A report naming the top 50 financial advisers for 2018 is a positive step in helping to rebuild the advice industry’s battered reputation, but the road to redemption will be long, according to an SMSF industry body.
SMSF Association chief executive John Maroney told selfmanagedsuper various inquiries, including the Productivity Commission’s draft report into superannuation and the ongoing banking royal commission, have examined issues in relation to financial advice, while the Australian Securities and Investments Commission is constantly examining this area.
“We expect there will be a number of recommendations coming out of those inquiries plus the new standards authority, the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority, will be concluding its consultation soon and putting in place education requirements and a code of ethics,” Maroney said.
“That should all be positive in helping build and rebuild the reputation, but it will take some time because there has been a lot of work over several years in what’s already been done, plus there is expected to be significant recommendations coming out of the other current inquiries, but this is a positive step along the journey.”
Maroney’s comments come after The Australian, in partnership with New York-based Barron’s, published its list of top 50 financial advisers for 2018, which included 14 members of the SMSF Association.
“The importance of high-quality financial advice standards and delivery has never been greater as the population ages and as millions of Australians need to be better prepared for retirement,” he said.
He also encouraged members to obtain the association’s specialist accreditation and retain that through fulfilling continuing professional development to stay on top of changing rules and regulations.
“In the SMSF side we think it’s very good for people looking for advice to find someone who has specialist training and accreditation,” he said.
“Trustees are looking for different things depending on their own skills, experience and knowledge.
“Lots of them are looking for validation and so they would be looking for a specialist that can really add something to their knowledge about general rules and structures, whether it’s about the more complex areas of business real property, commercial, limited recourse borrowing arrangements, or dealing with caps.”
