MAS mystery shoppers expose shoddy financial advisers

A recent mystery shopping survey by MAS had confirmed some misgivings about the financial industry: When it comes to providing customers with quality advice and information, there is "significant room for improvement". The survey found that almost one-third of the product recommendations by financial advisers were assessed as "unsuitable", while adequate product disclosures were found to be lacking.  In a speech at the “Market for Financial Advice” symposium at SMU yesterday, MAS assistant MD Lee Chuan Teck outlined two key roles of financial advisors: first, they should impart basic financial planning skills to clients; second, they should help clients understand the specific products in which they invest. Mr Lee was of the view that there is much room for improvement on both fronts. He also observed that "some of the representatives could be acting more as product distributors than as financial advisers".