The results from the financial adviser exam held in May show almost 70 per cent of candidates passed, according to the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA).
The authority said 69 per cent of the 1894 advisers who sat the exam passed, with 74 per cent of those candidates passing the exam in their first sitting, which is lower than the average 82.4 per cent across all exams.
FASEA analysis of the May exam data highlighted advisers continued to struggle with when to provide clients with key documentation, identifying breaches of financial disclosure obligations, identifying sources of judgment and biases and their influence on financial advice, and applying the FASEA code to various client scenarios and identifying compliance and non-compliance.
The authority stated more than 16,700 advisers had sat the exam to date and 14,850, or 89 per cent, had passed, representing 74 per cent of practitioners on the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s Financial Adviser Register. Of those advisers who have passed, 65 per cent of 1918 unsuccessful candidates passed in the next sitting of the exam.
It noted only three further sittings of the exam remain until the end of 2021 and more than 2700 advisers have booked for the July exam.
A further 230 advisers have booked for the September exam, which will be held online and in 15 locations across Australia, with registrations closing on 20 August.
