WM Project - Document Title
The Financial Divisions - Returning Trust to the Australian People
...this one also had its own set of deniers. In the end however, it was a battle they lost, in spite of a number of years behind the barricades.
For all the philanthropist and sympathetic big business heavy weights still reading; here is the next challenge for big business in Australia to repair. I can't do it but you can... Like I keep saying, Waltzing Matilda has always rallied the Nation but it can't rally in the dollars required for success without Big Business on side.
This division will not cause the havoc that climate change will cause in Australia and on the rest of the world if we don't act now, but it is just as destructive to business, the economy and to all of the victims, now allegedly "counted in the tens of thousands". (Probably millions now that the Banking Royal Commission has started looking into superannuation and insurance.)
It is also the second reason why the WM project is going public at this point in time.
That is...
The Financial Division: the Waltzing Matilda Dot Com Project response to the disturbing and unbelievable admissions coming out of the Banking Royal Commission.
The Financial Divisions
A Peoples' Bank & Financial Services - The creation of a Peoples' Bank and Financial Services
Note: The descriptive details for the Financial Divisions that now follow, are extracts from the pre 2016 version of the original project document, before the project was placed on hold in 2016.
In addition, the Commissioners final report on the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry is still some time away. As such it will be prudent to wait for the public release of the final report before going into too much detail for this division.
The Commissioners final report once received, will form the building blocks for all the enterprises that will form the projects Financial Divisions.
Postscript 20th February 2019: I am aware the commissioners final report has been released, however for the purpose of this document, I will retain the pre 2016 version of this Division. END Postscript
[Start of extract of text from original project document - pre 2016]
The Big 4 Banks allegedly "appear not to exist for the benefit of customer any longer, only massive profits for shareholders and the like, in spite of a number of marketing campaigns to deflect that criticism".
Waltzing Matilda is the Peoples' Song so let the Waltzing Matilda Dot Com Project be the first to re-create a Peoples' Bank.
I am not against the large profits achieved by our banks. In past years Australia has been well served by our banking sector and it is critical that they continue to be prosperous. But like everything in life, when you cross the line of trust and decency, somebody always get hurt.
Thousands of Australians lost their life savings at the CBA alone. To quote the GFM Wealth Advisory site on the net; greed and dishonesty, fraud, forgery, inappropriate advice and outrageous commissions, were at the heart of the CBA Financial Planning scandal.
Australians have lost confidence, but more importantly - Trust - in our banks' ability to care for their customers, resulting in calls for a Royal Commission across the sector. Australians deserve banks they can trust and do business with.
The system is broken and needs to be fixed.
This project will endeavour to return trust to the banking sector by offering customers a new option; the creation of a new peoples' bank. A bank dedicated in returning culture & character back into our banking sector.
It is not rocket science - you just have to have integrity and be up-front with your clients, whilst management and staff stride to build-up a trusting relationship between the bank and its customers. Ripping people off in the name of greed and self-interest will have seen its day if this division becomes a reality.
There is not much point in me pretending I know a great deal more about the banking sector, as I guess they all operate within laws and regulation that govern operations in an effort to protect the nation and the banks' customers.
It is only when they try to be creative, at the expense of the rest of us that it becomes a problem; from executives on huge bonus incentives for larger and larger profits; institutional shareholders demanding more and more dividends; then there is the devastating results to the mums and dads of Australia, due to misconduct and fraud in the financial planning sector of the big banks.
In the case of Financial Planners; were the alleged 'suspects acting in response to their own greed, or were the banks pulling their chain'?
What happened to the days when the community looked up to and placed great trust in their local bank manager?
Sometimes it pays to be both looking forward whilst at the same time looking back.
Postscript 28th April 2015: In regards to TRUST - I will leave the last word to the Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens. This article was in today's Financial Review;
Quote: Speaking in the wake of several high-profile scandals at some of Australia's biggest financial institutions, Mr Stevens said the root causes "seem to include distorted incentives coupled with an erosion of a culture that placed great store on acting in a trustworthy way".
"Finance depends on trust. In fact, in the end, it can depend on little else."
"Where trust has been damaged, repair has to be made."
He also called for a broader debate on misconduct in financial services, warning that governments could not "legislate for culture or character." Unquote.
The WM project will be on the side of the governor and strive to put trust and fairness back into the sector for the benefit of our customers and the nation.
Australians should expect nothing less. END Postscript
Postscript 18th January 2016: In regards to TRUST again... This time it's the ANZ and the culture on the dealing floor being at odds with the official levels of conduct demanded by the bank.
Out-of-control on the trading floor as one newspaper article quote put it. 'Stories of verbal abuse, alcohol abuse, drug use, visits to strip clubs and misuse of credit cards' were just some of the alleged charges.
It has been alleged ex employees are 'suing the ANZ for $M to cover deferred shares and bonuses and the loss of future income as a result of sackings'. Just how much are people being paid to maintain trust in the sector? Yet the federal budget in 2014 attacked pensioners. Give me a break - do something about the banking sector Canberra. END Postscript
No! Don't bother, we will... A new Peoples' bank.
Superannuation Fund for all Workers - An Australian Worker Superannuation Fund
The purpose of creating a superannuation arm within the financial divisions, is to offer all eligible Australian workers a secure scheme, whereby the funds will be managed under our charter of a Fair Go in relation to the fund, include offering the lowest-priced fees & charges schedule rates in the Australian sector, along with the best possible returns on their superannuation investment.
I have been tempted to say that once these funds are established, we will have access to a percentage of the pool of future billions in superannuation funds to be borrowed for investment in some of our projects requiring high level funding, but only if adequate safeguards for the investments are provided to protect the workers funds.
Postscript 30th April 2015: Not too sure if that is such a good idea on reflection, as it may be prudent for us to allow the superannuation funds to be managed at arm's length to the other divisions of the group.
The security of Australian workers superannuation funds has to be our number one priority in this enterprise.
My limited knowledge on the type of financial transactions conducted by superannuation schemes is basically reduced to the following;
Should we decide to create a superannuation arm within the finance division, then items 3 & 4 above, are the two items the group will have the utmost responsibility to administer in accordance with their charter of a Fair Go.
I can't offer investment advice but I can google ASIC's Money Smart Site for advice on how to tell if a member is paying high super fees. The following lists the type of fees to look out for when considering which super fund to choose;
The above list of fees has to be a starting point when looking for savings towards a fair go for Australian workers super funds. I can't believe savings cannot be found amongst that list.
Hopefully we can make significant savings across the board within this industry - another win win success for our charter of a fairer Australia.
Conclusion - The Revised Bricks & Mortar Divisions
END Postscript