The Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) has paid tribute to Australia’s retirement savings system as compulsory universal superannuation turns 30 tomorrow.

AIST CEO Eva Scheerlinck said the introduction of the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) in 1992 had resulted in a world-class system entrusted with $3.4 trillion in savings on behalf of millions of Australians.

“We should be very proud of what we have achieved as a progressive nation, building a superannuation system with almost universal worker coverage. The industry too can be proud of what it has delivered for super fund members over the last three decades, ensuring many Australians no longer have to rely solely on the age pension when they leave the workforce,” Ms Scheerlinck said.

“It’s appropriate at this time to pause and reflect on the prime role played by unions in fighting for a retirement savings system that covered all workers rather than the corporate executives and senior public servants – mainly men – that super had been restricted to until then.

“Initially the proposal for a universal system was resisted by some, but a mark of how far we have come is the bipartisan support it now enjoys across the industrial divide with the employer and employee representatives sitting side by side in boardrooms as trustee directors of profit-to-member funds.

“I want to recognise the contribution of pioneers such as Mavis Robertson, who played a major role in promoting equality for women in retirement savings, Tom McDonald who spearheaded union campaigns for industry-based super, and Gary Weaven, Chair of IFM Investors, founding Chair of Industry Fund Services and founding Chair of a number of funds.

“It’s appropriate to also recognise the role of the Hawke and Keating Governments in the development of universal super and the passing of the legislation which created the SG.

“That we have the fifth largest pool of retirement savings in the world in the 14th largest economy, and stand as an example that other countries seek to emulate, is testimony to the success of our retirement savings model and the growth of the industry.

“Notwithstanding this, as the peak body for the $1.8 billion profit-to-member sector, AIST will continue to advocate to improve the fairness, equity, adequacy, and transparency of the retirement savings system so that it provides Australians with the long-term financial stability and dignified retirement they deserve, regardless of gender, culture, education or socio-economic background.

“This includes closing the gender gap that sees women retire, on average,  with significantly lower super balances than men, and improving retirement outcomes for other lower-paid workers and vulnerable people. We’re also pleased the removal of the $450 monthly salary payments threshold tomorrow delivers super to about 300,000 lower-paid Australians for the first time.”

Learn more about superannuation in the Small business Answers guide.

The Xero Small Business Index fell just one point in May 2022 to 124 points, as wage growth and
payment times slow

Xero, the global small business platform, today released its latest data on the health of Australia’s small business economy during May from the Xero Small Business Index. Based on aggregated and anonymised transactions from hundreds of thousands of small businesses, the Index, developed in collaboration with Accenture, is part of the Xero Small Business insights program.

Xero’s Small Business Index fell only one point in May 2022 to 124 points. While small business jobs increased 0.3 percent year-on-year (y/y) and sales growth rose to double digits (10.8% y/y) these results were offset by slower wage growth and longer payment times. However, even after a challenging start to the year, small businesses have recorded four months of above-average performance.

Joseph Lyons, Managing Director Australia and Asia, Xero, said: “It’s promising to see an increase in jobs. While the data indicate only small growth, we know that any and all support for small businesses is important. It’s been an ongoing challenge for many to find talent, hampering their ability to fully recover – we all know a restaurant or cafe that’s struggled to open its doors due to a lack of staff. We hope to see this growing jobs trend continue as Australia gradually welcomes new talent from overseas and expands the labour pool.”

Small business records moderate jobs growth

Small business jobs grew 0.3 percent y/y, a small but positive result after two months of declines. The largest job growth was recorded in the administrative and support service industry (4.5% y/y), while education and training continued declining for the ninth consecutive month at 5.0 percent y/y. “While jobs remain soft, this is a welcome break following a trend of slower and falling job growth over the past seven months. Ongoing high levels of job advertisements indicate supply remains the issue, with demand for more workers clearly there as small businesses continue to compete for staff,” says Louise Southall, Economist, Xero.

Cost of living impacting discretionary spending industries

Sales rebounded in May increasing to 10.8 percent y/y, up from 8.3 percent y/y in April, due to a combination of rising prices and higher sales. Along with the largest jobs growth, the administrative and support service industry also recorded the highest sales result at 20.4 percent y/y.

However, with the cost of living pressures rising, discretionary spending-based industries including hospitality (2.8% y/y) and information media and telecommunications (6.4% y/y) saw softer results.

“With inflation continuing to rise, this result was expected as Australians reduce discretionary spending and focus on necessary purchases. Consumers are becoming more pragmatic due to the combination of increasing prices and only modest wage growth. This can be seen in the weaker sales results for the hospitality, information media and telecommunication industries,” said Southall.

