[Weekly Wrap] Boosting positive profile

Money Week is nearing its end and advisers have been told to make the most of it to raise awareness of what they do - and the need for advice.

Friday, September 6th 2013, 12:34PM

by Susan Edmunds

The IFA has been running an offer of pro bono advice from financial advisers and its president, Nigel Tate, said it was important to take opportunities when they were available.

He said stories such as David Ross were bad for the public image of the industry and advisers needed to fight back with positive stories.

He won't have been pleased, then, that another former AFA is in the gun for alleged theft, among other things. It is claimed that Andrew Robinson used investors' money to pay out other investors, in what looks a bit like it might have been a Ponzi scheme. He's been in court this week.

Ben Brinkerhoff, of NZ Wealth, said the industry would do itself a favour if it dropped commissions. He is sceptical that any adviser could really put them to one side and consider the clients' interests first. This is an ongoing conversation that was given new life by the Code Committee's proposed changes, which make paramount the need to put a client's interests first. Its chairman, David Ireland, said however advisers were paid - hard, soft, or no commission - they needed to be able to ensure that any decision was made with the client's needs in mind.

Submissions on the proposed changes close today. We'll have more on what industry participants said over the coming days. The Skills Org was welcoming of some of the proposals here.

On a more pragmatic note, AdviceFirst has bought out four more financial adviser businesses and its executive chairman Peter Chote told me that one-man-band operations risked devaluing their businesses if they held on too long, which sparked some debate among commenters.

And on the investment front, Tyndall ofered its view on US tapering plans and Harbour looked at Northern Hemisphere uncertainty.

Mortgage news was all about the looming LVR restrictions - already they're making borrowing more expensive for borrowers with small deposits. Keep an eye on our people page for job advertisements and new appointments.

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