“It’s a terrible way to start a new regime”
Advisers are voicing confusion over the new re-registration process on the Financial Service Providers Register (FSPR) which they say has become significantly more complicated since the start of the new regime, with unclear instructions and a large number of different license categories.
Speaking to NZ Adviser, mortgage adviser Bruce Patten said he’s heard feedback from a number of advisers under the Loan Market FAP who are trying to re-register, but are confused by the previously unheard of options and are “scared of picking the wrong thing.”
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He said the links provided by the FMA offer no help, and the regulator itself has so far been unwilling to offer advice.
“A lot of advisers are trying to do their personal or company re-registration through the FSPR, but all of the categories have been changed,” Patten explained.
“It’s not as simple as just being an AFA or an RFA anymore - instead, it asks whether you’re a ‘6F or 6G’ adviser, and none of our brokers know what to pick. They’re scared to get it wrong, but the FMA won’t give advice and their links go to the legislation which contains a whole lot of legal jargon.”
“As a group, we’re a bit reluctant to give our advisers advice because they all deal with different things - some do KiwiSaver, others do insurance, etc.,” he added. “There are so many options, and it’ll take a while for us to work it all out.”
Patten said that there has been a lot of uncertainty and very limited direction from regulators, and those advisers who have sought guidance from the FMA have been refused any advice.
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“It’s a terrible way to start a new regime,” Patten said.
“If you Google ‘what is a class 6F adviser,’ it comes up with nothing, and the FMA is saying ‘we can’t tell you what you are.’
“I’m starting to get questions from other Loan Market advisers, but I don’t know the answer. It’s probably quite simple, but no-one is willing to facilitate any explanation. They created the framework, so they should be able to explain where advisers fit in.”
