Boutique proclaims IFAs on ‘brink of extinction’

IOOF’s intended acquisition of SFG is evidence that the writing is on the wall for independent financial advice, one boutique firm has claimed.

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by Aleks Vickovich - May 23, 2014 11 comments

In a statement issued Wednesday evening, Roskow Independent Advisory co-director Neil Salkow warned about the long-term ramifications of institutional consolidation of the financial planning market at the expense of “ordinary people”.

“The status quo right now needs to be turned upside down and shaken up because it is not equal,” Mr Salkow said. “Current financial planning laws favour the banks and institutions at the expense of mums and dads in the community.

“The financial institutions have much deeper pockets than us for marketing and advertising on TV and radio. But people should remember that the first responsibility of those institutions is to shareholders, not to their clients.”

Mr Salkow said these household name institutions “do not belong in the financial advice space”, echoing the increasingly popular call for product sales and financial advice to be separated – a campaign given the name of ‘SoPA’ by the FPA.

The silver lining, Mr salkow said, is that “the new generation of financial advisers have stronger ethics”, putting them in a favourable position to sustain business growth.