ASIC bans licensee tied to failed Shield, First Guardian master funds
The regulator has banned the licence of Financial Services Group Australia for failing to ensure its representatives gave advice in the clients’ best interest by distributing the Shield and First Guardian master funds. ASIC is also recommending clients pursue lodging a complaint with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority.
June 13, 2025
Dispersion of private credit manager skill a minefield for investors
Private credit has seen a proliferation of managers and product in the past few years, putting more pressure on professional investors in the wholesale and retail sectors to back the right horse. LGT Crestone Wealth Management chief investment officer Scott Haslem told the Fiduciary Investors Symposium there is an "immense amount" of dispersion in manager skill, further compounding this challenge.
June 12, 2025
‘Popularity doesn’t equal credibility’: ASIC joins global finfluencer crackdown
ASIC has issued warning notices to “finfluencers” it suspects are promoting financial products and providing financial advice to Australians while not holding a licence. It’s part of the corporate watchdog’s action against unlicensed financial advice and they’ve teamed up with regulators from the UK, Canada, Italy and the UAE to disrupt finfluencer activity.
June 12, 2025
Productivity fix needed to boost capacity to 200 clients per adviser
Over the past decade, the industry has been sapped of capacity, and it’s resulted in a reduction in the number of clients advisers are serving. Fixing this will require a technology-assisted advice future that enables businesses to manage more than 200 clients per adviser, but it requires stepped change.
June 11, 2025
ASIC scores win against unlicensed ‘pump-and-dump’ schemers
Four unlicensed investors charged for conspiracy to commit market rigging have all pleaded guilty in a win for the corporate regulator who included enforcement against unlicensed advice a regulatory priority. The four investors participated in a coordinated “pump-and-dump” scheme, where investors inflate share prices to sell them at a peak for profit.
June 11, 2025
The crucial role of strategic diversification in uncertain times
The US administration’s chaotic approach to policy setting has created a high degree of uncertainty in investment markets. Colonial First State believe that in these challenging environments it is important to have the flexibility to adjust asset allocation, either through dynamic asset allocation tilts or an out-of-cycle strategic asset allocation review.
June 11, 2025
Optimising portfolio construction for managed accounts
Optimising portfolio construction in today's dynamic investment climate demands a sophisticated approach, writes Colonial First State executive director managed accounts Frances Taylor. In an everchanging economic environment, navigating market inefficiency, having the right level of risk diversification, and finding unique investment opportunities to generate alpha is essential.
June 11, 2025
Licensee head predicts 1000 advisers to depart by year end
The advice industry will likely see the departure of another 1000 advisers by the start of next year when the deadline to have an approved degree kicks in, WT Financial Group managing director Keith Cullen believes. Without action, including reforming the education standard, the sector will continue to stagnate with accessibility to advice only getting worse.
June 10, 2025
ART warns ASIC on private market evergreen funds, regulatory duplication
The $330 billion Australian Retirement Trust has used its previously confidential submission to ASIC to warn against duplication of an already “comprehensive” private markets regulatory framework while calling out the rapidly growing evergreen fund sector as potentially requiring more oversight.
June 10, 2025
Trump highlights the value of advice
Investors watched as their superannuation and pension account balances plunged due to the impact of US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs announced as part of his so-called "Liberation Day". Fitzpatricks Group CEO Andrew Fairweather writes while markets have largely recovered, it's cataclysmic events like this that bring the value of advice to the fore.
June 06, 2025
Advice going through ‘secular change’ and this matters for licensees
CoreData has spent the last 13 years researching what advisers value in their licensee, but the veteran research firm believes this year is different. Ahead of the Professional Planner Licensee Summit later this month, the firm is looking to the planning community to help explicate a secular change in the advice ecosystem that has seen practices become the gatekeepers of the value chain.
June 05, 2025
