Accounting groups still firm on ending accountant certificates

The major accounting groups are standing firm on their calls for an end to so-called “accountant certificates”.

The groups also want to limit Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) oversight if the certificates remain.

Responding to questions on notice from a recent hearing of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services review the wholesale investor regime, CPA Australia, Chartered Accountants ANZ , the Institute of Public Accountants and the SMSF Association made their views on ending accountant certificates clear.

“As we have expressed in our previous submission to this inquiry we are of the view that so called accountants certificates should cease to exist,” their joint answer said.

“If the committee were to reject this recommendation and to propose that penalties should be imposed on accountants, as suggested by ASIC, then this area of the law must be significantly reformed and simplified so that accountants, product providers, financial advisers and investors can easily understand an accountants’ obligations and responsibilities. We do not support an increase in ASIC remit in this respect,” the groups said.

At the same time, the groups said they believed increasing the wholesale investor thresholds is vitally important in the context of removal of accountants certificates

They also pointed to concerns about investors self-certifying their status.

We think this is an argument for increasing the thresholds from their current amounts so that the impact of being classed as a wholesale investor is lessened and think it is vital for such clients to acknowledge in writing that they are happy to decline all retail client protections as recommended by the Quality of Advice Review,” they said.