New Zealand financial planners mightn’t be any better than their Australian cousins, according to business commentator Mark Fryer. Writing in the NZ Herald, he said the vast majority of NZ advisers rely on commissions. Disclosure in NZ works in much the same way as Australia – you only get told if you ask.

Now the NZ Government is considering a recommendation from the local Securities Institute – chaired by former Australian Securities and Investments Commission NSW Commissioner Jane Diplock – to bring commission disclosure into line with the Australian Financial Services Reform Act model. The peak body for the NZ planners, the Financial Planners and Insurance Advisers Association, is supportive of the move to compulsory disclosure.

Mr Fryer quoted outspoken economist Gareth Morgan – who will speak at the National Insurance Brokers Association Convention in October – saying commissions are a “deep-rooted swindle” and all advice should be fee-based.