The Australian Senate has passed the much-anticipated Corporations Amendment (Crowd-sourced Funding) Bill 2016 (CSF Bill). This is big news for the startup community and equity funding platforms in Australia. Following a number of years of consultation, Australia will now finally join the likes of other countries which support crowd-sourced equity funding (CSF) such as the UK, Canada, USA and New Zealand. The CSF Bill was passed with one amendment: the cooling-off period has been pushed back out to five business days. This means that an investor may apply for a maximum of $10,000 per offer within a 12-month p... more

It is not unusual for former directors of companies to set up in competition against their original companies. When they do so, they need to watch their step. Former directors may find themselves in a potential minefield with legal mines at every turn. A salutary lesson for former directors involved the recent Federal Court case of TICA Default Tenancy Control Pty Limited v Datakatch Pty Limited (2016) 120 IPR 98. In this case, the Applicant was a company which provided information about tenants to real estate agency clients through a computerised system. Former directors of the Applicant later set up a simil... more

The Business Expectations Index is at its highest point since Q4 2015 according to the Dun & Bradstreet 2nd Quarter Analysis 2017. Plans for capital investment are at a two-year high for the second quarter of 2017 as businesses look forward to higher sales and profits. Stephen Koukoulas, Dun & Bradstreet Economic Adviser says that overall, the business sector’s outlook for the economy has improved in the early part of 2017 with the Business Expectations Index rising to its highest level since December 2015. “The Business Expectations Survey confirms that firms have a generally positive view for... more

The growth in internet usage, connectivity, the Internet of Things and the uptake in emerging mobile technologies in today's world bring risks. Businesses are collecting and holding vast and increasing amounts of personal information electronically, and they are sharing this information with more and more partners, suppliers and contractors, both in Australia and globally. With this, the potential for data breaches is also growing. Data breaches take many forms – they range from internal errors (such as lost laptops or paper records, and unauthorised access and disclosure by staff) to cybersecurity threats ... more

An international survey of more than 1,500 professionals conducted by DNV GL and the research institute GFK Eurisko shows that half of businesses lack a clear risk management strategy and only 43% set measurable risk control goals. All organisations face factors that make it uncertain whether they will reach their goals. Risks that are not identified and managed properly may have a negative effect on companies and cause human, material, financial or reputational damage. While it is utopian to think that all risk factors can be controlled, companies that have a structured approach to risk management are better... more

Stephanie Fahey has been appointed as the next Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade). Dr Fahey will be the first woman to lead Austrade and brings a wealth of international trade and investment experience. Prior to joining Austrade, Dr Fahey was the Lead Partner for Education, Oceania at Ernst and Young, her work as Deputy Vice Chancellor at Monash University in Melbourne and numerous other senior roles. Dr Fahey has served on a number of other bodies including the Foreign Affairs Council, the Australia Korea Foundation, and a subcommittee of the Prime Ministe... more

Under the Small Business Restructure Roll-over, which was introduced to much fanfare last year, small business owners are allowed to change the legal structure of their businesses without incurring a capital gains tax liability to a trust, provided that the economic ownership of the business does not materially change. This is an important legal change as there is no other roll-over that allows you to change from any structure to a trust. This article discusses why you may restructure and when this roll-over may be used. Why restructure? A restructure is generally warranted due to a need to adapt to cha... more

Too often business owners fail to take advantage of the generous capital gains tax (CGT) concessions available when selling a business. It takes hard work and dedication to build and manage a successful business, but all that effort could amount to very little if you end up being hit with high CGT on the sale proceeds. There are four CGT small business concessions available under Division 152 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth), each potentially providing you with sizable tax savings on the sale of your business. If you are currently in the process of selling your business or thinking about doing so i... more

The well documented and protracted down cycle in the offshore oil and gas sector has yet to precipitate the wave of restructuring and insolvencies amongst South East Asian sector companies that many have predicted. This may yet happen following the recent, surprise failure of Singapore energy services company Swiber Holdings, prompting an inevitable spillover effect on connected companies and SMEs servicing the same value chains as Swiber. It may well be that the same lenders and bondholders, having been caught out by Swiber's fall, reconsider the level of patience they are prepared to extend in future potential... more