Accounting firms must ensure their financial planner partners, referral arrangements and in-house advisers will meet the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA) requirements, and also consider the wider impact of the incoming education framework.

The post-1 July 2017 world of segregation will certainly create some new challenges. Perhaps most importantly it will be vital that accountants know whether the members have money in other superannuation funds before assuming a fund can ever be segregated.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has revealed it will publish results from its surveillance into accountants operating without a limited Australian financial services licence in the coming weeks.

There is still significant reluctance for accountants and financial planners to communicate with each other when servicing clients due to a mutual lack of respect between the professions, a panel has been told.