Intermediaries / Brokers / General

Hurdles that SA-based advice practices must clear, ASAP

Broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) and the potential for South Africa to find itself on the global Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list are two prominent issues that local financial and risk advisers will have to navigate in the coming 12-18 months. And although the 2022 Morningstar Investment Conference was mainly aimed at investment-focussed independent financial advisers (IFAs), wealth advisers and holistic financial planning practices, the matters discussed will impact on all advice-focused financial services providers (FSPs), product providers and their mutual clients, South Africa’s financial services consumers.

Advice imperatives and the lingering impact of Covid

The financial ‘hangover’ linked to the Covid 19 pandemic is far from over and without intermediary intervention, people who have been hard hit by the economic fallout thereof, may be at risk.

Have you forgotten about your client?

The compliance and operational challenges facing 21st Century financial and risk advice practices often shifts focus away from the critical dual roles of offering impartial, quality financial advice and implementing needs-appropriate financial solutions to clients. No surprise then, that the Financial Intermediaries Association of Southern Africa (FIA) 2022 Advice Summit singled out client centricity as among the dominant themes affecting intermediaries and product providers today. Being able to meet evolving client needs enjoyed as much exposure as ‘big picture’ issues like climate change, cyber risk, digitalisation and sustainable underwriting.

An adviser worth their salt: Understanding the impact of the outside