Financial Advice NZ funding a work in progress

Determining exactly how much money will be required to get Financial Advice NZ off the ground, and where it will come from, is something the working group developing the new adviser association is still grappling with.

Monday, July 24th 2017, 6:00AM

by Susan Edmunds

The PAA is holding a special general meeting on Thursday at which members will vote on the establishment of the new association.

“We have budgets set aside to fund Financial Advice New Zealand, however until we have a member vote at the SGMs these are confidential to the associations,” said PAA chief executive Rod Severn.

IFA president Michael Dowling said the working group had developed some initial budgets but they were subject to Financial Advice NZ’s establishment board agreeing to them.

The group is still in the process of appointing two independent directors and a mortgage industry representative.

Dowling will represent investment advisers and PAA president Bruce Cortesi the insurance sector.

It is hoped that the board will be confirmed before the joint conference next month.

Dowling said it was a matter of aligning different groups, arrangements and interests to get the budget sorted.

“IT’s one of the questions for the underlying bodies and one to work through with each one separately. It has to be done in separate stages and processes.”

The funding for the new association will come from the PAA, IFA and NZFAA.

The PAA’s contribution will not include the proceeds of the sale of the association’s holiday homes.

That money has been held on term deposit, separate from PAA funds, and will be transferred into a PAA legacy trust if the decision is made to wind up the association.

At the time the houses were sold, it was said that the money would be put into a separate trust.

Chief executive Rod Severn said the association had finished its search for members who had outstanding credits in the holiday home scheme. It had run newspaper ads, he said.

Anyone who came forward now would be treated on a case-by-case basis.

The money that went into the legacy trust would be used in accordance with the trust deed and objectives of the trust.

“The trust deed is to be accepted, agreed and approved by the PAA members at a special general meeting to be held specifically for that purpose."

Tags: Financial Advice New Zealand financial advisers IFA PAA