Q3 2025 Newsletter

Announcements

October 2025

Dear Clients, Friends, and Colleagues,

Whew! The U.S. equity markets kept testing new highs through the month of September—the month which has seen some of the biggest market downturns in our economic history. The price/earnings ratio (currently above 27) for the S&P 500 is actually higher than it was right before the 1987 and 2000 stock market crashes. Reaching these highs in the tricky month of September might have been a recipe for a significant market event—which can generate panic selling at the bottom and the regretful sabotage of sound retirement portfolios.... Read More

Business Milestones

Areté Wealth Strategists Australia has attained an important milestone in Q3, now officially achieving SEC registration as a registered investment advisory firm as of September 2, 2025. This development further strengthens our cross-border advisory capabilities and underscores our commitment to serving clients in both Australia and the United States.

In early July, our team convened for a productive Summer summit, focusing on a comprehensive redesign of our Notion client portal. The refreshed portal is set to deliver clearer workflows and a more seamless client experience, reflecting direct feedback and our ongoing investment in technology improvements.

Additionally, we are excited to announce that Nicole Molson has joined Areté Wealth Strategists Australia in a full time capacity, enhancing our operational capacity and client service as we enter the final quarter of 2025. These business developments mark an exciting next chapter for our firm.

Personal Reflections

This quarter brought several significant personal milestones and adventures. The most impactful was purchasing a house in Brisbane—a long-awaited move that ends a 4.5-year period of holding back and finally anchors us with a real sense of permanence here. Remarkably, we managed to secure the purchase despite being advised we’d need two years of Australian tax returns to qualify for a mortgage; by leveraging all available expat mortgage contacts, we found the one lender willing to back a US business owner without local income history. While we’re delighted with the house, customizing and completing all the finishing touches has proven to be much more time-consuming than expected.

We just got back on Saturday from Japan, where I’d been hoping to share with my kids the wonder and excitement I experienced at Expo 88. While the overall trip was fantastic, the Osaka World Expo itself was disappointing: the event’s app was a dud which meant our pavilion reservations didn’t work. As such, we were faced with hours-long lines to visit practically anything. We had tickets for four days but didn’t return after the first. Looking ahead, we’re eagerly planning our next family trip to the US in December.

On the cycling front, I’ve made a full recovery from the Oregon Gravel Grinder crash, but am majorly underprepared for the upcoming UCI Gran Fondo World Championships in Lorne, Victoria in two weeks time. My fitness hasn’t been helped by the long recovery from the crash, the travel schedule and picking up a cold in Japan.

This quarter has marked a major shift in our sense of home, brought memorable—if sometimes trying—travel experiences, and delivered both completion and fresh motivation on the cycling front.

Warm Regards,

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Ashley Murphy, CFP® GFP Fellow

Principal & Founder

Areté Wealth Strategists Australia

Brisbane, QLD, Australia

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Q4-25 Webinars and Private Client Events

Q4 - 25 Private Client Events

• Q3 Financial Market Review and Economic Outlook - Tuesday October 28th

• Priorities and Goal Setting / Wheel of Life Review - Tuesday November 25th

Q4 - 25 Arete Webinars‍

• Cross-Border Countdown: Year-End Tax Moves for Aussies & Americans - Tuesday October 28th

• Legacies Across the Pacific: Smart Strategies for Australian Estates with US Beneficiaries - Tuesday November 18th

• Super Pitfalls: US Tax Surprises for Aussie Retirement Accounts - Tuesday December 17th

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Q3-25 Private Client Events

Financial Fortress: A Deep Dive on Emergency Funds at Different Life Stages & Mastering Risk Tolerance

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Q3-25 Areté Webinars

July - Navigating the “One Big Beautiful Bill:” What It Means for Australians in the US and Americans in Australia

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August - Legacies Across the Pacific: Smart Strategies for US Inheritances with Australian Beneficiaries

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September- Bridging Retirement: Bringing Your US Accounts (e.g. 401(k), IRAs) Home to Australia

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Domestic Content

Fed Funds Impact

Whenever the Federal Reserve Board meets to decide whether to cut or raise the fed funds rate, the breathless coverage might make you believe that an earthquake is about to rumble through the economy... Read More

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Power Hungry Crypto and AI

We tend to take electricity for granted, but that luxury may not last forever.  Two major new factors—bitcoin manufacturing and artificial intelligence-specific servers—are now gulping more terawatt hours than any comparable innovations in history... Read More

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The Hidden Risk to Americans’ Financial Health

We hear about market ups and downs, shifts in the inflation rate and a lot of scary health risks. But nobody seems to be talking about the biggest single financial pitfall that may be looming for many Americans....Read more

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Inflation Erosion

‍The inflation rate is creeping up again, from just above 2% earlier in the year to 2.9% in the latest (August) report. This isn’t alarming news, but ... Read more

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If you’ve been pleased with the work we’ve done together and have a friend or someone you care about facing similar challenges, we want to extend for you to make an introduction. We guide all clients through our Wealth Summit Pathway process to get to understand their most deeply held values, goals and understand their relationship to money. If we’re not the right firm to help them, we will do our best to find them the right advisor.

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Please let us know if we might be of assistance.

Have a wonderful rest of your day,

Ashley Murphy, CFP® GFP (USA) Fellow

Areté Wealth Strategists, LLC.

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