Isn it just overlapping with current standards and other industry initiatives? Where is new ground broken?
A. While CPA Australia and the ICAA have had members involved in financial advisory activities for many years, these members have not had an objective set of standards, specifically designed for these activities, to adhere to — unless they were also members of other bodies. APS12 provides an objective set of professional standards which meet all the existing industry standards and sets higher standards in many areas – particularly making mandatory what other standards recommend as best practice, such as the provision of clear terms of engagement and clear fee schedules which detail all fees and the basis of their calculation.
