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Late on Wednesday 28 June 2023, ASIC released its estimate of the levies that will apply for the 2022/23 financial year. This comes after the Minister, Stephen Jones, confirmed that the ASIC funding levy freeze, which has been in place for the past two financial years, will not be continued. Ms Abood, CEO of the FAAA, said “The levy freeze for the past two financial years was achieved as a result of strong advocacy on the need for fairness and equity in the way the levy is calculated. This resulted in substantial savings for the financial advice profession in the

The Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) notes the passage of The Treasury Laws Amendment (Financial Services Compensation Scheme of Last Resort) Bill 2023 and associated bills (CSLR) through both houses, and continues to have some reservations about the effectiveness of the scheme. “An effective CSLR will promote trust in financial advice among consumers – by ensuring that if retail consumers have lost money due to poor advice, there is a compensation mechanism available. However the legislation has not changed substantially from previous drafts, and many of the concerns we expressed previously remain,” says FAAA CEO Sarah Abood. “A major source

  The Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) has presented Kristine Pham of Lipman Burgon and Partners with the Gwen Fletcher Memorial Award for semester one of 2023. Named after the late ‘First Lady of Financial Planning’, the award recognises the highest performing student in the CFP Certification Unit (CFP C) for each semester, with demonstrable dedication to providing high-quality financial advice. Ms Pham is a financial adviser at Lipman Burgon and Partners, based in Sydney.  She joined the firm in 2021 and has seven years experience in financial planning. She completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce at the University of New South

The FAAA is delighted that the 2023 King’s Birthday Honours for Australia acknowledged the significant contribution made to the financial planning profession by Neil Kendall CFP® with the award of the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM). The Medal of the Order of Australia recognises Australians who have demonstrated outstanding service or exceptional achievement. Neil is a CFP® professional who runs Tupicoff’s, a successful FAAA Professional Practice in Brisbane. He has won a plethora of significant professional awards including the FAAA Value of Advice awards, Money Management Financial Planner of the Year, qualified in the Masterclass Top 50 numerous

Financial Advice Association of Australia (FAAA) CEO Sarah Abood has congratulated Financial Services Minister Steven Jones on the strong response to the Quality of Advice Review. “We are particularly pleased to see the support for recommendations such as the removal of Fee Disclosure Statements, rationalisation of fee consent, removal of the Best Interests Duty Safe Harbour steps and in-principle support for a major overhaul of financial advice documentation,” Ms Abood says. “These phase 1 responses show that the concerns of our sector have been heard. It is a sensible package that will alleviate much of the unnecessary red tape involved

The Financial Advice Association of Australia (FAAA) has expressed concerns about the Treasury’s draft regulation to amend and expand the Superannuation Performance Test. Sarah Abood, CEO of the FAAA, says while the FAAA supports the reporting of meaningful performance test information to members of superannuation funds, it has some reservations, both about the proposal and the process. “It is disappointing that, as the leading association for the financial advice profession, we have not been directly consulted with, despite this matter having a substantial impact upon our members. “The Exposure Draft Explanatory Statement makes no reference to the implications of this

The Financial Advice Association of Australia (FAAA) says the government has provided a relatively gloomy outlook for its Budget despite achieving a surplus, with few surprises.   FAAA CEO Sarah Abood says: “We welcome the proposal on superannuation payment timeframes to align superannuation payments with wages from July 2026, previously announced, but confirmed in the Federal Budget handed down tonight. This will help support the retirement incomes of Australians by making it much less likely that super payments will be missed.  “The introduction of a new tax rate of 30 per cent on superannuation balances over $3 million was also previously

The FAAA has made a submission to the Government on the Experienced Adviser Pathway, supporting the proposal while proposing that this measure be better targeted. CEO of the FAAA Sarah Abood said, “The FAAA, including its two predecessor bodies (AFA and FPA), has long argued for both high standards and better recognition for advisers’ prior learning and experience. We also acknowledge the challenges for older advisers, approaching their retirement, in undertaking an eight-subject graduate diploma.” “Implementing an appropriately targeted experienced pathway could help to offset the substantial decline in adviser numbers over recent years (down 45% since 1 January 2019). 

The Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) welcomes the Treasury’s opening of a consultation period on the proposed experience pathway legislation. Sarah Abood, CEO of the FAAA, says the announcement gives much-needed clarity to those advisers in the profession who have been counting on this change to support their goals to continue advising clients beyond 2026. “We believe that relevant experience is an important element to maintaining the required standard for professional, quality financial advice that will provide the best outcome for Australians. That said, we continue to feel strongly that there should be a time limit on the pathway such

The Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) has released new guidance to members about cybersecurity, amid greater pressure on advice firms to protect their business and client data from potential breaches. Located on the FPA’s member portal, the interactive guide assists members through the basic steps of adding cybersecurity safeguards to their business. The guide covers topics including: • why cybersecurity is important, • regulatory and legal obligations, • examples of advice-related cybersecurity issues, • practical mitigation steps, and • links to additional resources and webinars. This will be the first in a series of guides on cybersecurity and privacy