Tucker in line for Murray Inquiry
Speculation is rife that former chief executive of NAB Wealth & MLC Steve Tucker will pop up on the Financial System Inquiry’s four-person committee, which will be announced in mid-December. Tucker, who left NAB in March after 25 years, declined to comment on the matter but said he was keen to make a contribution to
November 22, 2013
Don’t mess with planners: FPA
The Financial Planning Association has issued an impassioned plea to the government and the newly-appointed head of the Financial System Inquiry, David Murray, not to impose further regulation on the financial advice industry. FPA chief executive Mark Rantall welcomed the recent release of the Inquiry’s draft terms of reference but said the financial planning industry
November 22, 2013
Large licensees falling behind: AltaVista
Institutionally-aligned dealer groups are miles behind independently-owned groups when it comes to the adoption of exchange traded funds, despite growing investor and adviser demand for ETFs, according to boutique ratings house, AltaVista Research. Michael Turner, head of sales and corporate development for AltaVista Research, said many of the traditional master trusts and wrap accounts used
November 22, 2013
More legislative change ahead
The tax and compliance rules surrounding superannuation will change in the future, just as they have regularly changed in the past. There are some rules that relate specifically to SMSFs although over the last 20 years there have only been a few changes that have targeted, and impacted the scope of, SMSFs. The good news
November 22, 2013
Lambert cements plans for Countplus Mark 2
Listed accounting consolidator Countplus has finalised the business model for its sister company C+2 and brought the new company’s proposed listing date forward one year. Countplus executive chairman Barry Lambert said C+2 would implement a three-pronged strategy which involved Countplus acquiring an initial 30 per cent interest in large accounting firms, paid for with cash.
November 21, 2013
ASIC grilled at Senate Committee
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission was slammed for its slow pace and lack of transparency when dealing with rogue financial planners at the latest Senate Economics Legislation Committee meeting on Wednesday. During the 90 minute session, ASIC chairman Greg Medcraft fielded a barrage of questions from Nationals Senator for New South Wales John Williams
November 21, 2013
CBA/Colonial goes direct to SME super market
Commonwealth Bank of Australia and its wealth arm Colonial First State have made enhancements to its new low-cost, direct-to-consumer MySuper product in an aggressive bid to sell more services to its corporate customers. Enhancements to Essential Super will allow the 450,000 small businesses which currently bank with CBA to also use its online and mobile
November 21, 2013
OneVue charges toward public listing
Listed funds manager Perpetual and billionaire Alex Waislitz have invested in investment and administration platform business, OneVue, as it charges towards a public listing in the second quarter of 2014. On Thursday OneVue announced it had completed the first round of an $8 million capital raising program, attracting $6.75 million from major investors including Perpetual
November 21, 2013
Dixon Advisory wades into SMSF debate
Financial planning firm Dixon Advisory has urged the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to get its facts right and tighten up the existing rules around self-managed superannuation funds before introducing further, unnecessary complexity. Dixon Advisory’s managing director, Financial Advisory Nerida Cole said the proposed changes contained in ASIC’s consultation paper 216 may be avoidable if
November 19, 2013
Bonus round: men get double
Male accountants were paid double the bonuses of their female equivalents in the financial year ended June 30, 2013, according to recruitment specialists Lloyd Morgan. The Lloyd Morgan MySalaryPortal showed male accountants received an average bonus of $12,900 last year compared with $6,400 for females. Western Australia recorded the largest discrepancy with the average male
November 19, 2013
New managing director at AMP SMSF
AMP has appointed Suncorp executive Natasha Fenech as the new managing director of AMP SMSF. Fenech will join AMP in February from Suncorp where she is currently executive general manager, Personal insurance customer, product and pricing. She will report to Paul Sainsbury who was promoted to chief customer officer in April. Sainsbury said Fenech’s appointment
November 19, 2013
Legal advice: Dealing with client complaints
Australian Financial Services Licensees (AFSLs) must now acknowledge all client complaints immediately and resolve problems in prescribed time frames, under recent changes to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s Regulatory Guide 165 (RG165). In order to comply with the new requirements, AFSLs must adjust their current internal dispute resolution system for clients. The regulator has
November 19, 2013
