Avoid feeling foolish on April 1

Figures released yesterday from ETITO reveal just 2559 advisers have sat and passed the Standard Set B exam - the best indicator of AFA numbers.

While other assessments such as the Standard Set C have competency equivalents, Standard Set B is "the one exam every AFA has to do", according to the Securities Commission's Mel Hewitson.

"We suspect there will be quite a few that won't hit the March 31 deadline that will come in later," she said.

"I think we're probably more likely to end up by July 1 with somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000  AFAs and then there'll be more that come after that."