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Investor Education · ETF · 5 MIN READ

The ETF Innovation Cycle: Why the Next Hot Fund May Warrant Caution

We all know the long list of benefits of investing in ETFs, but the passive fund boom has reached the stage where narratives can sometimes reign supreme. The risk is that the recent wave of ETF launches, particularly in thematic, single-stock, options-enhanced, and actively managed strategies, is partially shaped by investor demand for exposure to recent winners rather than enduring sources of return.

The Bigger Picture - May 2026

April confirmed what markets had begun to suspect: the global macro backdrop has changed. Higher geopolitical risk is now structurally entrenched. Markets have quickly adjusted to this unfortunate new reality across all asset classes. Geopolitical risk has reasserted itself as a primary driver of energy prices, inflation expectations, and capital flows. Investors still anchored to the old world of low inflation, cheap money, and frictionless globalisation risk being structurally mispositioned.

3 May 2026
 · 5 MIN READ

The Bigger Picture - May 2026

April confirmed what markets had begun to suspect: the global macro backdrop has changed. Higher geopolitical risk is now structurally entrenched. Markets have quickly adjusted to this unfortunate new reality across all asset classes. Geopolitical risk has reasserted itself as a primary driver of energy prices, inflation expectations, and capital flows. Investors still anchored to the old world of low inflation, cheap money, and frictionless globalisation risk being structurally mispositioned.

3 May 2026
 · 5 MIN READ

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Reading the world’s emotional tea leaves

It’s tempting for investors to believe that their personal experience of the world’s emotional state allows them to accurately assess the global zeitgeist. However, the reality is most investors are only exposed to a miniscule fraction of the global population, and it can be challenging to understand others’ emotions at the best of times. Reading the world’s emotional tea leaves is easier said than done.

8 Jan 2025
 · 5 MIN READ

Crystal ball gazing at 2025

Happy new year! We hope it’s a healthy and happy one for you. While no one knows exactly what’s coming in the year ahead, most investors will be asking themselves similar questions as the new year begins. For example, will 2025 be a repeat of 2024’s US-led market resilience and euphoria? Or will markets follow a different playbook this year which requires investors to make tactical adjustments? With these questions in mind, it’s time to do our best at crystal ball gazing to help investors make sense of what may be coming in 2025…

31 Dec 2024
 · 12 MIN READ

Agriculture: an overlooked asset class with powerful tailwinds

Most investment portfolios have limited exposure to agriculture, but this under-represented sector is as an attractive asset class, driven by rising global food demand, shrinking arable land, and resource scarcity. While the global trends of population growth and a rising Asian middle class have long supported agricultural demand, supply constraints—exacerbated by the pandemic and geopolitical tensions—have created powerful tailwinds for agricultural investments.

29 Nov 2024
 · 4 MIN READ

A storm is brewing in the US

With the S&P 500 rallying an historic 40% over the past twelve months, you’d be forgiven for thinking all is well with the US Government’s finances. After all, the state of the world’s largest economy is inextricably connected with the US Treasury’s financial health. Sorry to shatter that illusion, but the truth is very different. Do not read what follows if you prefer to believe in the US fairy tale…

6 Nov 2024
 · 6 MIN READ

Megatrends for 2025 and beyond

Megatrends are long-term structural changes that affect the world we live in. Importantly, they shape communities, but they also create investment opportunities and risks. What Magellan has learned from historical megatrends is: 1) they often solve a problem through innovation; 2) the scope of the megatrend can initially be underestimated; and 3) the duration of a megatrend is typically longer than anticipated. There are numerous megatrends likely to influence markets that investors should consider: the shift to the cloud and generative AI, the ageing population, rising geopolitical tensions and so on. Today we highlight just some of the megatrends we are monitoring at Magellan.

4 Nov 2024
 · 6 MIN READ

Boost your returns with founder-led investing

Investors may struggle to determine if a company’s management team are aligned with shareholders’ interests, wondering they are truly invested in the company's long-term success or merely focused on receiving their weekly salary. There’s one metric which is better than all others when it comes to assessing how invested management teams are in the future of their companies: significant, long-term skin in the game. Hence, recognising outperforming founder-led businesses can be a game-changer for investors.

22 Aug 2024
 · 5 MIN READ

Does momentum investing work?

Momentum is defined as ‘the impetus gained by a moving object.’ It’s an important concept that's at the heart of most success.. Tony Robbins explains why: ‘People who succeed have momentum. The more they succeed, the more they want to succeed, and the more they find a way to succeed.’

20 Aug 2024
 · 4 MIN READ

Time to be overweight Japan

For many years since its 1989 peak the Japanese stock market underperformed its developed world counterparts, and most global investors’ Japanese allocations trended lower. But that was then and this is now. The Japanese market recently broke through its 1989 peak propelled by improved governance, yen weakness, and better capital management.

16 July 2024
 · 5 MIN READ

Why there’s buzz about the arrival of bitcoin ETFs

Bitcoin is now much easier to own for Aussie investors thanks to the ASX listing of the first such ETF last week. The move follows the lead of the US market, which opened the door to bitcoin ETFs in January this year. Investors have since poured billions of dollars into cryptocurrency ETFs, with US bitcoin ETFs collectively amassing over $57 billion of inflows within three months of launch, including offerings from BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, and VanEck.

26 June 2024
 · 6 MIN READ

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