Any changes to Standard 3 will be in 2022
If changes to the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA) code of ethics Standard 3 are to happen it will not happen until next year, according to BT Financial Group.
BT’s head of financial literacy and advocacy, Bryan Ashenden, said some confusion had been created after it had been reported that there was a possibility of FASEA making amendments to the problematic conflict of interest standard.
“I don’t think we’ll see a change imminently on Standard 3 as FASEA have only said they would consult on the issue and pass the findings onto Treasury. That means any changes will not take effect until at least January 2022 and that is only if Treasury makes amendments,” he said.
“That means that if there are some advisers still struggling with Standard 3, that struggle will still continue. It’s important for advisers in that situation to make sure they can get the support they need such as education on the code. There are options for them.”
Ashenden noted that as the FASEA code was only 18 months old, if changes were made the question was would that create more confusion or provide the clarity some of the industry was looking for.
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