The recent announcement by Financial Planning Standards Council (FPSC) and the Institut québécois de planification financière (IQPF) regarding the publication of unified Canadian definitions and standards for planners can be viewed as a significant milestone, according to the Financial Planning Coalition.
The coalition, which is made of the FPSC, the IQPF, the Canadian Institute of Financial Planners (CIFPs) and the Institute of Advanced Financial Planners (IAFP), has been working on a framework for the official recognition of financial planning as a distinct profession.
Keith Costello, president and CEO of Toronto-based CIFPs, called the move a “significant step toward eventual recognition of the profession.”
The coalition recently released a survey that stated fewer than half of respondents, at 49%, understood the difference between a financial planner and a financial advisor. Also, 44% of Canadians believe financial planners are regulated, though this is not the case outside of Quebec. The survey was released in February and included more than 1,500 respondents.
The Financial Planning Coalition has also announced it intends to launch a campaign this spring to bring political and consumer attention to the issue.
“Canadians deserve to know that when they work with someone who claims to be a financial planner, that they will be working with someone who has met strict, enforceable standards of competence, practice and ethics,” according to the coalition’s statement.