Opinion
M&A is not permission to get fat and lazy
The act of buying a business does not guarantee sustainable growth any more than buying flowers guarantees a healthy relationship, Paul Barrett writes. Success is the result of consistent effort and hard work post-sale.
Paul BarrettMarch 5, 2021
Regulation
ASIC’s gaze to fall on smaller advice groups: CoreData
With the banks gone ASIC is sure to focus more on smaller advice groups, Andrew Inwood said. The speed – and eventual cost – of that might have a lot to do with the regulator's new leadership team, he reckons.
Tahn SharpeMarch 5, 2021
On Practice
‘Future client’ explained: Inside the heads of the emerging affluent
Income protection, cash flow management and portfolio diversification are important areas this emerging segment of client which has the highest household income of any other group wants advice on, a new study shows.
Matthew SmithMarch 4, 2021
Risk & Insurance
Bert goes into bat for insurance commissions
Less than an hour after Labor’s Stephen Jones said insurance commissions were “a problem”, Liberal MP and ex-planner Bert van Manen called them a “perfectly valid form of remuneration”. Despite his endorsement, financial services minister Jane Hume says the government will also wait on the LIF review's findings before making a call on the issue.
Tahn SharpeMarch 3, 2021
Industry
‘Advisers are ready for this’: Time to focus on the retirement framework
Providing quality outcomes for Australians in retirement requires more coordinated thinking and a collective push for a retirement advice framework to become mainstream. With a greater sense of urgency, a group of influencers in wealth management bring their next-level thinking to the table.
Jessica SierMarch 2, 2021
Industry
Jones doubles down on risk commissions ban stance
The shadow financial services minister reaffirmed his bias against insurance commissions and all but vowed to eliminate anything resembling conflicted remuneration out of the industry if Labor wins the next federal election.
Tahn SharpeMarch 2, 2021
Industry
Calls grow for the term ‘advice’ to be reserved for personal use
Representative bodies question why the terms general advice, intra-fund advice and even robo-advice are still being used. But after being bandied around by stakeholders from all corners, the issue has failed to really pique the interest of policymakers.
Tahn SharpeMarch 1, 2021
“I am sick to death of being told financial advisers are crook. ALL the people I call friends in this industry do the right thing and have done so for years. They have always put the clients interest first, been ethical not only in business but in their personal lives as well.”
Steven Pugh
Professional Investment Services in Osborne Park, WA
“If AFSLs are still holding onto traditional business models then they will end up redundant and without a business. Fortunately, not all AFSLs and advisers have been blind and apathetic in responding to - albeit not so perfect - FASEA’s standards and ethics.”
Angelique McInnes
Central Queensland University in QLD
Investment
Strategic advice in line to be next regulatory target
If the biggest indictment on the industry to date has been fees-for-no-service then the next big test for advisers will be demonstrating value for service in their investment proposition, especially if clients are being separately charged for that service. Neil Younger writes.
Neil YoungerFebruary 10, 2021
Investment
ASIC sounds the alarm on bond scams
The corporate regulator has issued a warning to investors about imposter bond scams, revealing it has uncovered two such scammers pretending to be associated with well-known domestic and global financial services firms and offering high-yield bond investments in Australia and the UK.
Tahn SharpeJanuary 29, 2021
Investment
Schroders touts alternatives to ‘lousy’ defensive returns in 2021
There’s no silver bullet to poor returns on defensive assets, according to Schroders Simon Doyle, but the "big middle" between high quality bonds and equities is fertile ground if you can stomach a trip down the capital structure.
Tahn SharpeJanuary 21, 2021
Education
FASEA’s demise: Be careful what you wish for
Industry leaders should endorse the spirit and substance of the Code of Ethics and accept that there will be inconvenient commercial consequences for some of the industry’s participants, argues Robert MC Brown.
Robert MC BrownFebruary 3, 2021
Education
Kaplan doles out free FASEA exam prep tools
Education provider Kaplan has announced free examination support for advisers who are yet to successfully complete the FASEA exam requirement, which all advisers must do before January 1, 2022.
Tahn SharpeJanuary 22, 2021
Education
FASEA’s Glenfield: 10,000 qualified advisers a ‘strong’ story
Past the halfway point in its exam transition program, the authority’s CEO says its time to acknowledge what the uplift in professionalism means to consumers. “I had faith in the outcome of this,” Stephen Glenfield tells Professional Planner.
Tahn SharpeOctober 2, 2020
June 8, 2021 - June 9, 2021
Licensee Summit
SUITABLE FOR: Licensee and dealer group heads.
The annual Licensee Summit is recognised as the key event for the leaders of financial planning dealer groups and licensees to meet and engage with peers and colleagues to discuss the issues that underpin great businesses and the delivery of great advice.
June 22, 2021 - June 23, 2021
Retirement Conference
SUITABLE FOR: Chief executives, chief investment officers and heads of product and personnel working in member services and advice of superannuation funds
July 27, 2021
Best Practice Forum
SUITABLE FOR: Financial planning practice owners and principals.
The Professional Planner | Financial Planning Association Best Practice Forum taps into the experience and insights of practice owners, principals, consultants and other industry participants to deliver leading-edge thinking on financial planning best practice.