SPAA welcomes Cormann’s register addition plans
The SMSF Professionals' Association of Australia (SPAA) has welcomed the Federal Government's promise that it will include qualifications and professional association membership of financial advisers in the financial planners register.
SPAA CEO and managing director Andrea Slattery said consumers will feel reassured they are getting quality advice only if the register includes all relevant information.
"An obvious benchmark for consumers is knowing what qualifications and professional association membership an adviser has because it's these two areas — education and professionalism — that are the key to quality financial advice," she said.
The backing comes after the Federal Treasury indicated this week the new register of financial planners will not include educational qualifications and professional association membership until March 2014.
The two items will come into force after the amendment of principal regulations.
Slattery said individual accountability of financial advisers, as well as increasing education standards are needed to lift professionalism in financial advice.
"Having the register record educational qualifications and association membership will encourage advisers to improve their qualifications and become professional members of the relevant associations," she said.
AUTHOR
Malavika Santhebennur
Recommended for you
The director of Ascent Investment and Coaching, Michael Dunjey, has been charged with 33 criminal offences.
Adviser Ratings’ latest financial landscape report finds there is a demographic of advice practices achieving an average revenue of $5 million, with only 3 per cent of practices overall seeing a revenue decline.
The FAAA is calling for regulators to take a partnership approach with financial advisers regarding incoming legislation, rather than treating the industry as “guinea pigs”.
There have been strong numbers of returning advisers this year so far, according to Wealth Data, already surpassing the same period for 2024.
