My advice practice is overly conservative in the way it provides financial advice to our clients.
- Agree (66%)
- Disagree (32%)
- Not sure (2%)
Loading ...Our latest poll is seeking your views on whether your advice practice is overly conservative in the advice processes it uses, which the FMA believes is making advice less accessible.
In her address to Financial Advice NZ’s conference last week, one of the key messages from the FMA’s CEO, Samantha Barrass, was to encourage advisers to “…innovate and think differently, to introduce new advice journeys that tap into consumer groups who are currently underserved,” (see: Adviser Caution Making Advice Less Accessible).
In outlining the findings from the FMA’s Access to Advice Review which looked at challenges and opportunities for the financial advice sector, Barrass said too many financial advice providers seem uncertain about how to tailor the nature and scope of their advice.
“The new financial advice regime is a principles-based regime, which means you are able to deliver advice in ways that are right-sized for different consumers, circumstances, and channels.”
…the default is to be cautious and conservative, to use the six-step advice process each time…
She said one of the challenges with this appears to be “…that for many firms, faced with uncertainty about how to tailor the nature or scope of financial advice, the default is to be cautious and conservative, to use the six-step advice process each time. Our concern here is that this is making advice less accessible, not more accessible.”
She says an approach where advisers are restricting access because they are worried about the FMA is not the outcome it’s seeking.
Financial Advice NZ CEO Nick Hakes also noted the review’s findings point to a clear need to rethink how advice reaches people.
“There is a real opportunity to provide more targeted, right-sized advice rather than assuming every client needs a full, complex process. That shift is critical if we want to reach more New Zealanders, particularly those who currently feel advice is out of reach,” Hakes said.
So, do you believe your advice practice is innovative in looking for new advice journeys that could help make vital financial advice more accessible for more New Zealanders? Or is there a reason your advice practice prefers to be more cautious?
We are keen to learn your views and will report back next week…
