Another week in lockdown but that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a lot going on. In between eating piles of easter eggs and learning how to knit, here’s what’s been happening in the world of advisory this week.

1. ASIC is relaxing rules for accountants to give advice on access to Super. With the Federal Government opening up early access to superannuation for some Australians attempting to navigate the COVID-19 crisis and the economic hardships that have emerged as a direct result, the regulator has relaxed rules enabling accountants to provide advice on superannuation access for clients. Last week we covered some of the reasons why it might not be a bad idea to take out up to $20,000 over the next two years. But this move to enable accounts to move into what is traditionally a financial advisory area of expertise has opened up a can of worms. “The accounting and financial planning industries have been at loggerheads for a number of years over advice that can be legally provided to self-managed super fund investors.” What do you think? Will this help clients make better decisions or is it a risk?

2. The old “dead cat bounce”. The market swings of the past month have created anxiety for all investors but don’t be fooled by recent gains warns Forbes contributor Peter Cohen. In his column, he outlines 5 reasons why recent gains are actually a dead cat bouncing including that Coronavirus struck an economy that was already on weak foundations, confidence levels around the world are waning, building, retail and travel have all plunged, unemployment has skyrocketed and we have no clear plan of how to climb out of this mess.

3. The government has extended the SME loan guarantee scheme through non-bank lenders. As Mortgage Business reports, the scheme provides eligible small businesses with access to up to $250,000 in unsecured funding for up to three years, including an initial six-month repayment holiday with accrued interest to be amortised over the remaining course of the loan. By opening the program up to non-banks, it’s expected businesses will be able to access the funds even faster. More here.

4. Stuck at home? So are Chris Ridd and Tim Munro. In this week’s episode of myprosperity@home the Change Accountants Founder and Tech Investor talk about how they’re setting up staff to work remotely including building constant feedback loops and a few practical ways to help clients navigate COVID-19. Full episode is here.

5. Need a new iPhone but a little short on cash right now? Check out the new iPhone from Apple that won’t drain your bank account.

That’s it for this week. Stay safe, and stay home. 

The myprosperity team