Wage growth slows, impacting all industries

Wages slowed in May to 3.7 percent y/y from 4.3 percent y/y in April, impacting all industries and regions. Transport recorded the slowest growth at just 2.9 percent y/y, followed by arts and recreation at 3.0 percent y/y. This result comes as a surprise, given that the tight labour market should be pushing wages higher.

“The surprise decline in wages in May, coupled with the soft jobs results in recent months, suggests small businesses might be struggling to compete with larger businesses to find the staff they need to keep growing,” said Southall.

To download the full May results, including industry and regional breakdowns, go to the website here.

In a world where speed of checkout is king, IPSI has partnered with Mastercard to provide customers with a smart and secure way to make online payments with the adoption of the payment company’s Click to Pay solution available to merchants from the end of Q3.

With consumer payment behaviour continuing to evolve with the growing e-commerce market, securing and streamlining online transactions has never been more important for businesses operating online. Mastercard Click to Pay simplifies online transactions, using multiple layers of intelligent security to remove the need for passwords at checkout while replacing sensitive payment data with encrypted tokens. These tokens can even be updated with new payment details by the customer’s bank when a card is reissued after being reported lost, stolen or expired.

Easily integrated into existing eCommerce platforms, Click to Pay offers organisations higher approval rates with online transactions, reducing fraud and cart abandonment, and increased sales. This enhanced checkout experience can help drive customer retention and repeat purchases with a single integration.

The new option will be enabled through IPSI who plays the role of Secure Remote Commerce Initiator (SRCi). This capability sets the path for how the checkout is evolving from a guest checkout to a constant authenticated experience. It also helps the retailers, marketplaces and merchants own and have control of their checkout.

“As enthusiasm for new payment technologies continues to grow, we are delighted to be partnering with Mastercard to launch this revolutionary, new integrated payment solution that will simplify the checkout process for customers and deliver an exceptional checkout experience for merchants and their customers,” said Eric Maya, Co-founder of IPSI.

“It’s more important than ever that the online checkout experience is simple, smart and secure. With Click to Pay, IPSI and its customers will leverage the very latest version of this technology, eliminating the need to manually enter card details and offering instant access to preferred cards across devices, while still applying the highest levels of security to merchants’ checkout,” said Surin Fernando, Vice President and Head of Customer Solution Centre, Australasia

A recent survey conducted by the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) in the lead up to tax time, indicated that consumers place an exceptionally high level of confidence in their registered tax practitioner. The results showed 89% of consumers have trust in the tax practitioner and 66% of consumers rate the experience they receive from their tax practitioner as excellent.

While this is great news for both the tax profession and taxpayers, the TPB is warning the public to be extra vigilant of scams aiming to lure unsuspecting honest consumers into using the tax services of unregistered preparers.

Unregistered preparers operate outside of the law, often making money by skimming a portion of their clients’ refunds and charging inflated fees for return preparation services. They attract new clients by promising large refunds. Some will encourage filing fraudulent claims for refunds on items that their clients aren’t entitled to, while others will obtain myGov sign-in details from clients, putting their personal information at risk.

TPB Chair, Ian Klug AM, warned, ‘Since the clear majority of tax practitioners act in the best interests of their clients and earn their trust, unregistered preparers can take advantage of uninformed consumers. We’ve put together a list of tips for taxpayers to follow this tax time to make sure they don’t become victims of bad advice. If you see a tax practitioner making unexpected promises or an unregistered preparer offering tax services, it pays to be alert and a bit sceptical.’

In a recent case investigated by the TPB an unregistered preparer, Jessa Van Stroe (also called Jessa Layola) was banned by the Federal Court from charging clients a fee or receiving a reward to lodge their income tax returns. During the 2020-21 tax season, Ms Stroe illegally prepared thousands of tax returns leaving her clients exposed to penalties and unpaid taxes which they would be liable to repay.

Tips for taxpayers: Tax Time 2022:

• Check out the TPB’s handy online guide.
• Check your tax practitioner is registered on the public register at tpb.gov.au/onlineregister. Only registered tax practitioners can charge a fee for tax agent services.
• Be sceptical if an agent offers to secure you unexpected or unexplained payments.
• Never share your myGov password with anyone, even your registered tax agent – doing so puts your personal information at risk.
• You should not allow anyone else to lodge or prepare your tax return through your myGov account.

It’s that time of the year when keen business owners start to think about how to best position themselves for the financial year ahead. Getting the books up to date, engaging with your tax accountant early and being proactive around your finances and technology strategy are good starting places, but let’s dig into some practical tips to get your accounts ready for the financial year ahead and ultimately make the most of your returns.

