FPA claims strong member growth

The Financial Planning Association (FPA) added 1,047 new members to its ranks during the 2009-10 financial year.

The association said it had seen particularly strong growth in its ‘student’ membership category, but this growth was offset by losses of practitioner members, which the FPA put down to practitioners retiring or changing careers.

The FPA said that, as in previous years, its biggest loss was in general members, with a net loss of 224 over the year. The number of principal members was also down by 21, or 4 per cent, albeit with losses of small principals partly offset by gains in the number of medium principal members.

FPA chair Julie Berry said the growth in membership represented “a record for the past few years”.

In her Chair’s Report, Berry said the “struggles and determination of the FPA mirror the growing pains of the industry itself”, acknowledging that the Board had been challenged by members to justify its position over the past year.

Responding to that, Berry said while the FPA did act in the interests of members, it also acted in the interests of the public by holding FPA members to higher education and ethical standards as the industry seeks to move towards a profession.

Berry, who will leave her post as Chair after this year’s annual general meeting, said she was “proud of the long strides we have taken towards becoming a true profession, under circumstances that have been challenging for both members and the Board”.

On the financial front the FPA noted a reduction of more than $304,000 in conference and seminar revenue compared to the previous year, and a decrease of more than $309,000 in Certified Financial Planner program enrolment and certification revenue. The association also noted a decrease of more than $313,000 in contributions made by principal members to the Value of Advice Campaign.

Overall membership subscriptions remained “virtually steady” compared with 2008-09, while revenue from continuing education increased by more than $205,000.

In revisiting its achievements over the past year Berry noted the association’s efforts to communicate with Government, including attending more than 40 meetings with Government representatives and regulators, making 22 formal submissions to Government and sitting on 11 committees.

This work was in addition to other initiatives, including issuing its new adviser remuneration policy, releasing an education white paper, updating its code of ethics to include a ‘client first’ principle, and implementing an anonymous reporting service to identify rogue advisers.