08.30 -09.00 | Arrival, coffee and registration

09.00 – 10.00 | Keynote: Australia and the rise of China

With a new US administration installed, there is an opportunity for a China reset. Can Australia deal constructively with its largest trading partner while also holding Beijing’s authoritarian regime to account?

Hon.Prof Bob Carr | Former Foreign Minister

10:00 – 10:45 | The curious case of the vanishing yield

Advisers searching for yield in today’s market can feel like Sherlock Holmes confronted with an impenetrable mystery. Dividends seem more contingent than before the pandemic and even ‘high-yield’ bonds are turning negative. So where can investors go?

Dr Don Hamson | Managing Director | Plato 

Stephen Cianci | Senior Managing Director & Co-Head, Global Fixed Income | Mackay Shields 

Andrew Bellis | Partner, Head Liquid Loans | Partners Group 

Ron Mehmet | Head of Fixed Income Research | Lonsec

MODERATOR | Veronica Klaus | Head of Investment Consulting | Lonsec

10:45 – 11:00 | Morning Tea

11:00 – 11:30 | Be careful what you wish for: How to tame the inflation genie

As central bank liquidity combined with massive fiscal stimulus wash through the economy, are we about to see inflation return with a vengeance? What are the implications for retirement portfolios? Can we keep the inflation genie safely in the bottle?

Eric Winograd | Senior Economist, Fixed Income | AllianceBerstein

MODERATOR | Veronica Klaus | Head of Investment Consulting | Lonsec

11:30 – 12:15 | What COVID teaches us about diversification

We all know diversification is a good thing. But do traditional forms of diversification really work during a market drawdown? Are there other important kinds of diversification that investors may be missing out on?

Deanne Baker | Portfolio Manager, Multi-Asset | Lonsec 

Simon Mawhinney | Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer | Allan Gray 

Jacob Mitchell | Founder, CIO & Lead Portfolio Manager | Antipodes

Nick Griffin | Founding Partner & CIO | Munro Partners

MODERATOR | Darrell Clark | Manager, Multi Asset Research | Lonsec

12:15 – 13:15 | Lunch

13:15 – 14:00 | Crypto: The future of money or the next tulip mania?

Crypto currencies have become popular alternatives to monetary commodities like gold and silver, and are already used as an important source of diversification within portfolios. But has the market gone too far in pricing up these digital assets?

Vimal Gor | Head of Bond, Income and Defensive Strategies | Pendal

MODERATOR | Lukasz de Pourbaix | Executive Director & CIO | Lonsec

14:00 – 14:45 | Green or greed? Measuring the real impact of sustainable investment

Sustainable and ESG investing are here to stay. What does the data really tell us about how sustainable portfolios perform? How can investors measure the true underlying sustainability of an investment product?

Lorraine Robinson | Executive Director | Lonsec Research

Bruce Smith | Principal, Portfolio Manager | Alphinity

David Macri | Chief Investment Officer | Australian Ethical Investment

MODERATOR | Brook Sweeney | Senior Investment Consultant | Lonsec 

14:45 – 15:15 | Super squeeze: Managing Australia’s superannuation non-performers

As super funds battle to achieve scale in a consolidating market, do the government’s proposed changes to the system represent real reform or needless tinkering? How can we weed out non-performing and sub-scale funds without harming members?

Kirby Rappell | Executive Director | SuperRatings (a Lonsec company)

MODERATOR | Luke Guns | Business Development Manager | SuperRatings (a Lonsec company)

15:15 – 15:30 | Afternoon Tea

15:30 – 16:00 | Fireside chat: Portfolio management during the COVID crisis

Lonsec’s portfolio managers take us behind the scenes to discuss the steps Lonsec took to manage the COVID market turmoil and position for recovery, as well the critical need for transparency and effective portfolio communications.

Lukasz De Pourbaix | Executive Director and CIO | Lonsec

Veronica Klaus | Head of Investment Consulting | Lonsec

MODERATOR | Tony Nejasmic | Head of Wealth Management Sales | Lonsec

16:00 – 17:00 | Keynote: Environment, coffee and why we are currently experiencing the most ‘peaceful time’ in human history

Dr Karl Kruszelnicki

Australian Science Communicator | qualified scientist | doctor and engineer

17.00 – 18.00 | Networking – Drinks & canapes served