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The region’s governments are becoming increasingly aware of the need to shore up future supplies of a wide range of commodities and are working to attract more activity.

The region has been perhaps best recognised for lithium and the ‘Lithium Triangle’ spanning Argentina, Bolivia and Chile. However, with lower lithium pricing, the focus has shifted to include materials including gold, silver, copper, mineral sands, phosphate, uranium, and more.

Because many jurisdictions have been under-explored in Latin America, ASX-listed companies are finding projects of a quality that’s now very difficult to secure in Australia.

What’s also pleasing those companies working in the region is that operational costs, such as power and labour, are dramatically cheaper. They are finding that approval processes are moving faster.

In this webinar, you’ll hear about the risks and the potential rewards – with facts and figures for investors to consider.

We ask company leaders what attracted them to Latin American projects, we discuss the potential impacts of Donald Trump’s tariffs, and we look at their experiences in developing a variety of projects.

Our guests include experts and company leaders:

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on Australia’s largest stock forum and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

“Don’t panic. The worst thing you can do now is crystalise a loss,” says Andrew Baxter.

Baxter is an investment advisor, educator, author, and regular HotCopper commentator. In this interview, he discusses what’s been happening in markets this week – and how to handle the volatility as an investor.

We explore whether it might be time to buy the likes of CBA (ASX:CBA), BHP Group (ASX:BHP), Santos (ASX:STO), and Woodside (ASX:WDS).

Baxter also talks about Australia’s underlying inflation issues, the cost of living crisis, and what Trump’s tariffs might mean for interest rates.

For more info about Andrew Baxter’s Money and Investing series you can go to his regular podcast; read The Wealth Playbook: Your Ultimate Guide to Financial Security and The Wealth Playbook on Audible.

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on Australia’s largest stock forum and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

Disclaimer: Wealth Magnet Pty Ltd (ABN 52 618 868 830) trading as Australian Investment Education is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR no. 1255231) of Grange Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 488609).

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Fear of losing money and the pursuit of profit are common emotions in investing. Understanding how these affect decisions is key to managing reactions in fluctuating markets.

Your beliefs about money often stem from childhood experiences. These ‘money stories’ can shape how you handle financial decisions throughout your life.

Social media often creates unrealistic financial comparisons. It’s better to focus on your own progress rather than comparing yourself to others’ curated images of success.

Overconfidence, particularly among younger investors, can lead to poor decision making. Staying objective is crucial for long-term success in investing.

Removing emotions from financial decisions and focusing on a structured plan is vital for building long-term wealth.

For more Info about Money and Investing you can go to the podcast; The Wealth Playbook: Your Ultimate Guide to Financial Security; and, The Wealth Playbook on Audible.

Disclaimer: Wealth Magnet Pty Ltd (ABN 52 618 868 830) trading as Australian Investment Education is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR no. 1255231) of Grange Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 488609).

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Case in point: it owns the two largest online investment communities in Australia and Canada.

In fact: its well-known Australian forum, HotCopper – through being a centralised hub for Australian traders to discuss their investments, and company announcements – regularly helps to make or break mining juniors. 

In this way, HotCopper shapes our local share market. The same is true for its counterpart Canadian offering, Stockhouse. 

And HotCopper, it can’t be ignored, is miles ahead of all competition. 

In fact, it’s ahead of multiple competitors combined.

Quick disclaimer here: I write for HotCopper, but I thought it was about time I looked closely at the company that pays my bills.

And this is what first caught my attention when I took the job.

Get this: according to data from web analytics company Similarweb pulled in late September, HotCopper clocks in 7.015M monthly visits. 

Nationally recognised finance media brand Stockhead, meanwhile, only pulls in 281.4K visits per the Similarweb analysis this finance journalist has seen. 

And that’s just visits. When it comes to page views, HotCopper is currently raking in 43.09M views ­– driven in large part by its collaborative chat-forum design.

Stockhead, not to be too disparaging, only pulls in 501K per month. 

The Market’s Capital Markets division owns HotCopper, Stockhouse (HotCopper’s equivalent in Canada), The Market Online (formerly known as The Market Herald) and The Market Link, which is the investor relations operator.

But The Market offers far more than stock market forums and services.

The Market Ltd’s truly a diversified communications company – you may or may not know that it owns Australian e-classifieds success story Gumtree.  The Market also owns Carsguide & Autotrader – together, these three entities form the Gumtree Group arm of the business.

Let’s take a look at each of the brands that make up Gumtree Group. 

Gumtree Group, as all three companies put together, collectively see more than 5M unique users interact each month – that means 20 per cent of the Australian population visits its three sites on a monthly basis. 

