An industry consultant has urged financial planners to connect with accountants in order to establish a financial advisory arrangement in light of the impending scrapping of the accountants’ exemption and the low number of licence applications in response to this change.

Only 1000 accountants had successfully obtained either a full or limited Australian financial services licence (AFSL) during the past 12 months, but as many as 12,500 unlicensed accountants were still expressing interest to provide SMSF advice, according to a new report.

The changes to superannuation included in the 2016 federal budget were no cause for panic among SMSF members, according to an accounting firm senior executive.

Accountants moving into the world of financial advice under the licensing regime should exercise great caution when it came to preparing statements of advice (SOA) as it was an area they must get right, according to a sector expert.

CPA Australia has been granted an Australian financial services licence (AFSL) and Australian credit licence (ACL) from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) for its CPA Australia Advice subsidiary and believes its offering will be highly competitive against the big banks.

Cloud-based administration software provider Class has formally announced its selection by BT Financial Group (BTFG) to be the accounting software engine behind the recently completed BT Panorama SMSF solution.

Many accountants were not rushing to be licensed despite the looming deadline, however, there was an aggressive marketing campaign by licensees to gain accountants under their respective dealer groups, according to an industry executive.

Offshoring SMSF administration and compliance work is becoming more common among accountants as the services receive more take-up and the quality of work improves.

Accountants have been told to focus on the upside of entering the SMSF space, with an increase in fees a key positive outcome.