1. Good foundation and clean data

Start with a good foundation and clean data. It makes your (and your advisor’s) life easier. Keeping on top of reconciliations and having the books up to date serves a few purposes. It allows you to see where you are from a financial position and assists your accountant when they are digging into the numbers around tax planning time. Introducing technology into this process, it can make your life easier and further drive efficiencies. Our favourite software to use in this space is Xero, as it has loads of functionality and has the ability to bolt-on external applications to level up its capabilities. If you are a bit stuck on your technology stack, a good place to start this journey is at the Xero App Store.

2. Don’t buy just to get a deduction

Don’t buy something just to get the deduction, it is important that any business expenditure is in line with your strategy and forecast. I know, every advertisement at this time of the year as a small business owner is telling you to buy now to get the deduction pre 30th June. But remember the additional benefit is only 25-30%, dependent on your structure. If you do, however, have business expenses you need to purchase, then talk to an advisor about bringing these forward to claim the deduction this financial year.

3. Understand your financial position

Know your numbers and make sure you bring your advisor along with you. Pricing and margin review work is top of mind for most businesses at the moment. With labour shortages, rising inflation and supply chain issues, there is an opportunity now to connect with your accountant pre-year end so that you can plan for the coming financial year and beyond.

Set realistic budgets and forecasts that build in reserves and buffers during uncertain times. Cash is king, so make sure you have a keen focus on your cash conversion cycle and ensure you build our scenarios based on different variables so you know when the business hits certain trigger points what actions then need to be taken by the business.

It’s a busy time of the year, but with a little planning, discipline and working on the business, small business owners are in the best position possible to reset, reflect and start the new financial year off with a strong financial foundation.

Contributed by Sarah Lawrance, Founder & CEO of Hot Toast and member of the Xero Partner Advisory Council

This article is not financial, legal, or tax advice, we have not considered your personal circumstances and strongly advise you to seek your own professional advice.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has been writing to employers to let them know that Single Touch Payroll (STP) Phase 2 is here. Employers that can switch but have not yet done so are urged to start reporting as soon as possible.

As of 14 June, there are over 144,000 employers reporting STP Phase 2 information for over 1.7 million individuals.

ATO Deputy Commissioner Emma Rosenzweig explained that the 2019-20 budget expanded the data collected by the ATO through STP. This expansion of data collected is also known as STP Phase 2 and began on 1 January 2022.

“For employees, STP and STP2 mean that pay, tax, and super information is reported to us each time they are paid. They can easily view their year-to-date tax and super information in ATO online services, or through their registered tax agent, whenever they want to check.”

“For employers, STP2 will streamline reporting about their employees to multiple government agencies, saving time, money and red-tape, letting employers focus on their business.

“For those who receive Centrelink payments, reporting will be simpler and easier,” Ms Rosenzweig said.

“Payslip details will be pre-filled into Centrelink’s online account and app, so people will simply need to check, confirm or change this information before submitting, saving time, money and stress.”

Digital service providers that need more time to update their products have applied for deferrals, which cover their customers. Employers using these digital service providers should transition to STP2 when their payroll product is ready.

The ATO has consulted widely with the industry and is taking a flexible approach to transition, which mirrors the approach to STP Phase 1 implementation. Employers and their registered agents can apply to the ATO if they need more time.

Ms Rosenzweig said there are a few things that employers setting up STP Phase 2 for the first time need to do to ensure a smooth transition:

• check when your payroll product will be ready for STP Phase 2 reporting. Many products are ready now, with more becoming available over the coming months
• review pay codes – do you already have pay codes set up for amounts that now need to be itemised separately such as bonuses, commissions, Director’s fees, and overtime?
• review allowances as they will be reported differently
• understand changes to salary sacrifice reporting
• check if you have all the relevant information stored in your payroll system
• talk to your tax or BAS professional or payroll provider if you need a helping hand.

To help employers better understand the changes, the ATO has developed a range of handy fact sheets, checklists and other resources. These are available on ato.gov.au/stpresources

We’re getting close to the end of financial year (EOFY), and as a small business, this can be an overwhelming time to manage, on top of the day-to-day responsibilities of running a successful business. one thing we can do is make tech work for you this EOFY

Research commissioned by Dropbox revealed 38% of Aussies admit their digital documents are a “hot mess” meaning they usually have to hunt for what they are after – and at this time of year, small business owners and sole traders begin to scramble towards the end of June. There’s no better time than right now to invest in technology that can make tax time a breeze.  

