Becoming the best financial planner you can be

BY PIETRO ODENDAAL Head of School: Financial Planning and Insurance, Milpark Education

With the publication of the Treating Customers Fairly roadmap in 2011, the then Financial Services Board made clear their intention to professionalise the financial services industry. Their plan involved the restructuring of the regulatory framework for the South African financial planning landscape, with the goal of ensuring better and fairer treatment of the customers of financial services providers, as the name suggests. This was moulded against the backdrop of an industry that historically was purely sales- and commission-driven, consequently leading to the unfair treatment of and poor decisions by customers. In the South African context, this was exacerbated by low levels of both basic and financial literacy, increasing the risk of consumer exploitation. 1

Financial planning is increasingly being recognised as more than a sales-driven occupation; it requires the financial planner to have knowledge of the present legal, financial and economic environment and consider this together with the client’s social, psychological and other needs when making recommendations and giving advice. 2 Considering the multi-disciplinary nature of financial planning, it will be difficult to professionalise the industry without relying on education.

Luckily, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) seems to agree, as the fit and proper requirements for an individual to operate as a representative and give advice were drastically increased in 2017 with the amendment to the FAIS Act. 3 Representatives, or financial planners, are now required to undertake more training in the form of class of business and product-specific training, in addition to the existing requirements of a qualification that meets the Act’s minimum requirements, and the passing of the necessary regulatory examinations.

The completion of a recognised qualification is by far the biggest hurdle for a financial planner

The completion of a recognised qualification is by far the biggest hurdle for a financial planner, as it requires the financial planner to obtain at minimum a 120 credit NQF 5 qualification recognised by the FSCA. 4 A qualification at this level relates to 120 notional hours of studying. It is thus a big and time-consuming commitment that needs to be undertaken.

Choosing the right qualification from the list of 5 200 qualifications is therefore crucial.

Milpark Education offers 86 of the qualifications recognised by the FSCA. When you choose to study with Milpark, you do not merely have us as an education provider, but as a partner on your journey. Within the School of Financial Planning and Insurance, we have an excellent team of lecturers, who all have years of practical industry experience in giving advice to clients. We offer the perfect combination of academic theoretical and practical – exactly what you need in such an applied field as financial planning. We also have strong ties to industry and regularly involve other subject matter experts in our teachings, to ensure that you get exposed to more than just one way of thinking and providing advice.

Our alumni have excelled in the Financial Planning Institute’s Professional Competency Examination for CFP ® professionals, achieving an 18% higher pass rate than our next competitor in the recent March 2021 exams. Partner with Milpark Education on your journey to becoming the best financial planner you can be for your clients!

1 Treating Customers Fairly: The Roadmap (FSB 2011).

2 Van der Westhuizen WM The multidisciplinary nature of estate planning as a science (Journal for Estate Planning Law 2002(1)).

3 Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act 37of 2002.

4 FSCA FAIS Notice 55 of 2021 (FSCA 2021).