Last financial year, the classifieds website Gumtree alone received over 350M page views per month. Like MKT’s capital markets division, Gumtree Group clearly boasts some of Australia’s most high-traffic websites, period.

According to The Market’s most recent annual report, Gumtree’s annual listed Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) equalled an eye-catching A$30B. Key categories of cars, jobs, pets, home & garden and real estate attained some 2M listings.

As technology evolves, so the nature of Gumtree Group is changing.

Over the past year Gumtree launched its first transactional offerings with the roll-out of an Instant Cash Offer product and a Car Inspection service. 

The Market’s CEO Tommy Logtenberg promises additional transactional products are on the cards – with launches in coming months with a focus on payments and shipping.

“This will provide us with a sound monetisation opportunity and further strengthens our trust and safety capabilities,” Mr Logtenberg said.

Vehicle sales are an important component of the overall brand. Over 2,500 car dealers nationally use Gumtree Group – Gumtree itself, as well as Carsguide and Autotrader – to market their products to the Australian populace at large. 

Carsguide ranked the #1 website in Australia per Nielsen ratings (Jan-August 2024) for automotive editorial, which combines listings, advice, reviews and auto news. 

Monthly page views amount to 18M for Carsguide alone. 

And Gumtree Group’s activities in the real estate sector are also on an upward trajectory.

Gumtree recently announced a partnership with the Homely Group in its real estate category, which is anticipated to go live in November 2024. 

“Through this partnership, the total number of real estate listings on Gumtree across both for sale and rentals will grow significantly, from nearly 11,000 to around 200,000 nationwide,” Mr Logtenberg said.

Given this impressive portfolio of online brands – and the untouchable superiority of HotCopper as a magnet for finance-media-hungry web traffic – it’s perhaps surprising, then, that the stock remains highly illiquid. It’s tightly held.

But with RBA rate cuts on the relatively immediate horizon and a slowly recovering US IPO market – the megatrend of private equity be damned – are investors missing a good opportunity while shares are cheap?

Of all the sectors on the ASX, Telecommunications –  which includes media companies – is one of the most esoteric.

You already know the big market cap names – mainly Telstra – but I’m willing to bet aside from one or two little darlings, you can’t name many others. 

But it’s well worth recognising the sector is far more than a national phone service provider and a few TV stations.  

It’s a rich and often overlooked segment of the Australian share market’s overall composition – at least compared to mining, property, healthcare and finance – which is perhaps strange given it’s one of the most important sectors for Australian society.

Or any society. Consider this. 

Our national broadcasters sway public opinions and help to evolve the current political mood(s) of our time. 

Telstra, meanwhile, connects vast swathes of the country – in many cases, providing the infrastructure required for that media to be broadcast onto phones. 

Telecomms matters – but, from time to time, it can feel like many share market traders overlook the sector in favour of sectors that might come more obviously to the forefront of the mind, given we’re a country of ore and expensive houses. 

But in that binary way of thinking, there’s possibly a lot of potential value that could be missed.   

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Negotiation is a vital skill across all aspects of life, whether you’re an employee, business owner or investor.

It’s often seen as confrontational, but at its heart, it’s about reaching common ground and achieving beneficial outcomes for all parties.

Going into any negotiation without preparation can leave you at a disadvantage.

You don’t get what you deserve; you get what you negotiate.

Knowing your worth, understanding the other party’s perspective and having clear objectives is crucial.

Effective negotiation often relies on controlling the framing of the conversation.

Understanding how to guide discussions and reduce tension can help you steer the negotiation in the right direction.

Successful negotiation is not about getting everything your way—it’s about compromise.

Be ready to concede in some areas to achieve your primary goals.

We share personal experiences and strategies they’ve used in negotiations.

From knowing your numbers to understanding the motivations of the other party, these real-world examples demonstrate the practical side of negotiation.

For more Info about Money and Investing you can go to the podcast; The Wealth Playbook: Your Ultimate Guide to Financial Security and The Wealth Playbook on Audible.

Disclaimer: Wealth Magnet Pty Ltd (ABN 52 618 868 830) trading as Australian Investment Education is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR no. 1255231) of Grange Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 488609).

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Wealth Within’s chief analyst Dale Gillham and senior analyst Filip Tortevski don’t think so, they say the company’s ‘not making any money’.

“This stock, obviously the darling of the COVID era where everyone was at home and trading from their bedroom (…) one look at this company, it’s still not making any money,” Fil Tortevski said.

