‘Lived experience’ key credential for new FPA CEO
With big shoes to fill, new FPA chief executive Sarah Abood will leverage her experience as the head of an advice business to further drive professionalism in the industry.
February 02, 2022
‘Every sin in the book’: AMP charts path in the shadow of Dixons Advisory
The conflict exhibited in the Dixons case "sullies the reputation of all", the shadow minister said. The comments provided a fitting introduction for AMP CEO Alexis George to talk about the lessons learnt and the path forward for the institution.
February 01, 2022
Govt open to reviewing CPD requirements
Senator Jane Hume acknowledged the current system may not be fit for purpose with the required 40 hours being excessive. “Financial advisers do 40 hours of CPD which is quite extraordinary,” she said. “Lawyers do 10.”
February 01, 2022
Carve-out not ‘watering down’ professionalism: Ministers
Both financial services ministers rejected the notion the education carve-out is a “watering down” of professionalism and that advisers “shouldn’t feel sore” about commencing potentially unnecessary education requirements.
January 31, 2022
‘Solution looking for a problem’: SAFAA rejects fixing wholesale investor rules
Despite growing calls for an overhaul of the wholesale investor rules to better protect consumers from predatory behaviour, the association argued that "no major benefits have been articulated".
January 31, 2022
Advice quality ‘materially better’ as compliance standards soar
"I’m not just offering anecdotal observations to mollify adviser complaints about compliance and complexity," Sean Graham writes. "Our data shows that, despite increasing compliance obligations, the quality of advice in 2021 is materially better than it was in 2020."
January 28, 2022
‘Intensely uncomfortable’: No future for vertical integration in intrafund advice
The shadow financial services and superannuation minister didn’t go as far as making a policy commitment to end vertical integration in infrafund advice, but said it’s something the industry super funds will have to inevitably accept.
January 28, 2022
Tug of war for CSLR coverage of managed investment schemes
Advice associations want to know why the CSLR shouldn’t be expanded to include MISs when the advice industry is already overleveraged with levies, but product representatives have pointed to advisers contributing more to unpaid determinations.
January 27, 2022
Insignia sheds 94 self-employed advisers, expects numbers to stabilise
While the group has been busy onboarding advisers into its licensee ecosystem, it's also been clear that practices that don't fit its model in terms of profitability and process would go. So far, most of those exiting advisers are from the group's self-employed network.
January 27, 2022
Open Finance launch to give consumers ‘holistic’ view: Treasury
Open banking will be extended to Open Finance in a move that should make it easier for consumers to share information across general insurance, superannuation, merchant acquiring and non-bank lending service providers.
January 25, 2022
