InterPrac delays paying out Shield, First Guardian investors amid AFCA dispute
InterPrac Financial Planning has stalled on paying AFCA determinations as First Guardian investor advocate Melinda Kee has been dragged into the court action between the licensee and complaints authority. But it comes as InterPrac parent company Sequoia Financial Group faces fresh scrutiny over the failed sale of the licensee and not disclosing the departure of former ASIC commissioner Danielle Press from its governance oversight committee.
First Guardian liquidation continues to eat up recovered funds
First Guardian liquidators want to “temper expectations” over the return of funds to investors as the cost of the liquidation continues to grow with the amount recovered, leaving estimated net cash of $326,000 after expenses.
Insignia to delist with all hurdles for sale completed
Insignia Financial will delist from the ASX at the end of the month as the Federal Court has given approval for the acquisition of the ASX-listed wealth giant by CC Capital.
Advisers left behind with DBFO fee consent deficiencies: FAAA
Fee consent issues that were meant to be addressed by the Delivering Better Financial Outcomes reforms have only left advisers with further business inefficiencies, the Financial Advice Association Australia has told members.
‘Clickbait’ super ads reaching almost half of Australians: SMC
Almost half of Australians are receiving “clickbait” ads about switching into risky super funds, according to research from the Super Members Council which has called on the government to expedite improved consumer protections.
The unsupervised hire: Getting the best from agentic AI
Every adviser conference is talking about it and every vendor is selling it, and the opportunity for practices to use agentic AI is real, writes Michael Connory. But the questions you ask before you sign matter more than the vendor’s slide deck.
Why CGT changes won’t shift investor behaviour
The current debate about reducing the 50 per cent CGT discount assumes property investors are primarily motivated by tax savings. Financial adviser Sheshan Wickramage writes the assumption overlooks how real-world investment decisions are made, particularly among high-net-worth investors.
Netwealth rolls out changes to fine print in wake of Shield, First Guardian
Netwealth has updated its terms and conditions to allow it to directly correspond with clients without necessarily needing to inform the adviser or licensee and potentially limit user access. The move comes as part of the regulator-enforced governance uplift across the platform sector in the aftermath of the collapse of the Shield and First Guardian master funds.
Testing the platform hype against the adviser’s reality
A properly implemented platform can significantly influence an adviser’s operational efficiency, profitability and the number of clients they can serve. A new study will test that claim by measuring advice practice metrics against platform relationships to show which tools work best for which business models.
Why emerging markets demand a contrarian, selective mindset
For many investors, the label emerging markets still conjures up fragile currencies, unstable governance and unfulfilled promise, writes Orbis Investments’ Eric Marais. This perception has endured even as the reality across much of the emerging world has changed, creating opportunities underappreciated by investors.
Licensee Summit
Researcher Forum
Shield, First Guardian collapse could drive YFYS changes
The $1 billion collapse of Shield and First Guardian could result in more externally managed products being included in the Your Future Your Super performance test, after Treasury released a consultation paper proposing sweeping changes to the framework.
Lessons from the middle: Leadership, resilience and the courage of conviction
The principles of high-performance leadership – whether in business or sport – remain remarkably consistent and include the ability to maintain clarity, integrity, and conviction under immense pressure. Former Australian test cricketer Usman Khawaja told the Top1000funds.com Fiduciary Investors Symposium that the only time you really lose is when you stop trying.
Reflecting on nearly half a century in financial advice
After an extensive 47-year career, Paul Harding-Davis says that while every decade has seen a significant step change that has felt like an “Armageddon” it has instead only seen the standard of the industry improve. Reflecting on his long career to Professional Planner, he is still evangelical about recruiting young people to advice.
Licensees