“It is one of those darlings people are buying into, can it repeat the feats?…”

“How many times have we seen that a stock that’s gone zooming up made people heaps of money – I’m talking retail investors (…) and people that don’t necessarily know how to trade,” Dale Gillham said.

“They make money and it just tanks and they lose all their money, but then they want to see it repeat exactly that again, and it’s not going to happen.

“It will not repeat that big run. It’s not making money, so how’s it supposed to grow if it’s not making money?

“Rule number 1, buy stocks that actually make money. Rule number 2, refer to rule Number 1!”

Webjet (ASX:WEB) is Wealth Within’s HotCopper ‘Hot Stock’ tip for this week, a company that this week spun out its B2C operations to a new listing Webjet Group (ASX:WJL).

The Proceed with Caution is Fortescue Metals (ASX:FMG) and the ‘Not Hot’ stock this week is Woodside Energy Group (ASX:WDS), which has been losing ground.

You can see the Hot Stock Tips show on HotCopper every Tuesday, it’s followed by Wealth Within’s live YouTube show every Tuesday night at 7pm AEST.

Dale Gillham is Chief Analyst at Wealth Within and international bestselling author of How to Beat the Managed Funds by 20%. He is also the author of Accelerate Your Wealth—It’s Your Money, Your Choice, which is available in bookstores and online at www.wealthwithin.com.au

Disclaimer: While Wealth Within holds an Australian Financial Services License (AFSL:226347) the information featured in this program is general in nature and therefore should not be relied upon. Before making any investment decisions, you should consult a licensed professional who can advise whether your investment decisions are appropriate for you.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice.

Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Consumer Staples shed 2.8%.

Coles  lost about 3.5% as its being pursued over its Down Down promotion and Woolworths lost 3.4% over action around its Prices Dropped campaign. Both were post-COVID.

The ACCC alleges the supermarkets’ promotions were false or misleading claiming they increased the prices of hundreds of items before advertising them as discounted at prices the same as, or higher, than before.

Shipbuilder Austal (ASX:ASB) gained 4.7% today after its American division has been awarded a $220 million contract by the US navy to invest in infrastructure to support the annual building one Columbia-class and two Virginia-class submarines.

The news comes only a week after Austal was awarded a $670 million contract by General Dynamics Electric Boat.

Austal closed at $3.04.

Meanwhile, waste company Cleanaway (ASX:CWY) spiked after its FY24 annual report showed EBITDA of $728.7 million, more than 9% higher than in FY23.

Cleanaway’s profit after tax was nearly 15% higher and it’s paying a 5c dividend.

Cleanaway closed at $2.93.

And trade in the Original Juice Company (ASX:OJC) shares jumped nearly 6 per cent before trade was voluntarily suspended as the company scrambled to bring the market up to speed with a proposed merger with SPC Global, reported in the media.

The Original Juice Company last traded at 18 cents.

Webjet Ltd (ASX:WEB) fell more than 10% upon the spinoff of its B2C arm today, under the name Webjet Group (ASX:WJL) and ticker code WJL.

The new Webjet Group opened at 99c, but quickly plunged down to around 80 cents, while the original Webjet – which will soon be renamed to Webjet Travel Group and hold the B2B assets – fell by about that same value to $7.35.

Meanwhile, the market punished Select Harvests (ASX:SHV) today, smashing the share price by close to 20 per cent after it raised $61.7 million and is launching a retail entitlement to pick up another $18.3 million.

The funds raised with $3.80 shares will be used to pay down debt and increase processing capacity.

Select Harvests was trading below that, at $3.65, at close.

This came on a day when Beston Global Food Company (ASX:BFC) announced it had gone into voluntary administration under KPMG, despite an offer for its SA cheese business earlier in the month.

Trade in Beston shares last closed in June at point-3 of a cent after the company lodged an $18.8 million loss for the first half of FY24.

We begin by offering a fresh perspective on wealth. It’s not just about money, but also about health, time, and setting your life priorities.

We emphasise the importance of aligning your financial decisions with your core values.

We discuss how investing in your health can lead to a richer, more fulfilling life, highlighting the significance of maintaining physical and mental well-being as part of your overall wealth strategy.

We explore how personal values influence financial decisions.

By sharing our own experiences, we show how a clear understanding of your values can drive better choices and long-term satisfaction.

Finally, we dive into the importance of adopting an abundance mindset over a scarcity mindset.

Shifting your perspective can open doors to achieving your goals and living a more meaningful life.

For more Info you can go to the Money and Investing podcast; The Wealth Playbook: Your Ultimate Guide to Financial Security; and The Wealth Playbook on Audible.

