AIPB accuses MFAA CEO of “spin”
By Jill Fraser for Lending Central
Australian Institute of Professional Brokers’ co-founder Maria Rigoni claims an “agenda” is behind MFAA CEO Phil Naylor’s negotiations with lenders regarding volume-based accreditation.
(Refer Naylor’s interview with Lending Central 31 July – www.lendingcentral.com/2009/07/31/mfaa-goes-into-bat-for-brokers/)
Rigoni believes that Naylor’s suggestion that lenders adopt broker professionalism as criteria for quality is avoiding the real issues and capitalizing on the situation in order to push the barrow of higher education needs for brokers.
“I feel that he is gearing up the “industry” to accept that professional brokers will be required to have a Diploma in Finance/Mortgage Broking, which of course is a great revenue raising exercise for the MFAA, a Registered Training Organisation,” Rigoni told Lending Central.
“At the MFAA conference Phil stated that “down the track” a broker would be required to hold this qualification in order to retain MFAA membership.”
Rigoni says the AIPB is baffled as to why brokers should have to pay out money for a qualification that will simply prove competency in skills and knowledge that they already possess and utilize on a daily basis.
She says; “professional development should be about expanding brokers’ skill and knowledge base rather than just demonstrating that they don’t have to relearn what they already know”.
From personal experience Rigoni claims that the MFAA has already “shifted the goal posts” regarding the level of training required for membership of the industry body.
“Originally Certificate 4 was required by 1 July for membership renewal. But recently MFAA correspondence stated that even though I am a paid up member to December 2009 retaining my current membership is dependant upon my ability to prove that I possess Certificate 4.”
Her concern is that this is a revenue raising exercise as opposed to a desire to increase broker professionalism.
Rigoni says the AIPB is committed to advancing the skill and knowledge level of Finance Brokers through quality ongoing training and development, which she stresses should be available at a realistic cost.
In response to the many questions posted on Lending Central about the AIPB Rigoni has supplied the following information.
• The AIPB sees Finance Brokers as one team with a game plan to be champions and not as spectators paying to see others play the game.
• The AIPB was formed as a call to action from the profession.
• The call was for an organisation that is honest, open and transparent; that beyond doubt represents the Finance Broker as its main focus; that asserts the value of the Finance Broker as a profession; that knows the genuine challenges that face the Finance Broker as an individual, a business and as a professional and is a vehicle where the Finance Broker can speak their truth without fear of reprisal.
• The call was for a team that is prepared to stand firm and confront the power imbalance in the market place where currently Finance Brokers’ can be openly taken advantage of due to them being part of a ‘hidden’ or ‘invisible’ workforce and for understanding that by acknowledging, valuing and utilising the knowledge, skill level and experience in the Finance Broker profession the financial services sector, government, credit providers and borrowers will be better off.
The AIPB’s intention is to be a unified and powerful voice for all categories of finance brokers.
We expect our membership base will continue to grow as a result of our actions taken to improve the life of a finance broker. Membership based on a desire to be “a part of” has more power than membership based on force and/or exclusion.
The AIPB has stated objectives:
* To provide a forum and focus for all matters affecting Finance Brokers.
* To advance the professional image and functioning of the Finance Broker.
* To ensure Finance Brokers are recognised and acknowledged as a valuable commodity to borrowers, credit providers, government, regulators, and the Australian public
Only finance brokers have a voting right in our organisation as we see there is no need for non-brokers to vote on issues that concern brokers.
To the AIPB the Finance Broker is more significant than the “Accredited Mortgage Consultant (AMC)” label. They can be a professional operating in many areas of the Financial Services Sector. We intend for the Finance Broker to be renowned for their positive contribution to all levels of the Australian Community.
We choose not to have conflicts of interest created through the provision of moneys by lending institutions to help us get going or survive.
We choose not to have a conflict of interest by being a Registered Training Organisation and membership that hinges on qualifications.
We will work with finance brokers to ascertain what training they believe will enhance professionalism and will recognise any Registered Training Organisation that offers competitive quality options to achieve the Finance Brokers needs. If lenders wish to provide broker training on their policy, their product and their service offering to try and win the brokers’ confidence to sell their individual offering we will insist that it is at their expense and not the brokers’.
We are working on a submission to ASIC about our views on the current standard of training in our industry and what we see as a requirement to move forward with industry regulation.
We have made ASIC, ACCC and Government ministers from both sides of the house aware of clawback of finance broker commissions and asked their opinion on the practice. We have also had discussions with legal professionals regarding this matter and are currently considering various options.
We do not accept the opinion that the broker is employed by the lender and the assumption that the lender has employment rights as a result of having a contract in place with an aggregator. We will not stand by silently and see that the independent broker is confused as a broker representative of aggregators. There needs to be a very clear line drawn between the role of a Licensed Financial Planner, Mortgage Managers and Aggregators and a Finance Broker (whether they are required be licensed or not requiring to be licensed under the new regulation).
We are working on strategies and submissions to the appropriate people to ensure finance broker issues are heard and dealt with at the appropriate level within and outside the industry.
The AIPB is scheduling a road show in Berwick, Albury/Wodonga, Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide in September and October so that brokers can meet us and hear more detail about our current actions and plans to be implemented to improve the Finance Broker standing in Australia.
