HUB24 moves ahead with acquiring trustee service
Platform provider HUB24 has decided to move ahead with acquiring HTFS Nominees, bringing the trustee service in-house as the government considers banning the trustee-for-hire model. The firm was owned by EQT Holdings, which also owns the troubled Equity Trustees which is being sued by ASIC over due diligence failures for onboarding the Shield and First Guardian master funds.
April 21, 2026
Ferras Merhi says courts will vindicate his Shield, First Guardian advice
The man ASIC alleges played a key role in the distribution of the Shield and First Guardian funds says the case against him is based on a “misunderstanding” of financial advice by the regulator. In an exclusive interview with Professional Planner, Ferras Merhi claims any adviser who fights ASIC’s allegations in court will win, and that the Albanese government should remediate investors for losses ultimately caused by the operators of the now-defunct funds.
April 20, 2026
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.
April 20, 2026
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.
April 17, 2026
Licensee leaders call on minister to expedite education changes
The Licensee Leadership Forum – made up of the country’s largest licensee owners – has written to Minister for Financial Services Daniel Mulino and pushed for progress on “timely” education reforms.
April 17, 2026
New AMP CEO says lead generators a ‘real driver of consumer harm’
In one of his first interviews as chief executive of AMP, Blair Vernon tells Professional Planner that lead generators and introducers conducting business with rival platforms to AMP’s North present a “real risk” to consumers beyond the victims of Shield and First Guardian. The comments come as the Albanese government consults on measures to crack down on super-switching lead generators, including a possible new licensing regime.
April 16, 2026
Platforms to unleash greater monitoring of advisers and MISs
Platforms will be required to monitor licensee business models and “adverse media findings” of advisers in a new standard released by the Financial Services Council that also enhances monitoring of managed investment schemes. The changes have been applauded by Minister for Financial Services Daniel Mulino who says it’s positive to see industry self-regulation in the aftermath of the $1 billion Shield and First Guardian collapse.
April 16, 2026
Time to bring law to SMSF ‘wild west’: Hartley
More regulation is needed to address consumer harm arising from SMSFs and the Financial Accountability Regime should apply even to platforms that outsource their super trustee in order to close governance gaps, according to Insignia Financial CEO Scott Hartley.
April 15, 2026
Changing the focus, from ‘nest egg’ to ‘income for retirement’
Minister for Financial Services Daniel Mulino writes that superannuation fund members deserve a dignified retirement, consistent with the objective of super, and it is well past time to move the public conversation from super providing a lump sum to it being the source of ongoing and reliable income.
April 15, 2026
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.
April 14, 2026
When scaling up is the right path for your practice
Smaller businesses aspire to scale up and corporatise, but corporatisation isn’t for everyone. AZ NGA chief operating officer Nathan Jacobsen writes for those looking to make the transition, it has the power to transform businesses, accelerate growth, and reward business owners.
April 14, 2026
Decade-long ban for adviser central to ASIC’s Shield, First Guardian investigation
ASIC has given a 10-year ban to Rhys Reilly, one of the advisers central to the investigation in the $1 billion Shield and First Guardian collapse. The regulator found Reilly accepted $100,000 in conflicted remuneration and that he failed to give advice in the best interests of clients.
April 13, 2026
