The removal of the accountants’ exemption under the Future of Financial Advice reforms has prompted a partnership between the Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) and AXA and MLC.
Under the arrangement, designed to enable accountants to provide their clients with in-house financial advice, IPA members will have access to a financial services package including licensing and referral opportunities.
There are five licensing solutions offered, which the IPA says have been developed around basic financial advice, strategic advice and a more comprehensive option covering investments and insurance.
IPA members can also take advantage of an online referral system, which provides access to a pool of financial advisers across Australia from both the AXA and MLC advice groups.
Vicki Stylianou, IPA Executive General Manager – Innovation, said part of the intention of the initiative was to provide accountants with a comprehensive and flexible solution to providing financial advice to their clients.
“Our members can pick and choose between the two options (licensing or referral system),” Ms Stylianou said. “If they take the lower end licensing option, which is mostly based around self-managed super funds, that doesn’t allow them to then give full-blown investment advice. But they can still take that licensing option and use the referral system if their clients then need to proceed with investment advice. So they can mix and match.”
“I think the referral system will be quite popular, because quite a lot of our members already have some type of referral arrangement in place.”
We have heard a lot of stories, from both sides, where there’s been a mismatch and the referral arrangement just hasn’t worked
Ms Stylianou likened the referral system to an “online dating agency”, to match planners with accountants to make sure they can build solid relationships.
“We have heard a lot of stories, from both sides, where there’s been a mismatch and it (the referral arrangement) just hasn’t worked. So we’re really keen to make sure that the referral system and the matching between accountants and planners works effectively, and we’ll be monitoring that closely.”
