The number of Certified Financial Planners has grown worldwide, but the number in Australia continues to decrease, according to the latest annual report of the Financial Planning Standards Board.
The FPSB is the non-profit, international standards-setting body for the global financial planning profession. It is led by chief executive Dante De Gori, formerly CEO of the Financial Planning Association which is now part of the FAAA, the body responsible for CFP certification in the Australian market.
The FPSB reported Australia had 4352 CFPs as of the end of 2024, a 3.1 per cent decrease from the 4492 at the end of the 2023 calendar year cited in its previous annual report.
The global total number of CFP professionals grew 3.1 per cent to 230,648, a slightly lower growth rate than the 5.1 per cent the end of 2023, when the global number of CFPs stood at 223,770.
Australia maintained a CFP retention rate of 95.1 per cent, but the downward trend of CFPs continued as approximately 12,000 registered advisers leave the industry in the fallout of the Hayne royal commission and the introduction of comprehensive professional and education standards.
In the annual report, the FPSB said it had conducted a review of its global CFP certification requirements, which were finalised by the FPSB board and ratified by the FPSB council in October 2024.
Key changes include applying reasonable timeframes to how long requirements retain validity prior to the point of applying for CFP certification; updating the timelines and consequences associated with short- and long-term lapses in certification; and adjusting continuing professional development requirements to reflect the increased emphasis on professional conduct and behaviour.
The updated requirements are expected to be published in 2025 and will take effect on 1 January 2027.
Australia was one of the first countries outside the US to introduce the CFP designation for financial advisers.
The FPSB, which now covers 20 countries, celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024. In that time, the number of CFPs has increased 166 per cent from 86,690.
The largest CFP markets are the US (103,093), China (34,535), Japan (26,981), Canada (17,457) and Brazil (10,634).
During the past year the US crossed the 100,000 CFP barrier (from 98,875 in previous year) and Brazil passed the 10,000 CFP milestone.
In 2024, 39 per cent of those who earned CFP certification were female and 35 per cent of all CFP professionals are female. Globally, 33 per cent of CFP professionals are under the age of 40.
Elsewhere in its annual report, the FPSB said it has started a global research project on the impact of artificial intelligence on the practice of financial planning, and will release its findings later this year.
The aims of the research into AI are to understand the level of adoption of the emerging technology by advisers and practices, and to uncover “perceptions and knowledge gaps in that process”.
