Consumer trust isn’t something to be taken for granted, but reports from the UK, US and here at home are all pointing towards an uplift in trust levels around financial advice, which can only be a welcome development.
There are significant tailwinds behind the financial advice industry at the moment, but some major obstacles are still preventing advice practices from taking advantage of surging demand according to a new study from CFS.
Stockbrokers association drops financial advice monitor
The Stockbrokers and Financial Advisers Association (SAFAA) is changing its name to the Stockbrokers and Investment Advisers Association (SIAA). The subtle change of replacing ‘Financial’ with ‘Investment’ Advisers is believed to better reflect the new SIAA’s broader purpose and its place in the industry.
The old word, “financial,” was inaccurate and slightly misleading, according to the body’s chief executive, Judith Fox.
It’s the “financial planning lens” that doesn’t fit the association’s image. The organisation says the change is more reflective of its “membership’s roles” and “responsibility,” given that not all members provided financial advice. The SIAA’s membership is made up mainly of stockbrokers, wealth advice and portfolio management services. The body advocates for ethical, efficient and stable listed equity and debt markets in Australia, and represents about 8,000 professionals. These include:
- Retail and wholesale stockbrokers and investment advisers
- Institutional advisers
- Legal and compliance staff
- Back-office staff
- Corporate finance
- Research roles
- Adviser support roles
The name change will help differentiate members from financial advisers, risk advisers and mortgage brokers. “We realised it was difficult for us to get them to understand that our members provided a different service,” Fox says.
Fox agrees that with the Quality of Advice Review on the way, clarifying exactly what members in the organisation do is an important step in helping clients and the broader community understand the wealth management and stockbroking industry.
“I don’t use that word lightly, but it was a unanimous vote from members, which was fantastic. We had to talk to our members over a period of time to see what they thought about the new name because it has to reflect what they believe,” adds Fox.
The change, although minor, could very well be helpful for the community when distinguishing the main focus of SIAA; that being a wealth generation and investment body from a financial planning, risk and mortgage broking body.