Disclaimer: Wealth Magnet Pty Ltd (ABN 52 618 868 830) trading as Australian Investment Education is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR no. 1255231) of Grange Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 488609).

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

More than one critic has voiced concern over Melbana’s progress through the COVID era, but now, the company is set to start gearing up. And if the rumours are to believed, the company’s activities at its flagship Block 9 acreage are just the beginning.

Here, HotCopper Executive Producer Sonia Madigan talks to Melbana’s Chief Commercial Officer Dr Chris McKeown who says Cuba is proving a supportive jurisdiction for Melbana, saying the Government is keen to bring energy supplies to its population.

He talks about what lies ahead in the immediate run-up to becoming a producer – and then, what investors perhaps really want to know – what may lie ahead in CY2025 and beyond.

We kick off by discussing the significance of identifying market phases – from long-term bull and bear cycles, to fundamental economic shifts.

Learn the essential skill of reading the tape to navigate volatile markets effectively.

We compare current market conditions to past cycles, focusing on the implications of factors like interest rates and corporate earnings.

We also touch on market peaks, as well as strategies for knowing when to buy or sell.

We explore trends within the market, and in particular short-term opportunities used by skilled traders.

Get practical advice on trading trends versus long-term investment strategies.

Finally, we consider the broader economic landscape, including the potential impact of the upcoming US election. We also look at global factors such as China’s economic growth on market cycles.

For more Info about Money and Investing you can go to the podcast at http://www.moneyandinvesting.com.au/; The Wealth Playbook: Your Ultimate Guide to Financial Security: https://www.wealthplaybook.com.au/, and The Wealth Playbook on Audible: https://www.audible.com.au/pd/The-Wealth-Playbook-Audiobook/B0CXYYWZTB?qid=1711282387

Disclaimer: Wealth Magnet Pty Ltd (ABN 52 618 868 830) trading as Australian Investment Education is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR no. 1255231) of Grange Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 488609).

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Wealth Within senior analyst Filip Tortevski talks through charts which, he says, suggest Sandfire could be primed for growth and possibly ‘new all-time highs’.

Sandfire has been trading above $9 today.

The ‘Proceed with Caution’ stock is Centuria Industrial REIT (ASX:CIP), which has been trading above $3.10 this afternoon.

“Why it’s a caution to me is its now faulted into this sideways move, you can see the highs getting lower and the lows getting higher,” Mr Tortevski said.

“Now we know from when the market makes these kinds of patterns, that one of three things can happen, it can stay stuck sideways until it breaks directional.

“The question is it more bullish or more bearish?

That’s why it’s a caution for me right now.”

The ‘Not Hot’ stock is Tabcorp Holdings (ASX:TAH) which has been trading around 56 cents this afternoon.

He also mentions last week’s top performers including WiseTech Global (ASX:WTC); Judo Capital Holdings (ASX:JDO); and, Charter Hall Group (ASX:CHC).

Disclaimer: While Wealth Within holds an Australian Financial Services License (AFSL:226347) the information featured in this program is general in nature and therefore should not be relied upon. Before making any investment decisions, you should consult a licensed professional who can advise whether your investment decisions are appropriate for you.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

It’s four holes down in an up to 40-hole reverse circulation program at the Achilles 1 polymetallic prospect site.

The campaign – delayed thanks to flooding across the Central West region in 2022 – has since been been informed by the recent successes of neighboring Australian Gold and Copper (ASX:AGC), which made its Achilles 3 discovery in May.

“We’re drilling the sweet spot target that’s comparable geologically to where Australian Gold and Copper made that discovery,” Managing Director David DeTata said from the drill site this week.

“Their Achilles 3 project has reported grades up to 45 grams per tonne of gold.

“Their soil geochem anomaly is very similar to what we’re targeting here at the Achilles 1 project.

“Imagine… we’re 7km to the south and our soil geochem anomoly is up to three times larger, so we’re hoping to replicate their success in this drill program.”

“I want investors to know that we are doing this properly – we are going to be drilling up to 40 holes or 3000 metres,” David DeTata said.

“We will test the strong polymetallic soil anomaly defined by the historical soil data; an Ultrafine+ soils survey program; and, we’ll be looking at its relationship to the prospective Achilles Shear.

“We’ll also explore intersecting northeast-trending magnetic highs identified in our airborne magnetic survey.

“We won’t be stopping until we have answers as to what lies below the surface.”

The neighbours, Australian Gold and Copper, are also continuing to drill in the Achilles Shear Zone, noting it remains open to the north.

