Professional standards reforms for financial advisers were introduced to the Corporations Act 2001 in March 2017 to raise the education, training and ethical standards of people providing personal advice to retail clients. In this second article of 2021’s Ethics Series, proudly sponsored by GSFM, the parallels between FASEA’s Code of Ethics and the Corporations Act will be explored and the benefits of an ethics-centric practice explored. It’s not news to anyone reading [...]

On 1 January 2020, FASEA’s Code of Ethics became enforceable by law, requiring advisers to comply with its 12 detailed standards. By the end of 2020, it was announced that FASEA (but not its Code of Ethics) would be disbanded. This article, proudly sponsored by GSFM, examines the importance of upholding these standards and how the provision of inadequate financial advice can lead to breaches. While FASEA and the standards [...]

The gatekeeper to the pool In an earlier article we explained risk pooling, a foundational concept in insurance. By aggregating together people with similar risks, those risks can be spread. A frequently cited example is that of ancient shipping merchants [1], who would come together and effectively pool and share the financial risks of one of their boats and/or cargo being lost at sea. A key enabler for life insurance [...]

Life underinsurance has been a much discussed – and debated – topic for more than a decade. Denounced by some critics for the perceived self-interest of those seeking to shine a light on the issue, recently released data[1] confirms the underinsurance gap is not only real, and significant, it is also widening. Structural developments within the sector are likely to exacerbate the problem further, posing challenges for advisers and their [...]