TheFinancial Planning Association(FPA) has declared its membership is geared for Financial Services Reform (FSR), with 97 per cent of its principal members having received or close to receiving an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL).
The FPA says of its current 576 principal members, 560 have either obtained their AFSL or have applications pending.
The association says the remaining 16 have either retired, surrendered their securities dealers licence, opted to act as an authorised representative, or restructured their business so as not to provide financial advice.
“All FPA members who wanted to transition have already done so or are in the final stages of doing so, but a small minority are leaving the industry for various reasons,” FPA chief executive Kerrie Kelly says.
Kelly says FPA members have been readying themselves for FSR for the past two years, with many having been compliant for months.
“All FPA members want to do what’s best for their clients and want to run their business to the highest standards, and to this end have made and continue to make significant changes.”
She says the FPA has been liaising with members and theAustralian Securities and Investment Commission(ASIC) to assist in the transition, and has hosted ongoing information sessions and communications with members.
The FPA says it has also providedone-on-one support in preparing an application for an AFSL, and put together an FSRA toolkit to help members in the transition.
