to the point that Spanish group Prosegur in 2023 merged with Armaguard to survive. 'The two big companies have merged into one and that one company is on the verge of bankruptcy,' he said. Peter Fox, the executive chairman of Armaguard, told The Australian Financial Review its 'shortfall in revenue' was 'caused by the four major banks and two retailers which slashed their margins to Armaguard in a period of cut-throat competition'. Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn last year admitted the banks were 'very, very aggressive' towards Armaguard. 'The banks drove Armaguard to the brink of bankruptcy,' Mr Bryce said. 'Matt Comyn says the banks underpaid Armaguard for cash-in-transit.' 'It's really up to the banks to pay more. 'So banks now don't really have much of a leg to stand on when they complain about handing over $25million for six months.' The disappearance of major bank ATMs saw the appearance of third-party ATMs that charge $3 fees for use. 'There's less bank-owned ATMs and there's more third-party ATMs that charge $3 or so,' Mr Bryce said. The Council of Financial Regulators - which includes the RBA - and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is proposing a new federal minister in charge of cash distribution who would have oversight over a registered entity that would 'provide critical cash services to a significant part of the market'. 'Despite the rise of digital payments, cash remains vital for many Australians, particularly in regional and remote communities,' it said in a consultation paper. 'Cash supports secure, inclusive, and resilient transactions for those who prefer or rely on it.' The federal government last year announced a cash mandate would be coming into force on January 1, 2026 requiring businesses to offer customers a cash option.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Armaguard move set to enshrine cash as essential service amid looming deadline
Beleaguered cash transit company Armaguard is getting a helping hand to ensure it can stay alive beyond a funding deal set to run out on June 30. Deloitte has reportedly been called in to develop a new pricing model for Armaguard, and could help recognise moving cash around the country as an essential service. Armaguard was saved from financial ruin last year when industry stakeholders, including the Big Four banks, supermarkets, Bunnings, and Australia Post, pledged $50 million to keep it afloat. However, big questions have been raised about what will happen when that money agreement expires in a few weeks. The Australian Financial Review reports that bringing the consultancy firm Deloitte on board will determine how much profit Armaguard should appropriately make and how much it needs to keep afloat. Aussie 'cash crisis' averted ahead of major Armaguard deadline: 'Significant liability' Most in-demand tradie jobs paying nearly $3,200 per week amid crisis: 'Shining a light' Major backflip from world's most cashless country as Australia mulls money law Essential services like healthcare, electricity, and disability support have their pricing models established by independent bodies. This ensures they are fair, transparent, and sustainable. By doing this for Armaguard, it could help set the company up for a long future where cash remains an essential part of society, even though people are using it far less than they used to. Data from the Reserve Bank (RBA) showed cash made up 70 per cent of all in-person transactions back in 2007. That dropped to just 13 per cent by 2022. Yahoo Finance has reached out to Deloitte for time is of the essence as another funding injection could have to be delivered by the large industry stakeholders. Whether it's another year-long deal worth roughly $50 million like last time or a shorter term is yet to be revealed. Since the deal was inked in the middle of 2024, Armaguard has been hacking at low-hanging fruit to cut costs. One avenue was by simplifying the routes it takes to deliver physical money all over Australia. There is a possibility that if billionaire Lindsay Fox, who owns the cash transit company, walked away from it, industry stakeholders could organise a joint ownership of the operation. This structure has been seen in some Nordic countries, where big players pool their resources and money to keep cash alive. It's a setup that has RBA governor Michele Bullock's tick of approval. Back in 2023, she said major banks and other users of banknotes and coins should have a bigger role in cash distribution. 'The RBA places a high priority on the community continuing to have reasonable access to cash withdrawal and deposit services,' she said. 'These discussions are ongoing, and industry, regulators and government will need to continue to work together to put in place sustainable arrangements for cash distribution.' However, one major difference between Nordic countries and Australia is size. Transporting cash from the very south of Sweden to its northern tip is a 2,000 kilometre journey. That's only 200 kilometres longer than driving from Brisbane to Sydney to Melbourne. There are far many more regional and remote communities in Australia that regularly need cash and they take far longer to reach. Bullock said one of the biggest challenges in the future of cash delivery was finding "solutions tailored to Australian circumstances". A poll of hundreds of Yahoo Finance readers found overwhelming support for the idea of industry stakeholders permanently propping up Armaguard. A whopping 92 per cent backed this idea, compared to 8 per cent who thought taxpayers should foot the annual bill.
