During question time at the FPA Roadshow last Friday – which was conducted on-screen through a digital audience engagement tool – one anonymous attendee asked Mr De Gori if the FPA supports members who are aligned to the major banks.
“Is the FPA representing CFPs and other members with the major banks?” the question read. “As a CFP bank adviser, best interests come a distant second to group product sales.”
Mr De Gori responded by condemning any practice that undermines the client best interests duty and encouraged attendees to report such behaviour.
“It doesn’t matter who I speak to – licensees, product providers, fund managers, insurance companies – what I represent is the ability for the individual practitioner to provide advice that’s in the client’s best interest,” he said.
“It’s about the way you treat the client and that for me is paramount and that’s what you have to live by, and I’d encourage you that if that type of stuff is happening then report it. Tell us.”
Mr De Gori said the reputation of each individual financial adviser hinges on how the advice industry is perceived as a whole by the wider community.
“At the end of the day, we’re all here to provide quality financial advice to consumers and it shouldn’t matter who you work for or who you are licensed through to do that,” he said.
“It’s about you being a practitioner who provides services that are in the best interest of the client. That is paramount.”
Oh the irony! The FPA getting remunerated by the banks is apparently “not conflicted”, but they’ll push LIF through as fast as possible because commissions are “conflicted”
Does the FPA think everyone has forgotten how the FPA and AFA supported the banks in the LIF or that a big percentage of their membership and pay is coming from the banks. I haven’t seen the FPA reporting them.
It’s a twisted and sad tale. the FPA/AFA getting payments from the banks via it’s professional partner program and as soon as the banks are in the press with banned advisers funny how the solution offered is discounted membership of the FPA. The FPA came out and said nothing about the recent CBA scandals and now LIF. If anything good is coming out of this story, it’s an awareness of just how conflicted the FPA is and is running a different agenda to it’s members.
What a lot of crock – I have worked both in a bank and now externally and to say that the banks are putting clients best interests second is an absolute lot of rubbish. Maybe they should ensure that when a digital audience engagement tool is used, they should make sure they also check if these voters are actually from a bank. It would take a very brave manager inside a bank to be pushing this agenda in this environment and whilst I am no longer in the bank, I still have many contacts with the FP and the managers nationally and I have never heard this
Not rubbish at all, happens every single day. Yes, they throw the words “best interest” around, but at the end of the day, all they do is get creative about how that is interpreted to satisfy compliance. The end goal is always to just sell bank product
AJ – i have worked in both and i have seen both – some IFAs also use the same terms and have a different intent – unfortunately they slip through the cracks but I can assure you they exist in both the banks and IFA land which is what tarnishes the Planner brand
Well I’m a current bank planner, and I don’t think it’s rubbish. In my opinion, there are a number of ways advice in the bank is dressed up as Best Interest, but in the end it’s still all about the product. If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t have had my friendly platform BDM and insurance BDM present in our last ‘strategy’ meeting on ways to increase how much revenue my team are generating.
Oh ok, so having a BDM presenting at your strategy day will make you dodgy – last time I checked every provider presents at PD days and all aim to assist you in finding the best way to find clients and the intent being to use their products as a solution, how to communicate with them, identify their needs and sell to their needs – I think your comment says more about you than who you work for. Don’t forget, the same BDMs speak at IFA PD days as well – maybe this is why no one in the IFA market will hire you as you don’t seem to understand product flogging v professional sales
The FPA is conflicted here in that it get’s remunerated by the banks and product manufacturers via it’s professional partner program, to the tune of a six figure sum. Are they going to go to the banks one day asking for a cheque and go back the next day with a big stick? I’ll let you answer that. In regards to this question Danti has a conflict of interest. So expecting the FPA to represent the wants or even the plea of a desperate planners hoping they’ll help lift professionalism is a waste of time. The obvious answer only left for Danti , is the one he gave. The FPA is out of step with it’s members.
Ahhh Dante wants it reported…..or no action taken …every day at every bank Dante a breach of clients best interests ,and also members of FPA ,so are you going to show leadership?
at least this bloke spoke the truth, bet that got dante a bit hot under the collar
Gee, I thought even ASIC knew and understood that was what happens in the banks. Come to think of it, probably not. The banks get what they want !
well Derr ! who wasn’t aware of that kind of continuing behavior? while everyone else is moving to a more advice based 9flat fee structure, the good ole boys at the bank are still mixing it up with % take on top of the fee.