[Weekly Wrap] Room for two?

The TNP Professional Association (TNPPA), which only launched earlier this year, is looking at merging with the Life Brokers Association, whose members have already approved the amalgamation.  The vote will be put to TNPPA members in a couple of weeks' time.  If approved the new entity will be named the New Zealand Financial Advisers' Association (NZFAA).

One of the interesting issues around the deal is that the former LBA members who come across will now find CPD is compulsory.  The new organisation will look to provide similar services to the Institute of Financial Advisers but targeted mostly at Registered Financial Advisers (RFAs) who make up the bulk of the membership of both groups.  The IFA says it is happy to work with the new group; however, it says that while there can be a number of industry associations, there can only be one professional body in the industry because, according to IFA chairman Tony Vidler, "you can't have competing and different standards."

This morning we saw the latest development in the stoush between Elevation Capital and Marlin Global, with Marlin rejecting Elevation's criticism of its decision to renew Fisher Funds' management contract ahead of its annual meeting next week.  Elevation is pushing for Marlin to be wound up and capital returned to shareholders, while Marlin says Elevation has "misunderstood" its management agreement.  Suffice it to say, next week's annual meeting should be an interesting one.

Another interesting story this week was about NZ Funds' transition to a fee-for-service model in its financial advisory business, a move chief executive Richard James says has largely been welcomed by clients.  This includes those who have been brought across from other advisory firms NZ Funds has purchased, most of which ran an asset-based fee model that James has described as "insidious".  However, much of the industry still uses asset-based fees, as is the case in Australia where industry lobbying blocked a bid to ban such fees in the FOFA (Future of Financial Advice) legislation.