Industry funds push on advice

Despite the uncertainty around the Gillard Government’s ability to prosecute its full financial services policy agenda, the industry funds movement is continuing its push on the question of intra-fund advice and against commissions.

The chief executive of the Industry Super Network, David Whiteley fired the first post-election salvo by claiming that since the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) provided regulatory relief with respect to intra fund advice, some 50,000 members have been recipients of that advice.

He added that within 15 years, nearly one million Australians could be accessing simple financial advice from their superannuation fund each year.

He said that intra-fund advice represented a significant strategic shift in the way industry funds approached the delivery of financial advice to their membership.

“The bulk of the population, who do not currently see a financial adviser, have straightforward financial advice needs which can generally be satisfied by intra-fund advice,” he said.

“To use an analogy, intra-fund advice plugs a significant gap that has existed in the advice market — offering efficient ‘public transport’ services as a more cost effective alternative to the expensive ‘limousine’ services traditionally offered by financial planners’,” Whiteley said.

He said that this meant that personal financial advice could be offered in a way that was efficient for members and funds and provided advice in members’ best interests, free from commissions and conflicted forms of remuneration.