CPA Australia says urgent action is needed to reverse the growing shortage at a time when many Australians will start retirement and are looking at volatile investment options like cryptocurrency, gold and property.
CPA superannuation lead Richard Webb says red tape is a key factor driving financial advisers out – their listed numbers fell from 26,500 in 2019 to 15,300 this month.
“More than 2.5 million Australians will retire in the next decade – many will be shocked to discover there are fewer than 15,300 professional financial advisers to assist them with some of the biggest decisions of their lives,” he says.
“With the increasing propensity of retirees to leave their super funds and seek higher investment returns through risky investments, expert financial advice is needed now more than ever.”
INVESTMENT RISKS
Research consultants CoreData and publishers Conexus Financial say their data shows that increasing numbers of Australians who are nearing retirement are planning to reinvest their superannuation savings in speculative and potentially volatile investment options such as cryptocurrency, gold and property.
“Investing retirement savings is complex, and carries with it intricate tax and super settings, asset tests and administrative burdens,” Webb says.
“However, getting the right advice is only becoming harder to find and more expensive.
“The federal government must take action to help alleviate the burden of regulation and costs faced by advisers before the shortage becomes an irreversible crisis.”
He says a tightening of regulations in the wake of the Hayne Royal Commission was intended to help clients but also drove advisors out.
“The cumulative effect of the regulatory burden imposed on the profession in recent years demoralised advisers to the point where many are now walking away from businesses they grew from the ground up,” Webb says.
“Superannuation funds could also do more to help prepare members for retirement but their ability to make appropriate advice available is diminished by the exodus from the profession.”
