Risk Regulatory Update
/FASEA registration relief for November exam, releases May results
The Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA) has announced relief from three-month registration requirements for the November 2021 Financial Advisers Exam. All financial advisers who have yet to pass the exam will be able to sit the November exam irrespective of the time of their last sitting. There will be two opportunities to sit the exam before the end of the current transition period (July or November sittings, or the September and November sittings. The exam will be remote and in exam venues dependent on COVID protocols.
The May 2021 FASEA Financial Adviser Exam results are out, with 74 per cent of those sitting the exam for the first time passing, with a total of 69 per cent of all candidates passing the exam. This is the twelfth exam.
AFCA address 70,000 financial complaints across 2020-21
The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) received over 70,000 complaints across the past 12 months, with complaints increasing regarding unauthorised transactions. There has been a reduction in complaints regarding people being in financial difficulty, down 40 per cent. Disputes were with banks, insurance companies, superannuation funds, investment companies and financial advisers.
Consumers and small businesses have received over $240 million in compensation and refunds, alongside other assistance like fee waivers, debt forgiveness and apologies. Remediation payments have been made of almost $32 million.
The most complained-about products in the past year were credit cards (14 per cent), home loans (9 per cent) and personal transaction accounts (8 per cent). Credit cards saw issues such as default listings and unauthorised transactions at the top of the list.
