The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) is awaiting ASIC’s revision to Regulatory Guide 183 (RG 183) before making any calls for its code of conduct submission.
The government’s recent changes to the Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) bill allows advisers to be exempt from the opt-in obligation if the adviser has signed up to a professional code approved by ASIC.
“To [obtain] an approved ASIC code you need to comply with what will come out as a revised RG 183,” AFA chief executive Richard Klipin told InvestorDaily.
“We’ve been in discussion with the regulator and we’ll wait until RG 183 is revised so we’ll be able to see exactly what’s required as a code-issuing body.”
He said the revision to RG 183 may require approved codes to be more prescriptive than principles-based, therefore the AFA is waiting in order to “fundamentally get it right”.
The key thing about a code is to ensure that members bound by the code ensure they understand what’s expected in terms of the way they practice, conduct themselves and relate with their clients, Klipin said.
“It’s a fairly serious undertaking to be an approved code under ASIC guidelines,” he said.
A release date for the revised RG 183 is uncertain but Klipin said further talks with the regulator confirmed that it is engaged with FoFA implementation.
“We’re likely to come out at our roadshow in July with some further guidance on that,” he said.
At the AFA/Financial Services Council Leadership Forum on 1 May, ASIC commissioner Peter Kell said approving the codes will take months, not weeks.
Meanwhile, AFA’s Principles of Practice code is now in consultation with members and other key stakeholders.
This is the AFA’s response to lifting standards and giving meaning to the AFA’s code of ethics, Klipin said.