It’s taken Strategic Energy Resources longer to get to the point of drilling than company leaders had hoped, due to that flooding across the Central West of NSW in 2022. Permitting delays didn’t help either.

That was certainly disheartening at the time, but Dr DeTata says as it’s turned out, it’s actually done the company a favour because the flooding preceded the AGC discovery which has now provided strong intel and guidance, leading to a complete redesign of the drilling campaign.

“We did have a diamond drill program all lined up and ready to go,” he said.

“We were doing five lines of diamond drilling across the top of the Achilles Prospect, but unfortunately back in 2022, this entire area was actually covered in water due to the severe flooding event.

“In the time since 2022, what we’ve done is learn from our explorers to the north, we’ve redesigned a drill program around an RC rather than a diamond drilling program, and now we’ve started kicking that off to really understand what the soil geochem anomaly looks like at depth.

“We’re doing a totally different program. It’s a cheaper program and we’ll get it done a lot faster.”

SER’s drilling program is expected to take about six weeks, with assay results to follow.

It’s worth noting that Eastern Metals (ASX:EMS) has also been working next door to Strategic Energy Resources in the South Cobar Basin and has this month reported ‘highlyanomalous grades from surface rock chip sampling’.

And in other news this week, Strategic Energy Resources has also completed a gravity survey at the Canobie farm-in and joint venture (JV) with a subsidiary of Fortescue (ASX:FMG) in Far North Queensland, collecting 3225 new gravity measurements.

SER and FMG Resources Pty Ltd are targeting Iron Oxide Copper-Gold (IOCG) in a fault system associated with several significant copper-gold deposits to the south, including Evolution Mining’s (ASX:EVN) Ernest Henry Mine.

“This latest dataset is crucial in the search for IOCG deposits,” Mr DeTata said.

“The ongoing investment by Fortescue in baseline datasets at Canobie demonstrates their willingness to explore the Canobie Project in a systematic manner in search of a Tier-1 discovery undercover.”

The new data will be reviewed alongside existing information to refine the exploration model and rank new drill targets to prepare for a future drilling campaign.

SER gained 23 per cent on the news (August 22) to close at 2.6 cents.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Median prices have declined 4.4% in Melbourne and7.6% in the State’s regions since the peak of early 2022, according to the latestCore Logic figures.

Real Estate Institute of Victoria’s Jacob Caine says thefundamentals and long term growth drivers for property remained‘very strong in the Garden State’.

We talk with Mr Caine about the drivers for the Victorian market.

Disclaimer: The information provided by Property Hub does not constitute personal financial/product/investment advice. The information provided is of a general nature only and does not take into account your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. It should not be used, relied upon, or treated as a substitute for specific professional advice. Property Hub recommends that you obtain your own independent professional advice before making any decision in relation to your particular requirements or circumstances. Past performance of any product discussed is not indicative of future performance. We may at times refer to third parties. Details of these third parties have been provided solely for you to obtain further information about other relevant products and entities in the market.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

These ‘smart money’ players bring substantial capital, in-depth research and strategic approaches, and their interest is reshaping the future of Bitcoin and blockchain technology. 

Institutional adoption is more than a trend, it signifies the market’s maturity and potential.

Institutional demand increases stability and credibility in the space, signalling confidence in the long-term viability of digital assets, which will be crucial for broader adoption and growth. 

The difference between retail and institutional investors is profound.

While retail investors often rely on emotion and speculation, institutions bring discipline, deep analysis and sophisticated strategies, significantly impacting crypto prices and demonstrating growing acceptance of digital assets. 

This year has been pivotal for institutional adoption of crypto, driven by the approval and launch of several spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States.

While retail investors have long accessed cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin through exchanges, institutions now have a more traditional and scalable option to invest in large quantities of crypto. 

Since the January 2024 launch of Bitcoin ETFs, the market has seen a huge $17 billion in net inflows, despite considerable outflows of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) ETF (which we’ll mention again shortly). 

The success of Bitcoin ETFs managed by giants including BlackRock, Fidelity, and Grayscale was evident from the outset, with these products collectively exceeding $1 billion of net flows in the first 30 minutes of trading. 

Major US and global financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley, now hold significant positions in Bitcoin ETFs – a remarkable shift given the previous scepticism expressed by figures such as JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who claimed that if he was in government he’d shut down Bitcoin!

Of those, Goldman Sachs appears to be the most bullish on Bitcoin, having acquired $418 million of BTC ETFs in Q2 this year.  

British multinational bank Standard Chartered made a bold forecast, predicting that Bitcoin could reach a cycle high of US$250,000 in 2025 – which would represent an almost 400% increase from current prices.  

