Associations give nod to Financial Advice NZ

FAA, IFA and PAA have each given the green light for the establishment of the new adviser association, Financial Advice NZ.

Friday, July 28th 2017, 6:00AM

by Susan Edmunds

Each association held a special general meeting this week for members to vote on the formation of the new body.

In each case, the vote was unanimously in favour.

The constitution of the new association will now be ratified by the boards of those organisations and by the establishment board of Financial Advice New Zealand.

Once this is complete, the new body will be incorporated.

"We had to get to the point where we take a leap of faith, push the boat out and let it float on its own, and we are at that point now,” said IFA president Michael Dowling.

He said there was now a mandate for it to act as a separate entity and work would begin on arranging funding for it.

Each organisation would have to go through its own process to determine whether they would close, he said.

Dowling said the ideal would be that Financial Advice NZ ended up the strong voice for the industry.

“We can’t say how that process works for every organisation.”

It had taken almost three years to get to this point in the development of the association, he said. “This outcome is very pleasing.”

Bruce Cortesi, president of the PAA, said it was time for the Financial Advice NZ establishment board to take hold of the reins.

Over the past four weeks, an appointments committee has been working through more than 40 applications for positions on that board. The final make-up will be announced at the conference on August 3.

The establishment board will be responsible for getting Financial Advice New Zealand operating. This will include developing the operational infrastructure and building the framework for the new body to deliver on its objectives in advocacy, standards and promotion. The board will remain in place until the first AGM.

David Yates, general manager of NZFAA, said his association was pleased to have been invited to be part of the process.

“We’re very excited about the possibility that Financial Advice NZ represents for the industry. The thing that’s encouraged me more than anything else is the obvious genuine desire to make this work for the whole industry.”

Cortesi said the insights the group had picked up about the industry as it worked through the development phase had been beneficial.

"As one of our last actions as a working goup, we’d like to again take the opportunity to thank everyone who has participated in bringing Financial Advice New Zealand to life. Your involvement has been crucial in defining how our new association can best support advisers, advice and the New Zealand public."

Tags: Financial Advice New Zealand financial advisers Financial Advisers Act IFA PAA