Licence conditions placed on MyPlanner

A statement issued by ASIC today claims the regulator “has negotiated the imposition of additional conditions” on MyPlanner’s AFSL after an investigation found authorised representatives had provided “poor financial advice” and “lacked monitoring and supervision”.

The statement said the regulatory surveillance found that some advisers authorised under the licence had not made adequate inquiries into client circumstances or completed sufficient analysis to justify advice provided.

The licence conditions have also been applied to related entity MyPlanner Professional, the statement explains.

However, speaking exclusively to ifa, MyPlanner managing director Philippa Sheehan offered a slightly different chain of events, explaining that the company proposed an independent review to the regulator following the surveillance.

Ms Sheehan, who was named Dealer Group Executive of the Year at the ifa Excellence Awards 2017, said she tabled the review in line with her broader views on good governance in the industry.

“[I believe] that all licensees should be subject to the appointment of an independent expert for periodic reviews and part of AFSL conditions,” Ms Sheehan told ifa.

“This is something that should apply to the small, the large, the privately owned and the vertically integrated models.”

ifa understands that ASIC agreed to the terms but has subsequently positioned the press statement as the conditions having been “negotiated” and “imposed” by the regulator.

A number of MyPlanner authorised representatives were previously licensed by now-defunct licensee Custom Wealth Solutions before moving to SMSF Partners, which subsequently rebranded as MyPlanner after Ms Sheehan's appointment.