Round up

Bill disappointsFPA

The Financial Planning Association (FPA) has expressed disappointment at the rejection of the Choice of Fund Bill in the Senate earlier this month. FPA chief executive Ken Breakspear says the failure of the Bill to pass the Senate is a blow to competition in the superannuation arena. Choice of fund legislation failed to pass through the Senate after the Democrats opposed the Bill, claiming that it discriminates against same sex couples.

Count falls short

Count Financial’s maiden profit fell just short of its prospectus forecasts. The financial planning giant recorded a net profit of $4 million on revenue of $37 million. Managing director Barry Lambert attributed the small shortfall in profit to the burden of GST compliance work performed by the accounting firms which make up the group.

JB Were ontop

JB Were’s low cost structure has pushed its cash management trust (CMT) to the top of the CMT performance tables. According to recently released research by Lonsdale Securities, JB Were’s CMT returned 5.25 per cent in the last financial year. The $1.3 billion fund is also the top performer over the three years, returning 4.73 per cent in the three years to June 30.

The $5.6 billion Commonwealth Bank CMT was only three basis points behind JB Were for both the one and three year numbers. The Commonwealth is the second lowest fee-charging manager in the market and the only one which doesn’t pay advisers a trailing commission for recommending the fund to their clients.

Suncorpbooming

Suncorp Metway’s funds management business is booming due to a renewed focus on the area and a concerted push into financial planning. Revenue for the group’s wealth management business was up a massive 179 per cent to $595 million, with profit rising 77 per cent to $53 million. Suncorp has added 36 planners to its bank-based network, which now totals 135. The group says it has now achieved one adviser per branch.

Software first

Management software specialist IQMS believes it has released the first software package to tackle the complete compliance burden associated with the Financial Services Reform Bill (FSRB). IQMS’s software, known as Financial Compliance Management System (FCMS), has been developed to enable financial planning practices to electronically manage their auditing, compliance testing, reporting and training requirements proposed by the FSRB.

Correction

The article “BTFM exits share registry business” in the last edition ofMoneyManagementincorrectly stated that BT had exited the business after 20 years. In fact, BT purchased the business in January 1999.