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SMSF practitioners ‘unsure’ about limited licensing
An SMSF Adviser straw poll addressing the effectiveness of the limited licensing regime has produced mixed results, mirroring the uncertainty felt across the SMSF sector.
In response to the question, ‘Will the new limited licensing regime improve the quality of SMSF advice?’ 35.9 per cent of the 131 respondents answered ‘Yes’.
A further 22.9 per cent answered ‘No’, while 30.5 per cent said ‘It will have no effect’. The remaining 10.7 per cent said ‘Time will tell’.
“I think there are a lot of people sitting on the fence,” Jonathan Reynolds, partner at Skeggs Goldstien, told SMSF Adviser. “They’re unsure of what they’re going to do during this transition period.”
Mr Reynolds, an accountant and financial planner, said it is the accounting sector that believes the impact of the limited licensing regime will be negative, and the financial advisers who believe it will produce positive outcomes.
“I think you’ve got to take it from a client perspective: Is the client going to be better off? And the answer is yes,” he said.
Ian George, director at Countplus MBT, told SMSF Adviser that while he sees the benefits of being able to offer a full financial planning service to accounting clients, he doesn’t believe many accounting firms will seek their own licence.
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