Bitcoin ETFs have also gained momentum in Australia. The Monochrome ETF which went live in June surpassed 100 BTC under management (approximately A$10 million), showcasing the growing acceptance of Bitcoin as a legitimate investment vehicle across the globe.  

Following the success of the Bitcoin ETFs, several Ethereum ETFs were approved in the US, despite expectations they’d be rejected.

However, they’ve not had the start that some would have wanted, with Ethereum ETFs experiencing net outflows of $420 million.

This occurred because the Grayscale Ethereum fund (ETHE) was converted to an ETF. Investors were likely selling their units to switch to other ETFs with lower fees.

A similar trend occurred with the Grayscale BTC ETF (GBTC), although selling has slowed over time. A similar pattern is playing out with Ethereum.  

The cryptocurrency market continues to expand, with new ETFs on the horizon. Notably, there is growing interest in Solana, a blockchain platform that has made significant strides in 2023-2024.

Solana has even surpassed Ethereum in a number of metrics, including daily activity addresses, an indicator of activity and usage of the network.  

VanEck and 21Shares have filed applications for a spot Solana ETF in the US, following the recent approval of a similar product in Brazil.

The success of a Solana ETF could signal broader acceptance of alternative coins, or, as they’re collectively known, ‘Altcoins’, further diversifying the market and providing institutional investors with more options. 

The trend of institutional adoption extends beyond direct investments in cryptocurrencies or ETFs.

According to a report from June 2024, 56% of Fortune 500 executives stated their companies were developing blockchain-based initiatives.  

Some notable brands that have already begun exploring crypto, Web3 or blockchain initiatives include:  

This broader adoption of blockchain technology is a testament to its potential to revolutionise various industries. 

When discussing the initiatives, we refer to crypto, Web3 and blockchain in the same context. Simply put, blockchain is the underlying technology, crypto represents the currency and investment vehicle, and Web3 embodies the broader concept of decentralised technology.

Disclaimer: The information provided by Swyftx is for general educational purposes only and should not be taken as investment advice, personal recommendation, or an offer of, or solicitation to, buy or sell any assets. It has been prepared without regard to any particular investment objectives or financial situation and does not purport to cover any legal or regulatory requirements. Customers are encouraged to do their own independent research and seek professional advice. Swyftx makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content. Any references to past performance are not, and should not be taken as a reliable indicator of future results. Make sure you understand the risks involved in trading before committing any capital. Never risk more than you are prepared to lose. Consider our Terms of Use and Risk Disclosure Statement for more details.

This is the topic for this week’s episode of the Money & Investing Show, which I host with Mitch Olarenshaw.

We look at understanding, developing, building and maintaining good financial habits on auto-pilot. Habits will either support or hinder financial goals and today we cover how they play a part in budgeting, saving and regular investing.

We highlight the benefits of having a clear financial plan and having discipline to stick with that, so emotions won’t cloud our judgement.

We discuss Stuart and Jill Garrett’s example and how their clear goals and consistent habits led to financial freedom, allowing them to travel while funding their lifestyle through investments.

For more Info about Money and Investing you can go to the podcast at http://www.moneyandinvesting.com.au/; The Wealth Playbook: Your Ultimate Guide to Financial Security: https://www.wealthplaybook.com.au/, and The Wealth Playbook on Audible: https://www.audible.com.au/pd/The-Wealth-Playbook-Audiobook/B0CXYYWZTB?qid=1711282387

Disclaimer: Wealth Magnet Pty Ltd (ABN 52 618 868 830) trading as Australian Investment Education is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR no. 1255231) of Grange Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 488609).

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

That’s thanks to Wall Street’s rally overnight – the sixth in a row for the S&P500 as it continued to recover from last week’s recession-fear-triggered sell-off.

All sectors performed well today – and at close Energy & Materials were the best performing – both gaining 2%.

Woodside (ASX:WDS) was a key player, up 2.3% thanks to its half year results yesterday.

Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) saw shares rise 5% the day after announcing it’ll acquire Latin Resources (ASX:LRS) in a scrip deal valued at 20 cents a share.

PLS is looking to tap into Latin Resources’ hard rock lithium project in Brazil.

Pilbara Minerals closed the week at $2.88.

Latin Resources also gained 2.7% to close at 19 cents – it’s been a good few days for shareholders – with Latin Resources at just 11 cents earlier in the week.

James Hardie Industries (ASX:JHX) was up more than 6% after announcing another on-market buy back of 95,000 shares. It had already amassed more than 6.6 million securities.

