FPIAA born afterdifficult gestation

It's taken nearly two years, but it's finally happened. As of today (April 1) the new association representing financial planners and investment advisers is for real.
 

Sealing the deal with a handshake: FPIAA co-presidents Denys Wright and David Milner.

The Financial Planners and Investment Advisers Association (FPIAA) has been formed by merging the Association of Investment Advisers and Financial Planners (IAFP) and the Insurance and Investment Advisers Association (IIAA).
Former IIAA president and FPIA co-president David Milner says "the merger process has been difficult and demanding on all those who have participated but the boaards of both existing organisations are convinced that the new body will be the start of a new era in advisory professionalism in New Zealand."
Now the association has been born it can finalise documents to secure licencing arrangements for use of the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) marque with its United States based owners.
One of the CFP Board of Standards requests is that the FPIAA formalise arrangements for use of the Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designation used by advisers in the risk area.
The IIAA has been using the designation for sometime in New Zealand, however it has no formal arrangement for use of the designation.
Milner says there has never been any need to formalise the arrangements for use of the CLU designation.
However, it was now being formalised on request of the CFP Board of Standards.
The inaugural board of the FPIAA are, representing the IIAA: Milner, Andrew Charles, John Bunny, Paul O'Brien and Chris Pope. Representing the IAFP: Denys Wright, Phillip Matthews, Bernard Gresham, Stephen O'Connor and Gabrielle Wilson.
All the FPIAA branches have recently held meetings to elect new committees for the coming year.