Latest news with #Sandgate
ABC News
22-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Research reveals baby boomers, retirees invest in cryptocurrency
Terry and Justine Sanders are not typical cryptocurrency investors. The couple could be part of a small but growing number of senior Australians turning to crypto in a high-risk attempt to boost their retirement savings. The pair, from Sandgate, bayside Brisbane, said they bought $48,000 worth of Bitcoin in 2019. They said they made almost half a million dollars after cashing out four years later, which Ms Sanders said had changed their lives. "We don't tell most people our age that we are doing crypto," the 79-year-old said. "The few that we told thought we had absolute rocks in our heads." After their success, they felt like that was going to change. Research by cryptocurrency exchange Independent Reserve estimates as many as 6.5 million Australians have invested in the volatile digital currencies. The online trading platform said ownership rates among baby boomers had quadrupled over the past six years. Its latest annual survey of 2,000 people found the number of Australians aged over 65 who had owned crypto increased to 8.2 per cent, albeit from a low base of 2 per cent in 2019. The number of respondents with self-managed super funds who said they would like to invest in Bitcoin doubled during the same period. The price of Bitcoin — the oldest and most popular cryptocurrency — has increased from $5,000 in 2019 to about $170,000, with a series of booms and busts along the way. But despite its promise as a decentralised store of wealth that bypasses the big banks, it is rarely accepted as a payment method in the real world. Some people have become rich but for every success story, there has been a cautionary tale. In the crypto world there is even a term for it: getting wrecked. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has classed cryptocurrency as a "very high-risk" investment. ASIC commissioner Alan Kirkland said cryptocurrency was prone to crashes, making it a poorly suited investment for retirees who needed stability. "You might get lucky but you might also lose a lot of money very fast," he said. While most seniors were investing a modest amount, industry insiders said some pensioners were withdrawing from their super to bet on crypto. Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia chief executive Mary Delahunty said fund managers conducted an "enormous" amount of due diligence and retail investors should do the same before they bought cryptocurrency. "There have certainly been people who have been able to ride the cryptocurrency wave quite high and if they are happy with that risk then it can form part of a diversified portfolio," Ms Delahunty said. Self-styled crypto coach Sydel Sierra runs an online consulting business that advises would-be investors, including Mr and Ms Sanders. "It has a very low barrier to entry," she said. "Anyone with a laptop or a computer and an internet connection can get involved." Businesses like Ms Sierra's that provide advice on cryptocurrency investments are not required to hold a financial services licence. That is because cryptocurrency is not classified as a financial product under Australian law. The 36-year-old said she surveyed her 700 clients and found a third were older than 60 and most retirees had heard about cryptocurrency from their adult children. She said half her clients had at least $60,000 invested in crypto and 10 per cent had a portfolio of more than $300,000, and that figure was increasing. "Baby boomers and retirees are obviously looking at the types of gains [millennials] are getting and there's a bit of FOMO," Ms Sierra said. "They want in." Cryptocurrencies are largely unregulated, which makes them fertile ground for fraud and scams. With no dedicated laws, ASIC has been left to regulate by enforcement of breaches of existing laws such as the Corporations Act. In the last financial year, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority received more than 200 complaints about cryptocurrency, but said it expected that number to rise in coming years with an increase in uptake. Australians reported losing $170 million to crypto scams in 2023, according to the Australian Federal Police, which said the money lost was rarely recovered. Mr Kirkland said there was little recourse for people who fell victim to a dodgy operator. "If something goes wrong you don't have the same consumer protections," he said. "[You don't have] the right to make a complaint and the right to go to an independent body that you would have if you were dealing with a more traditional financial firm." This article is not financial advice. If you are concerned about your own financial situation you should seek independent, personal financial advice that takes account of your own individual circumstances.
BBC News
22-05-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Sandgate Beach sewage leak prompts warning against swimming
Swimmers are being urged to avoid using a beach in Kent due to "pollution from sewage".The alert at Sandgate Beach, near Folkestone, is expected to last until 24 May, according to the Environment Agency (EA).Sandgate and West Folkestone ward councillor Tim Prater said a drain near The Sandgate Hotel "seems to be discharging sewage onto the beach".But Southern Water said a damaged sewer pipe caused the spill, and the discharge had "not affected bathing water quality." "The discharge from the surface water outfall has not entered the sea," it water company added that the incident was reported on Wednesday and it immediately sent teams to the has since "introduced a series of measures to protect the local environment, including tankers to control flows through the area". Councillor Prater says the anti-swimming advisory could be lifted sooner than and Hythe District Council confirmed the EA and Southern Water were "working to fix" the sewage leak and that signage was being installed at the EA's most recent water quality classification for Sandgate was "excellent", based on samples it took between 2021 and 2024.
ABC News
09-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Disgraced former Queensland Labor minister Gordon Nuttall dies aged 71
Gordon Nuttall has died aged 71 years old. The disgraced former Queensland Labor minister was jailed for perjury and corruption charges stemming from his time in the Beattie government. In 2023, he was diagnosed with stage four kidney cancer. Gordon Nuttall entered state parliament as the member for the south-east Queensland seat of Sandgate in 1992. Nine years later, he took on the Industrial Relations Ministry in the Beattie Labor Government. But it was his time as health minister when Gordon Nuttall rose to prominence. At the time, Peter Beattie explained why he was the right minister for the job. "He demonstrated tenacity, commitment, determination, fairness and ability to get results," Mr Beattie said in 2004. Taking up the key portfolio, Gordon Nuttall laughed off suggestions it was a poison chalice, yet it was this post that would spark the unravelling of his political career. In the midst of the Jayant Patel scandal, Mr Nuttall was caught lying to a parliamentary committee about what he knew about problems at the Bundaberg Base Hospital. He stood down as health minister, and the Crime and Misconduct Commission recommended charges. Those charges did not eventuate, but the damage was done. "It is this poison chalice I suppose for me, and now I've paid the ultimate price," Nuttall said in 2005. But worse was to come. The CMC discovered a secret loan from mining magnate Ken Talbot that was not declared. Again, Gordon Nuttall denied any wrongdoing. "I am a decent and honest person. I believe I have done nothing wrong. And I believe that when the evidence is laid out for all to see that people will see that. I have nothing to fear," he said. Gordon Nuttall was found guilty of multiple perjury and corruption charges relating to payments from business associates. In total, he was sentenced to 14 years' jail. In a further political humiliation, in 2011, Nuttall was escorted to parliament in a prison van and brought before the house to answer contempt charges. Facing his former colleagues, he again claimed he was the victim. "You chose to cast me adrift and join in the feeding frenzy when there was blood in the water. The fault lies in the guidelines. The CMC and the DPP have had their own agenda and embarked on a campaign to make sure that I was demonised, abandoned, cheated and made a fool of," he told the House. Queensland parliament passed a motion finding him guilty of contempt, and he was fined $82,000 for not disclosing corrupt payments on the pecuniary interests register. Released in 2015 after serving six years in prison, he spent his final days at the beachside community of Woodgate, near Bundaberg. In 2023, he reflected on his fall from grace, but was still adamant he had done nothing wrong. Gordon Nuttall is survived by his partner, children and grandchildren.