The building products company released earnings for the first quarter of FY25 earlier this week, showing adjust EBITDA up 2% on the same time last year – to $420 million.

Trade closed at $51.99.

And Zip Co (ASX:ZIP) gained about 13.5% reaching a new yearly high, thanks to strength in US consumer data.  

Today it scheduled an investor conference call for later this month where it will hand down its annual results.

Zip Co closed at $2.19.

Victory Metals (ASX:VTM) shares sunk more than 8.5% on announcing it raised $1.5 million in a placement priced at 33 cents.

The funds will support a 5000 metre aircore drilling program at its rare earths project near Cue in WA.

Victory closed at 37 cents. 

Silver Mines (ASX:SVL) fell more than 40% after an Appeals Court upheld an environmental group’s challenge against its proposed NSW Bowdens silver zinc and lead project, now putting project consent in doubt.

The Bingman Catchment Landcare Group took issue with the state planning commission’s failure to consider the impacts of a power line 30km from Mudgee.

 Silver Mines closed at 9 cents

And Golden Mile Resoruces (ASX:G88) fell close to 5% on news it’ll surrender licenses for its multi-element Marble Bar and Murchison tenements, saving about $137,000 a year.

Fieldwork turned up no compelling rock chip or soil samples, leaving geotechs unenthusiastic about their prospectivity. The company will focus on its copper project in Arizona.

G88 closed the week at 1 cent.

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Disclaimer: Wealth Magnet Pty Ltd (ABN 52 618 868 830) trading as Australian Investment Education is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR no. 1255231) of Grange Financial Services Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 488609).The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Competition was tight with 10 company leaders vying for the notoriety in an event where each had 4 minutes to sell their story.

The day was peppered with humour and, we warn viewers, some colourful language!

Brightstar was boldly endorsed from the start by the MC Hedley Widdup from shareholder, and listed mining investment company, Lion Selection Group (ASX:LST).

Brightstar is working in the Laverton and Menzies regions of WA, and, as of this week, also the Sandstone region of WA.

“Gold juniors should be bold and ambitious,” Mr Rovira said.

Alex Rovira (photo above, second left) is pictured with (from left) MC Hedley Widdup, Adam Miethke from Discovery Capital and Lucas Robinson from Corporate Storytime.

Turaco Gold (ASX:TCG) MD Justin Tremain spoke about the importance of his company’s discoveries in West Africa, where he argued gold grades were generally higher.

The company is working in south east Cote d’Ivoire where drilling had been across four deposits returning ‘world-class intersections’. Since last year, Turaco has acquired a 70% stake in the Afema gold project with drilling scheduled to begin this month.

He claimed Turaco ‘would’ have a gold mine and a one million ounce resource.

American lithium play Jindalee Lithium’s (ASX:JLL) flagship is the McDermitt Project in a volcanic caldera in southeast Oregon, by the Nevada border.

CEO Ian Rodger said the project held 21 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent.

MC Hedley Widdup asked whether Donald Trump would be a risk if re-elected US President, to which Mr Rodger said: “I think Donald is going to be net positive to mining projects in the US”.

Velox Energy Materials (TSXV:VLX) is a TSXV-listed company looking to the battery and energy materials markets.

President and CEO Simon Coyle talked about the flagship vanadium project in North Queensland (south-west of Townsville) and is planning a dual-listing on the ASX within months.

Looking at gold in WA, Warriedar Resources (ASX:WA8) MD Amanda Buckingham was welcomed to the stage.

The company’s working at the Golden Range Project 5-6 hours drive north of Perth, which is a project surrounded by historical mines and ‘hungry mills’.

She said drilling was underway for the first time in a decade.

“Our ground… all we need to do is look around us to see the opportunity,” she said.

Amanda Buckingham discussed results received so far, most within 160 metres depth.

Next up was Strickland Metals (ASX:STK) MD Paul L’Herpiniere.

The company has projects in Australia and recently acquired the 5.44 million ounce Rogozna Project in Serbia. Last year it sold 500,000 ounces of gold to Northern Star for a transaction value of $60 million.

Mr L’Herpiniere said the company had about $50 million in cash and Northern Star shares, so had no imminent need to raise capital.

Meanwhile, Spartan Resources (ASX:SPR) has performed off the back of its Never Never gold ore body discovery in the Murchison region of WA. MD Simon Lawson said the company recently announced an updated Mineral Resources Estimate for its Dalgaranga Gold Project in WA, which revealed a 47% increase in ounces and 91% increase in grade.

“The high grade Never Never deposit was found under a haul road near an existing low grade open pit in mid-2022,” he said.

