SMSF Association responds to ASIC criticism
The SMSF Association has acknowledged “pockets of poor advice” as it responds to a highly critical report from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) suggesting that up to 90 per cent of advice is non-compliant.
SMSF Association chief executive, John Maroney said the ASIC report represented an important signal to the SMSF sector that the quality of financial advice provided to SMSF members was crucial to the integrity and performance of the sector.
“The pockets of poor advice provided to SMSF members are concerning, especially given the important role financial advisers play in assisting SMSF members with their retirement savings,” Maroney said.
He said that while the ASIC report had highlighted the need to improve advice practices, the SMSF Association had noted the high number of files that ASIC viewed as non-complaint did not indicate a risk of financial detriment but attracted ASIC’s scrutiny on record keeping and process grounds.
Maroney said that, similarly, ASIC’s definition of financial detriment to an SMSF member was subjective and difficult to evaluate without the member’s view being known.
However, he acknowledged that SMSF advice provided by property one-stop shops was a particular concern.
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