Make tech work

1. Digitise to free your mind

Do you and your employees always have access to important documents and files? If not, you’re not alone – more than seven in ten (72%) Australians admit to not having digital backups of all their important documents. To make sure all files and documents are always available and secure, digitise them and store them on a trusted cloud platform. 

2. Automated features and functions 

Pick a tech platform with features that can be a help, not a hindrance so you can save yourself the hassle and leave all the ‘busy’ work to the tech. For example, the Dropbox platform automatically syncs files from devices straight to the cloud, so you can ‘set and forget’. Becoming familiar with all the features and functions will allow you to focus more on growing your business and less on admin. 

3. Organise, organise, organise

Once you’ve digitised, it’s time to organise! Use your chosen platform’s key functions to create folders and subfolders separating out key files and documents required for tax time for your small business. Dropbox has an automatic filing function which can be a real-time-saver, as well as an awesome search function so you can easily find what you need. 

4. Transfer files with ease

Now the fun part – sending off your documents to the accountant. Dropbox Transfer can send your consolidated files at the click of the button, and your tax agent won’t even need a Dropbox account to receive them. 

5. Electronic signatures 

Ditch the old hard copy of your tax return for a digital copy instead. In addition, ask your tax agent if they offer electronic signatures so you can sign your tax documents virtually. Dropbox has a HelloSign integration which allows you to get your taxes signed off with a couple of clicks. 

Taking these simple steps and investing in technology to make tax time easier for yourself and your team, allows you to focus on taking your business to the next level.

This article was written and provided by Dropbox

Shopify has revealed the next era of commerce and unveiled a major set of products for Australia at the company’s new twice-yearly global product release, Summer ‘22 Edition.

Against a backdrop of global inflation, supply chain issues, and advertising regulations, Shopify is deepening its commitment to Australia with a set of new products to help merchants shift from the direct-to-consumer (D2C) era to a critical new phase: Connect to Consumer (C2C).

“At Shopify, we believe in the infinite game. That means we’re constantly pushing the boundaries of what’s possible for entrepreneurs,” said Tobi Lütke, Founder & CEO of Shopify.

“We work hard to solve the complex challenges merchants face today while constantly imagining entirely new ways for them to grow their businesses. With Shopify Editions, we’re sharing our big bets and latest innovations in commerce so that those ambitious enough to try their hand at entrepreneurship can start and scale faster than ever before.”

The global commerce platform powering millions of merchants said the relationship between brand and customer is more than just the transaction as customers want to feel connected, considered, and appreciated by the brands they support. C2C is an entirely new phase of commerce where opportunities to connect exist everywhere. If D2C gave merchants a direct line to consumers, C2C gives merchants endless pathways and puts authenticity, loyalty, and trust at the heart of every interaction between merchants and consumers.

“We’re strengthening our investment in innovation and product development to help Aussie merchants build a future that moves beyond transactional relationships to cultivate the power of connection,” said Shaun Broughton, Shopify’s Managing Director (APAC).

Shopify’s latest set of updates is focused on personalisation and giving independent businesses full control to create novel experiences across every potential touchpoint with consumers in ways that keep them coming back.

Here’s a snapshot of what Shopify launched at Summer ‘22 Edition:

Shopify unlocks NFT-powered opportunity for brands to reward loyalty with tokengated commerce

In this new era of commerce, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) represent a unique opportunity to build even deeper connections through brand loyalty. This is increasingly important in a world where customer acquisition costs are on the rise and fostering a loyal brand community is key to business growth.

Shopify research found that more than one quarter (27%) of Australian consumers said they’re likely to purchase an NFT in 2022. Tokengated commerce on Shopify offers a fundamentally new way to deepen connection between brands and consumers, and reward true fans and VIPs, by giving NFT holders exclusive access to products, perks, and experiences. For these consumers-turned-fans, all they need to do is connect their crypto wallets to a Shopify online store, and they can use their NFTs to unlock exciting experiences. Shopify is making it possible everywhere — from online to mobile to physical retail through POS.

“Tokengated commerce on Shopify allows Australian merchants to offer a fundamentally new way for loyal customers to expand the utility of their NFTs and access personalised experiences from their favourite brands,” saidBroughton.

Tokengated commerce on Shopify will also be multiplayer and collaborative. One brand’s NFT can unlock another brand’s store, making it easier than ever for brands to partner and collaborate.

Shopify expands into B2B to unlock massive market opportunity for Australian merchants

For independent merchants, connecting to consumers isn’t just something that happens one-to-one. There is a whole world of opportunity that exists in merchants connecting with other businesses — billions of untapped revenue and several times that of D2C (source)   — which is why Shopify is introducing B2B.