“It was followed by another discovery – the Pepper deposit in April.

“We just take that ‘have a crack’ approach.

“Plan A is to turn this into a gold mine.”

Torque Metals (ASX:TOR) MD Cristian Moreno presented ‘7 facts’ for potential investors to consider: The WA goldfields company’s capital structure, with 180 million shares on issue, its cash position and directors; the ‘best'(!) gold grades; the companies technical team; the tenement size and position; Torque’s investment in the ground; and, its efficiency – ‘we are doing 10,000 metres of drilling as we speak’.

He said the final reason was that he was ‘a Colombian determined to do well in Australia’ and Torque was focussed on working towards production.

Kingsland Minerals (ASX:KNG) has a graphite project within a couple hours drive south of Darwin, which is one of the largest deposits in the country.

MD Richard Maddocks said it was also one of the largest graphite deposits in the world; the NT Government was supportive; and, the company was looking to build a processing plant in Darwin to supply world markets.

“(Graphite) demand will increase with EV use increasing,” he said.

He said it was the only major deposit outside of East Africa or China and was in a good position to move it forward.

Next was Brightstar Resources (ASX:BTR) and it was the second year running that MD Alex Rovira’s delivered his pitch.

The company’s working in the Laverton, Menzies and Sandstone regions of WA.

As an explorer, it has 2 drill rigs now working.

The company has nearly 40 per cent institutional ownership as it’s about to be in control of 3 million ounces of gold.

Finally Catalyst Metals (ASX:CYL) is a gold producer that’s worked in WA, Victoria and Tasmania. MD James Champion de Crespigny said it was a $400 million market cap company and had raised $50 million in a bid to open 4 low-capital intensity mines soon.

The company’s bringing together the operating Plutonic Gold Mine and infrastructure, and undeveloped gold deposits along the Marymia belt.  He said the deposits could be mined and processed through processing facilities at Plutonic.

Disclaimer: The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

To answer this question we called on conference guest speaker and Lowell Resources Fund Chief Investment Officer John Forwood.

A number of sectors fought for top spot – the leaderboard changing regularly throughout the day. In the end Financials came out in front, gaining 1.5%, Utilities and Real Estate weren’t far behind.

$1.64 billion market cap uranium explorer, Deep Yellow (ASX:DYL) gained nearly a per cent on news it’ll join the ASX200 tomorrow, replacing Silver Lake Resources (ASX:SLR) which is being acquired by Australian Gold producer, Red 5 (ASX:RED).

Deep Yellow closed around $1.66

Strike Energy (ASX:STX) gained 3.75% on its update to net gas pay, thanks to gas intersections at its Walyering-7 well.

STX closed at 21 cents.

And it was a great day for Vulcan Energy Resources (ASX:VUL) despite raising about $65 million in capital at a discounted $4.08.

The market was excited to learn Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting had acquired an additional $20.4 million stake of Vulcan – which is developing a lithium brine project in Germany – bringing Hancock’s holding to 7.5% and making it the second-largest shareholder.

Engineering giant CIMIC chipped in $40.8 million to hold 6 per cent of Vulcan Energy, and Victor Smorgon Group pledged about $4 million.

The funds raised will cover early-stage engineering work, some of which will be done by CIMIC.

VUL closed at $5.08 on market.

Despite seemingly solid niobium assay results from WA1 Resources’ (ASX:WA1), the stock shed more than 14% today.

The results were from the company’s Luni prospect at the West Arunta Project in Western Australia, covering more than 30 reverse circulation and diamond drill holes.

Niobium is used in solar panels, steel and batteries. WA1 Resources’ shareholders have enjoyed more than 300 per cent growth over just a year.

WA1 intends to release an initial Mineral Resource estimate this month and closed around $18.18.

Betmakers Technology Group (ASX:BET) dropped more than 4.5% despite news it signed two-year access and content agreements with bet365 giving it access to horse racing punters in New Jersey and Colorado. The deals do come at licensing cost to the company.

Betmakers closed at 10 cents.

And, Lovisa Holdings (ASX:LOV) dropped more than 10 per cent after appointing its next CEO and MD Smiggle chief executive John Cheston, on a $2.35 million base salary. Citigroup analysts issued a downgrade call on the stock today, further fuelling the sell-off. 

Mr Cheston won’t start for another year, during which time current CEO Victor Herrero will earn $1.3 million – having agreed to lower pay during that time. The uncertainty also follows nearly 33 per cent of shareholders voting against the 2022 remuneration report.

Lovisa closed around $30.40.