Real improvements in the quality of advice are driven from the bottom up
Real and meaningful improvements in the quality of financial planning can only be driven from the ground up, and cannot imposed from the top down. About the most helpful thing that any institution or a licensee can do is just create a structure and a culture that allows financial planners to get on with the
January 19, 2015
Hammering away at asset allocation is only part of the retirement income solution
If the only tool you have is a hammer, the temptation to view everything as a nail can be overwhelming. For much of the financial services industry, asset allocation – and investors’ ongoing need for growth assets – is the nail which is currently being pummelled. But no amount of hammering will make this problem
January 19, 2015
PJC proposals could achieve the goal of restricting the term ‘financial planner’
The terms “financial planner” and “financial adviser” will effectively be enshrined in law if recommendations proposed by the Parliamentary Joint Committee (PJC) inquiry into professional, ethical and education standards are adopted. The chief executive officer of the FPA Mark Rantall (pictured, on the right), says the PJC has recommended modifications to the planned register of
January 16, 2015
Mandatory fee-for-service life insurance is not an option: Deloitte
A fee-for-service remuneration model for life insurance is not a viable alternative to commissions, according to a senior partner at Deloitte. Paul Swinhoe, life insurance partner at the global consultancy firm, argues a mandatory fee-based model ignores the costs financial planners face in advising on and establishing life insurance policies. He believes this would also
January 16, 2015
PJC report may cause a ‘shuffling of deck chairs’ among planning associations
Some financial planning industry associations may find themselves excluded from a revised co-regulatory framework alluded to in the Parliamentary Joint Committee report handed down at the end of last year. This would be underpinned by the Financial Planning Education Council (FPEC) and the Professional Standards Council (PSC). The PSC would have to endorse any professional
January 14, 2015
An elegant approach to self regulation that also addresses PI insurance issues
The Parliamentary Joint Committee report on lifting standards in financial planning came out on the afternoon of December 19, at almost the precise moment Professional Planner closed its offices for a break. Not being in a fit state to read (or perhaps comprehend) the report prior to Christmas, and not wishing to put a marriage
January 14, 2015
The Australian sharemarket in 2014: winners and losers
If over the years I had banked a dollar every time someone told me that Australian shares were a sure bet to outperform global shares, I would be able to retire much earlier. While it’s true Australian shares have outperformed global shares in many years, in 2014 our Australian share market’s was relatively modest compared
January 14, 2015
Financial planners are 50 years behind accountants in education standards
Financial planners still lag decades behind accountants in terms of educational requirements for those who practice within the two sectors, according to the head of one of Australia’s largest financial planning university programs. Only an Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) 5 level of education is required to practice as a financial planner here, while accountants need
January 12, 2015
Australian Defence Force wades into the financial planning debate
During 2015 there will be an interesting real-world test happening in the financial planning profession. It focuses on how effectively financial planning businesses can deliver genuinely non-conflicted advice, irrespective of structure or licensee ownership. The test is being run by a seemingly unlikely entity: the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The ADF becomes a far move
January 12, 2015
Does robo-advice spell the end of the human adviser?
Advisers who attended the 2014 AFA National Conference could be forgiven for thinking – where does my future lie? ‘Robo-Advice’ was vigorously debated with some predicting the demise of face-to-face financial advice over the next 10-20 years. Is this a reality? The simple answer is – nobody really knows. What we do know is we
January 12, 2015
Centrepoint head says independence, profitability are mutually exclusive
Asset-based fees are unavoidable if financial planning practices are to maintain a sustainable level of profitability, according to the head of a non-aligned dealer group. “As a licensee, I think it’s almost impossible to operate sustainably without product margins. That’s just the way [Future of Financial Advice] FoFA and the institutions have forced the game,”
January 09, 2015
What is the right price for financial advice?
The right price for financial advice, investment management and administration is somewhere between 1.25 and 1.4 per cent, according to financial adviser Ken Bloomfield. While there’s no industry consensus on what constitutes a fair price for comprehensive advice, Bloomfield is adamant that sophisticated clients with between $500,000 and $1 million under advice should pay no
January 09, 2015
