Advisors admit they aren’t too familiar with financial reform and the impact it will have on their clients. In an SEI Quick Poll, nearly three-quarters of advisors surveyed said they were “somewhat familiar” or “not familiar” with the impact financial reform will have. Furthermore, 56% said they haven’t discussed reform with their clients in the past year. Just 6% of advisors said they were “very familiar” with details of the financial reform bill.
Forty-one percent of advisors say they aren’t sure if the financial reform bill will have a positive effect on the advisory industry. Forty-three percent aren’t sure how reform will affect their practice, and 40% are unsure about how reform will change the way their clients use their services.
Regarding the bill itself, 11% of advisors said they thought reform would better protect investors and make advisors more accountable. Thirteen percent said the government should have made it a bigger priority, but the majority of advisors (57 percent) said it received too much attention at the cost of more pressing issues.