CFS offers direct investing on FirstChoice

Financial planners using Colonial First State’s (CFS) flagship FirstChoice platform have been given the option to directly trade equities without incurring associated administrative costs.

The move by CFS, which allows advisers using FirstChoice to access CommSec’s Adviser Trading Centre, was prompted by increased pressure from advisers who wanted to offer greater investment choice, especially to existing or potential self-managed super fund (SMSF) clients.

Although the rate of SMSF take up decreased slightly over the past few years due to stellar market returns, growth has still been significant. But predictions that the introduction of super choice and poorer market performance this year will cause a growth spurt in the establishment of do-it-yourself funds similar to 2001-02, has encouraged the John Pearce-led group to offer some sort of direct investing option.

Most platform providers already offer advisers access to direct equities trading. Asgard for example, struck a deal with E*Trade in August 2003, Navigator started offering direct equities investing in November 2004 and BT introduced nil transaction fees for listed securities trades through BT’s Online Broker a few years ago.

Dubbed by CFS as the FirstNet ATC Share Reporting Service, the CommSec facility allows advisers to manage their clients’ direct share portfolio over the Internet, with access to trading and research tools and model portfolios.

CFS said advisers trading shares through the facility alongside other FirstChoice investment options would receive a consolidated reporting service.