Phew! It seems that David Murray’s interim report of the government’s Financial System Inquiry poses no real threat to the Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) having backslid on the previous government’s requirement that financial advisors must act in the best interests of their clients–despite Minister Mattias Cormann’s protestations to the contrary and Clive Palmer’s backflip. –> http://www.theage.com.au/money/planning/big-puzzle-of-palmers-backflip-20140716-ztoab.html
FoFA released financial advisors from a lot of unnecessary red tape and nonsense, didn’t it? (“No, your honour, the fine print mentioned that I’d be getting commissions for myself and doing the odd bit of churning with my client’s funds. He was clearly warned of the risks.”)
All these financial sector inquiries make a weird sort of sense when the only remnants of what used to be the Australian economy are represented by vast sums of money looking for a home, whether in superannuation or elsewhere. How can any recommendations be in the best interests of a client in Australia’s present economic circumstances?
No longer a service sector, the Australian FIRE sector* and rent-seeking continues to run rampant.
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* Finance, Insurance and Real Estate
Real Estate Agents can lie, cheat and deceive without prosecution unlike Financial Planers who, if caught, can be prosecuted with a slap on the wrist with a feather duster for lying, cheating and deceiving.
Looks like the Government is about to legislate against feather dusters.