Directly integrated into Shopify, B2B makes it even easier for Shopify merchants to sell to other businesses using the same platform they use for their D2C storefront. B2B on Shopify offers a similar online store experience that merchants use to sell to consumers, but with customised tools that make it easier to sell wholesale or in bulk directly to large businesses.

“We are now at the point where it should be just as simple for a business looking to sell B2B to manage their products, prices and sales through an e-commerce platform, as it would be for any business selling individual products to consumers. With B2B, Shopify’s helping Aussie merchants expand into an entirely new market category on the same platform they already use to reach consumers.” said Broughton.

With B2B on Shopify, merchants can set customer-specific prices at fixed rates or discounted retail prices, easily modify currencies and exchange rates for international buyers, and add automated payment terms while integrating with ERP solutions like Acumatica and Netsuite.

Shopify teams up with Google to help Australian brands turn browsers into local buyers

Australian consumers make billions of local searches every month, and nearly 60 per cent of Australians (source) use search engines to find a business online.

With local inventory sync on Google, Shopify merchants can automatically let nearby customers know when a product is available in-store, making it easier than ever to shop and support local brands. Google local inventory sync is available globally to merchants using Shopify’s point-of-sale app.

Shopify Functions is a radical step forward for C2C commerce on Shopify

Shopify is allowing developers to extend or replace Shopify’s backend layer with custom code so they can create out-of-the-box Shopify features to tailor commerce experiences like never before.

Functions creates the flexibility of an open source platform without needing to deal with any of the hosting, security, or code versioning challenges. The custom code runs on Shopify’s global infrastructure, allowing merchants to handle high volume traffic spikes from flash sales while still providing a checkout experience in under five milliseconds.

Starting with Discounts, Functions will let developers build powerful custom offers like volume discounts (e.g., spend $100 get $20 off) or free gift with purchase. Merchants can use these alongside existing Shopify discounts, such as free shipping, without ever needing to touch a line of code.

Functions can be developed for a single merchant or shared with millions of merchants today through the Shopify App Store, meaning developers will have even more ways to generate income with Shopify.

Shopify takes Australian merchants and developers into the C2C era

The Summer ‘22 Edition features more than 100 products, including some recent updates Shopify launched to help merchants find new customers, turn conversations into conversions and make commerce simple:

• Shopify Markets, a cross-border commerce hub that makes global selling the default for our merchants.
• Dovetale, which makes it easy for merchants to grow their business using influencer and affiliate marketing. And Linkpop, our new link-in-bio tool.
• Hydrogen and Oxygen, Hydrogen provides tools to accelerate headless storefront builds, and Oxygen is Shopify’s globally distributed hosting solution for Hydrogen storefronts.
• New developer tools, inviting even more innovation on Shopify

DataMesh group, the Sydney-based payment services software company and Ingenico, a Worldline brand today announces a strategic partnership to support DataMesh’s growth strategy within the Australian payment ecosystem. As a part of the partnership, Ingenico has rolled out its latest Axium range of Ingenico’s DX8000 Android Smart Point Of Sale (POS) terminals to DataMesh’s merchant and retailer network across Australia.  

In combination with Ingenico’s DX8000 Android-based terminals and DataMesh’s payment solution software, merchants are offered a state-of-the-art frictionless payment solution, focusing on real-time transactions while maintaining the highest security levels, enabling acquirers to focus on the relationship with the merchants.

For Ingenico, this partnership furthers its strategy to enable seamless payments and to continue to support the highly dynamic Australian market further cementing its position as an ecosystem enabler empowering commerce and retailers across all channels, simplifying payments and delivering innovative customer journeys.

Commenting on the successful pilot between DataMesh and Ingenico, Anushka Weeratunga, Managing Director for Ingenico Pacific said: “We are delighted to form this long-term strategic partnership with DataMesh into the highly dynamic Australian market as well as support Datamesh with the full set of Ingenico’s market leading capabilities. This is one of many milestones we look forward to delivering into the region in partnership with Datamesh.”

The partnership with Ingenico is bolstering DataMesh’s ability to offer new capabilities to merchants as well as take away the burden put on acquiring banks processing transactions.

DataMesh founder and CEO, Mark Nagy says of the partnership: “Ingenico is trusted amongst merchants and acquirers globally, so naturally this partnership  helps us expand our offering and confidently seed our payments technology into new markets. At DataMesh, we are determined to make elegant and seamless solutions for all parties involved in financial payments, and we believe Ingenico shares this belief. We look forward to working with them over the course of this partnership.”