| Start time | Session |
|---|
| Morning sessions | Plenary room |
| 9:30am | Event introduction
|
| 9:40am | Economic update
Hang on to your hat! Although inflation has peaked and interest rates have started to decline in Australia, rising geopolitical tensions inflamed by the Trump administration’s trade tariffs has created a tumultuous time in markets and for investors to say the least. Join Gemma Dale, Director of SMSF and Investor Behaviour from nabtrade who will discuss how these factors and more may continue to play out in markets and what they mean for investors going forward.
nabtrade
|
| 10:15am | Hunting for opportunity in an uncertain world
Post the pandemic, financial markets enjoyed a goldilocks period - equity markets surged to all time heights, property prices remained healthy, private markets provided a new opportunity to deploy capital, and fixed income markets were able to deliver competitive returns.
Whilst everything looked rosy, problems have begun to emerge. Concentration risk is starting to bite, regime change in the US sees the global economy on shaky ground with ever louder calls for recession, and whilst interest rates and inflation appear to be moving in the right direction, stagflation fears have risen.
How do investors make sense of the world and where are the opportunities?
Livewire, Plato, Munro, Antipodes
|
| 11:00am | Morning tea |
| Breakout sessions | Green room | Gold room |
| 11:30am | Principles to guide your investment decisions
For those of us who are new to investing, it can certainly be a daunting task when deciding where to start and how to manage your investments. With such a large amount of innovative investment products made available in the last decade, it’s never been easier to build a diversified investment portfolio through your brokerage account. In this session, we will look to cover the basics you need to know to hit the ground running by covering the cumulative effect of compound interest, the importance of diversification and more to give you the confidence you need to begin your investing journey.
ASX
| Finding value in an expensive market
With Australian banks among the most expensive in the world and some global share markets trading at high valuations, investors face challenges in identifying value in a pricey world. This session examines how to navigate these expensive markets, focusing on smart investment strategies that uncover opportunities without overpaying for growth. Our speaker from Global X will explore strategies like Growth at a Reasonable Price (GARP) and other investment approaches to help identify attractive opportunities in today’s market.
Global X
|
| 12:05pm | A brave new world
Trump’s trade war, Europe’s whatever it takes moment, and China’s AI ambitions—welcome to a brave new world. Delve into how these transformative global events are reshaping investment opportunities and risks. Understand the implications for US exceptionalism, what is driving Europe’s market performance, and if Asian technology can catch up to US Big Tech. Join Betashares, to gain valuable insights on how to navigate this evolving landscape and position your portfolio for success in these uncertain times.
Betashares
| Worried about putting all your eggs in one basket? There's a smarter way to discover the next big thing
There’s so much more to global investing than the mega household names known as the ‘Magnificent 7’. While these companies have dominated the headlines and delivered investors strong performance, valuations for large-cap companies are currently sitting at all-time highs. It would be a mistake for investors to ignore the multitude of small and mid-cap companies on offer with tremendous growth potential, often ‘flying under the radar’.
Join Fidelity as they explore the opportunity in the global small and mid-caps universe, the role this asset class can play in a diversified investment portfolio, and how Fidelity’s investment experts are identifying potential future industry leaders at their early stages of growth.
Fidelity
|
| 12:35pm | Lunch |
| 1:25pm | Moneyball, The Big Short and overcoming the flaws in human judgement
Technology and programmable learning are revolutionising investment management. Systematic approaches are reducing variability and enhancing the quality of portfolio management decisions, while cutting through the noise that often clouds human judgement. In today’s markets, combing an agile investment approach with quantitative power is critical in giving portfolios an investing edge. In this session, we’ll put forward a case for long/short investing and explore the psychology behind investment decisions, the evolution of quantitative investing, and the case for a long short strategy in Australian equities.
VanEck
| A world without hybrids
Are you struggling to replace the hybrid exposure in your investment portfolio? You're not alone. The recent decision by APRA to phase out hybrid securities has left many investors grappling with how to position themselves for yield opportunities in a world without hybrids. For investors who have utilised hybrids to provide income with daily liquidity as a key part of their defensive exposure, it now becomes crucial to explore viable alternatives that could meet the needs of portfolios. Join Blair Hannon, Head of ETFs, Australia Macquarie Asset Management for an insightful session where he will explore alternatives including how fixed income active ETFs can serve as a viable solution aimed at helping you achieve your yield objectives.
Macquarie Asset Management
|
| 2:00pm | Stock market concentration: great when it works, terrible when it reverts
Portfolio concentration is fine when the dominant companies are performing and in the past several years, investors have benefitted from a period of strong returns from the ASX giants. However, when these large companies underperform, concentration creates a huge headwind to returns. In contrast, the Australian small caps market is much more diversified. Hear from Firetrail who will discuss how they are positioned and will outline why now is the time for investors to consider improving their equities portfolio diversification with active small caps.
Firetrail
| The Art of Adaptation: Strategies to thrive amid volatility
When the facts change, I change my mind,” said the famed economist John Maynard Keynes. This truism applies to global markets today more than ever. As volatility and uncertainty continue to intensify, generating consistent outperformance requires a strategically bound and tactically executed approach to asset allocation.
In this presentation, Sebastian Mullins, Head of Multi-Asset and Fixed Income investing at Schroders Australia, will identify the key scenarios that could play out in markets, the strategies that will be needed to succeed in them, as well as some of the opportunities he’s seeing across asset classes right now.
With 220 years of global investing expertise, including 60 years in Australia, join Schroders as they unpack current macro themes, explain the edge that active investing delivers, and importantly where to allocate your capital locally and globally.
Schroders
|
| 2:30pm | Afternoon tea |
| Plenary sessions | Plenary room |
| 3:00pm | Top investment ideas
Our panel of experts will give you a quick-fire pitch of their top investment ideas for 2025 then share insights via a panel session before taking questions from the audience.
Janus Henderson, Wilson Asset Management
|
| 4:00pm | Buy, Hold or Sell
How do you determine when to buy, hold or sell a stock? There isn’t always a single ‘right’ answer. Have your phones out and ready to play along - this presentation is your chance to participate as Grady Wulff, Market Analyst at Bell Direct will explain how an expert approaches stock selection by highlighting their top shares to Buy, Hold or Sell.
Bell Direct
|
| 4:45pm | Event close
|
