Similar functionality to the Shoebox service from “wrap accounts” provided by financial planners typically costs from .6% of assets invested. So a $500,000 portfolio may cost $3000 pa, increasing as the investment balance increases with capital gain and reinvested income.

A passive investor using the Shoebox service will pay $240 to set up a single portfolio, and then $68 per month. An active investor will pay set-up plus $88 per month. A “trader” pays set-up plus $118 per month. (Note that complex portfolios needing more than the normal 4 hours set-up time will be provided with a fixed price, no obligation quote for set-up before we start work). Extra portfolios each cost an extra $19 per month. See pricing

Our service will be considerably less expensive than the alternatives in most circumstances. In addition, many wrap accounts do not report on all listed ASX investments. Also, financial planners often will not separate their administration, advice and product placement services, and so are unable or unwilling to offer administration as a stand-alone service. The total charges for services provided through planners for administration, advice and product may be as high as 2 to 3% per annum. “Do it Yourself” investors needing efficient administration at reasonable prices have had nowhere to go. Now they have Shoebox.

Would your spouse know exactly the state of financial affairs if something happened to you? Sometimes people who become seriously ill are further burdened with the need to “get their affairs in order”. A Shoebox client might ask “why aren’t they in order anyway?” Most of us feel a bit anxious at the end of the tax year about getting the paperwork organised for the preparation for tax returns. Shoebox will get your investment affairs in order, and then keep them in order all the time.

(eg “knows” past dividends etc)


As long as we can get at least the dates investments were acquired and disposed of, and the amounts paid and received, the past can be reconstructed. The system knows the history of dividend payments and corporate actions across the whole of the Australian stock market. This is extremely useful in a variety of circumstances. Examples are;

• ability to check the accuracy of past returns completed manually (perhaps an amended return may get an unexpected tax credit),

• enablement of the quick lodgement of overdue past returns by people struggling to get their records in order,

• accurate preparation of the returns of a deceased estate where paperwork is sketchy and

• provision of past years of investment performance figures for long term comparisons

Apart from trades and dividends, the system handles mergers and de-mergers, reconstructions, stapled securities, conversion of converting preference shares, buy-backs, exercise of options, take-up of rights etc.

Life can get complicated sometimes. For example, in December 2003 AMP restructured and a complex series of corporate actions took place, so that existing AMP shareholders acquired shares in a new entity (Henderson), saw a reduction in the number of AMP shares held, and then received an issue of new AMP shares to restore their total holding to the previous level.

The tax office issued advice outlining the method required for calculating the new cost bases for CGT purposes. Shoebox incorporates the rules in the software, and clients do not need to either educate themselves about the complexities or to pay their accountant to complete the calculations. It is all accurate and automatic.

Unlike most financial planners, Shoebox make no charges that are related to the amounts invested.

Unlike financial planners, Shoebox do not place investments, provide advice, receive commissions or have commercial relationships with any providers of financial products. We do not seek access to your accounts or authority to trade your investments. We simply provide an efficient administration service, and we get paid only by you.

Because the Shoebox system calculates dividends and other corporate actions from data feeds, if a mistake occurs it should appear as a discrepancy between the statements provided by Shoebox and the real position.

For example, if a dividend cheque goes astray in the post, this may be missed by someone running manual systems, but the Shoebox system will still assume it was paid, and so the cash account will not reconcile with the Praemium reports. This provides an extra measure of security, and gives accountants auditing SMSFs an extra check.

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