AFA advocacy helps win advisers major relief on ASIC Funding Levy

Mon, 30 Aug 2021 21:40:13 +0000

Michael Nowak

The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA)’s advocacy on behalf of its members has helped win a major concession from the Government, with the proposed trebling of the ASIC Funding Levy (the ASIC Levy) on hold, AFA National President Michael Nowak announced today.

“The proposed increase would have seen the ASIC Funding Levy per financial adviser increase by 200% in just over two years, from $1,142 in 2018/19 to an estimated $3,450 in 2020/21,” he said.

Mr Nowak said that in response to extreme concerns raised by the AFA and the advice sector about the impact of the increases, the Government has decided to reduce the ASIC Levy back to the 2018/19 level of $1,142 per adviser for the next two years, in the face of further Hayne Royal Commission recommendations being implemented.

During this time the Government has announced it will also be undertaking a review of the ASIC industry funding model to ensure that it remains fit-for-purpose.

“This is a much-needed move in the right direction, and I want to thank the Treasurer The Hon. Josh Frydenberg, MP and the Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and the Digital Economy the Hon. Jane Hume and the Government for finally listening to the AFA and the advice sector,” Mr Nowak said.

“The financial advisers the AFA represents are dealing with a requirement to sit a compulsory FASEA Exam and meet other education standards to keep their livelihood, on top of an overwhelming volume of other regulatory reform, huge sectoral restructuring and the impact of the COVID-19 crisis.

“It was unjustifiable to expect advisers already dealing with this tsunami of reforms to have to find extra cash to fund a trebling of the levy over two years to support an industry funding model requiring small businesses to pick up the cost of litigation against large institutions.

“This is a significant first step in starting to address the practical impact of the reforms on the ability of financial advisers to offer everyday Australians sound financial advice to give them financial security and independence.

“There is much more to be done to ensure that post the reforms financial advice can still be delivered in an efficient and cost-effective manner, thereby ensuring that it is available to the majority of Australians.

“The ASIC Funding Levy has been the subject of intense discussion at Parliamentary hearings throughout the course of 2021, and we thank all those politicians who have picked up this cause and lobbied on behalf of the financial advice profession.”

At the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services hearing with ASIC on Friday 27 August 2021, the ASIC Funding Levy was the subject of discussion for the first 50 minutes, with probing questions from a number of the committee members. The AFA thanks Andrew Wallace (LNP Qld), Bert van Manen (LNP Qld), Senator Deborah O’Neill (ALP NSW) and Steve Georganas (ALP SA) for their passionate pursuit of this matter.

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Politicians monitored for sleep, steps as part of life insurance wellness programs

Thu, 19 Oct 2017 20:30:59 +0000

Sally Loane

The Financial Services Council, which represents most of Australia’s life insurers, has launched the inaugural Parliamentary Friends of Insurance Group alongside MLC Life Insurance and AIA Australia.

At a launch event in Canberra on Wednesday 18 October, fitness data for three federal politicians – Senator Deborah O’Neill, Senator Dean Smith and Ms Terri Butler MP – was released to demonstrate how wearables and wellness programs can improve the health of Australians.

Each of the politicians wore a fitness tracker for one month to monitor step count, hours of sleep, heart rate and calories burned.

Their results were as follows:

Sally Loane, Chief Executive Officer at the FSC, said, “The life Insurance industry in Australia has been going through massive reform. It’s terrific to hear how insurers are using the latest technology to help people live longer and healthier lives, over and above providing insurance policies. These initiatives, which are beginning to merge positive health and life insurance outcomes, are very welcome.”

Life insurers are increasingly investing in wellness programs to help improve the health of their customers.

MLC On Track and AIA Vitality are examples of health and wellness programs designed to incentivise and reward customers for physical activity and positive health behaviours.

These programs deliver positive benefits for customers, as well as shared benefits for both government and insurers through lower health costs and lower claims. It’s a win-win-win and gaining traction across the industry.

Damien Mu, Chief Executive Officer of AIA Australia and New Zealand said, “Most Australians are aware that we could, and should, be taking steps to improve our health. But we overestimate our ability to make healthy choices consistently, and underestimate the long-term harm caused by daily unhealthy decisions. By rewarding healthy behaviour, health and wellness programs are a proactive way for life insurers to make healthy choices the easiest choices and help people live longer, healthier, happier lives.”

David Hackett, Chief Executive Officer at MLC Life Insurance, said, “As the life insurance sector adapts to changing customer needs and the era of big data, it’s vital that insurers use technology to provide more value to customers and support them throughout their lives, rather than simply at the time of making a claim.

“It’s great to be recognised for the work we are doing to improve the health of customers – and for our parliamentary representatives to engage in this push, and support us to support our customers,” said Hackett.

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AFA advocacy helps win advisers major relief on ASIC Funding Levy

The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA)’s advocacy on behalf of its members has helped win a major concession from the Government, with the proposed trebling of the ASIC Funding Levy (the ASIC Levy) on hold, AFA National President Michael Nowak announced today.

Politicians monitored for sleep, steps as part of life insurance wellness programs

The Financial Services Council, which represents most of Australia’s life insurers, has launched the inaugural Parliamentary Friends of Insurance Group alongside MLC Life Insurance and AIA Australia.