Letters to the editor: IIROC firms already meet the best interests of their clients

Re: Letters to the Editor: Confusion at Advocis?, by John De Goey, investmentexecutive.com, May 10, 2016

Re: Letters to the Editor: Higher professional standards needed, by Greg Pollock, investmentexecutive.com, May 6, 2016

Re: The wrong side of history, editorial, Investment Executive, May 2016

Mr. De Goey should have stated that he is a fee-only advisor. How does a new agent starting out in the business survive?

What happens to the client who may make a mistake and lose all of their retirement savings after being lured in by scam artists when there is no advisor to help them.

There is no confusion at Advocis. They have always been clear. Does Mr. De Goey pretend to say that commission-based advisors can’t be held to a higher or the highest standards? I beg to differ.

I have been an advisor for 20 years. I adhere to the code of ethics for five different designations and I always act in my clients’ best interest.

It is time to get out in the field and take your heads out of the sand. It is the clients that will suffer, if they don’t have the choice. While good and experienced advisors will likely survive, younger advisors will have more difficulty becoming established. Then, as the older advisors retire, the industry will find itself short of capable advisors with the knowledge to provide support for the majority of Canadians who need financial advice. Is that what the advocates at FAIR Canada and Mr. De Goey want?

In my opinion, having been in the industry for 20 years, listening to Canadians and helping them with every important financial decision gives me the right to say that this is not what the average Canadian wants. Just ask them!

Debbie Hartzman
CFP.CLU.CDFA.TEP.RRC
Professional Investments
Kingston, Ont.

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