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.
The legislative threads surrounding financial services “look less like an elegant tapestry and more like a painting by Jackson Pollock”, the ASIC chair said, before announcing a new thinktank to reassess ways the regulator can help make the system more efficient and less complex.
Amidst a healthy uptick in investment returns and consumer confidence, the ESG sector is coming to grips with increasing concern about greenwashing, which has now become the major deterrent for investors – up from 45 per cent in 2022 to 52 per cent today.
Clearview and trustee ETSL have raised eyebrows and confused advisers by shifting the popular WealthFoundations super and pension product to investment platform provider HUB24. “It’s like a power plant being run by a battery,” says adviser Jason Poole. “It makes no sense.”
While advisers and their licensees place most of their compliance eggs in the SOA basket, the real focus should remain on more robust client discovery and documentation processes according to Assured Support’s Ben Moffatt.
Asset managers have quickly ascertained the region’s growing appetite for alternative investments will not abate any time soon, but liquidity and gate provisions will need to improve.
As the biggest ETF provider in Australia, Vanguard has the right to crow about another knockout performance over active equity. But invective commentary is a red flag, especially when it’s based on something as changeable as recent market performance.
Despite its potential and the massive investment behind it, the Consumer Data Right has had little impact due to a host of factors. Frustrated with its low take-up, the government is making changes to put the framework on “more sustainable footing”.
By investing in healthcare property, specialist teams can offer both stable income and the potential for capital growth. But it’s the idiosyncratic characteristics of property healthcare that make it so attractive according to Barwon.
