life insurance

Financial planning

Proposed changes to the way life insurance companies are taxed will result in higher levels of complexity for the industry and increased costs to policy holders. ...

Financial planning

Breathing collective sighs of relief

After a long drought, some showers of blessings have finally rained down on the savings industry. The shower was in the form of a press release on the taxation of collect...

Financial planning

Costello takes Ralph advice on board

The financial services industry breathed a collective sigh of relief following the the announcement by Treasurer Peter Costello that the government will take Ralph Review...

Financial planning

There is still a lot of life left in life

Amidst all the talk of mergers and acquisitions in the life insurance industry, it’s easy to lose sight of the strength and size of the industry in Australia. ...

Financial planning

RISK – IP providers claw back into the black

Last year <I>Money Management</I> published a series of articles outlining the mess surrounding the income protection insurance market. Stuart Engel asked a number of key...

Funds management

Life and fund managers unite

A new non-profit professional association set to launch this week reflects convergence between the life insurance and fund management sectors....

Financial planning

FAI turnaround keeps prospectors guessing

Speculation continues to mount over the future of HIH Insurance's recently inherited 48 per cent stake in FAI Life....

Financial planning

Expansion is on Accent’s mind

Melbourne-based adviser group Accent Investment Services is planning to add two more practices to operate under its brand this year and is also considering expanding inte...

Financial planning

AFA cans merger deal with FPA

The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) has axed plans to merge with the Financial Planning Association (FPA), citing irreconcilable differences in membership bases....

Financial planning

Healthy outlook for islands in the sun

Colonial has long had a place in the sun as the dominant distributor of financial service products in Fiji. But Colonial’s recent strong growth in the Fijian insurance ma...

Financial planning

We’re turning to planners – slowly

Australians are only slightly more likely to seek the services of a financial planner when looking for financial guidance than an accountant, family member or bank manage...