Advisers to be numbered

The first database to include all players in the financial services industry, including advisers and dealer groups could soon become a reality.

The first database to include all players in the financial services industry, including advisers and dealer groups could soon become a reality.

The move is being spearheaded by Canberra-based technology group APIR Sys-tems who are in discussions with the Australian Securities and Investment Com-mission (ASIC), among others, to introduce the system for compliance purposes.

APIR managing director Andrew Hutchings says: “The idea is to have an industry-based centralised on-line real time compliance management system for the entire financial services industry.”

The system could, for example, test whether advisers and dealer groups are authorised to write some of the business they are writing.

Hutchings believes that such a system could piggy back on APIR’s existing sys-tem, thereby reducing development costs.

APIR Systems has already signed up major fund managers (and a couple of smaller dealer groups) as users of its codes, which are said to have become the standard for identifying parties to electronic commerce transactions.

“We believe that it will take us 6-12 months to bring on the (new compliance) system, fully kitted and spurred, from the date the industry decides to go forward with it,” Hutchings says

However, he warns that much will depend on the compliance requirements of Clerp 6, a draft of which is expected out next week.

Nontheless, APIR Systems has already held discussions about the compliance da-tabase with the Investment and Financial Services Association (IFSA), ASIC, the National Insurance brokers Association and major fund managers.

The next step, Hutchings says, could be an industry forum. The National Office of Information Economy has offered to facilitate this and it could, possibly, take place by the end of the month.