Being in the Financial Advisory and Mutual Fund Distribution service you may recall the way Financial Advisors conducted their business prior to the year 2002 when the ARN was introduced. Since then the AMFI registered advisor fraternity has come a long way and through rigorous training and education transformed themselves from mere Sales Agents into an enlightened, disciplined Financial Advisory Professional.
Since the abolition of entry load in July 2009 various IFA Associations were set up, some at State Level and others concentrated in larger cities such as Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi etc. But till date we lack a national leadership to properly guide and lead the community. We know that during the past one year various attempts were made by enthusiastic IFA groups to unite all and establish a Federation of IFA Associations but for some reason could not make much headway.
It is in this background that the All Kerala IFA association (AKIFAA) decided to take the initiative and extend a helping hand to take forward the ground work already done by like-minded associations. We have initiated the process of identifying and talking to IFA Associations / IFA groups who are active in various parts of the country with a view to bringing together representatives of such entities with a mandate to establish a Federation of Associations which will be the National Representative Organisation of the IFA Community.
We are pleased to inform you that our efforts have borne fruit and in this connection we are organising a meeting of IFA Associations from all over the country to discuss and finalise the name, form and structure of the proposed All India Body. The meeting will be held at Cochin on May 11, 2013.
I APPEAL TO ALL IFA ASSOCIATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PROPOSED MEETING AT COCHIN ON MAY 11, 2013 AND MAKE THE IFA FEDERATION A REALITY. SUCH AN OPPORTUNITY MAY NOT COME AGIAN IN A LONG TIME.
As of now, 8 associations have confirmed their participation : AKIFAA, IFA Galaxy (Chennai), ASK Circle (Kolkata), KAMFA (Bangalore), NIFAA (Chandigarh), MFDA (Ahmedabad), Pondicherry IFA Association, Coimbatore IFA Association
Main objectives of the Federation
The Major Objectives of the proposed Federation are as follows:-
To spread education and awareness amidst the public about the utility of mutual funds as an investment vehicle and the important role an Independent Mutual Fund Distributor (herein-after for sake of brevity called IMFD) can play in the role of financial planning, asset allocation, portfolio construction, succession planning, tax advisory and wealth management and protection and in short to aim to be the first port of call for the investment public for all their saving and investment needs. The principal and most critical objective of forming this federation is knowledge acquisition, skill enhancement, professional advancement, recognition and brand building and under no circumstances the federation will get involved with commercial negotiations with mutual funds for brokerage and other financial benefits and incentives. -
To provide an effective forum for the discussion of all matters pertaining to mutual funds and applicable laws and for the collection and dissemination of information relating thereto and for the development of better understanding and co - operation amongst the IMFD's, and all others concerned.
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To render financial and other help to the needy members and their families in distress or adversity in such manner as may be decided by the National Executive Committee.
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To strive for affiliation or association with national and international organizations having similar objects
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To undertake critical studies of mutual fund laws, other related laws, and their administration
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To set up a code of professional conduct, discipline and etiquette for the members
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To actively co-ordinate, engage, and co-operate in all possible ways with the mutual fund houses individually, AMFI collectively and the Ministry of finance, Government of India to enable the growth of the Mutual Fund industry along healthy lines.
Brief overview of the proposed structure
Only associations will become Federation members Being a federation, the proposed entity will have only IFA associations as its members. It will not admit individual IFAs as Federation members. We recognise that in some parts of the country, we do not yet have formally structured state/regional level IFA associations. To get over this issue, we propose to create an association called IFA India. Any individual who is not a member of a local / regional association which is a Federation member, but who wishes to contribute towards the Federation, will be enrolled as a member of IFA India. As soon as this association receives membership of over 100 members from a particular region, these members will be encouraged to form their own regional association, which will become a Federation member.
Simple and nominal fee structure Our proposal is that associations which have 100 members or below will pay a one time fee of Rs.5000 and associations which have more than 100 members will pay a one time fee of Rs.10,000.
Ongoing expenses will be divided and shared by each association in proportion of their membership as a percentage of overall members of all association which are Federation members.
Governance structure The following is the proposed structure of Office-bearers of the Federation
One President
One Executive President
One Senior Vice-President
Four Vice-Presidents
Seven Associate Vice-Presidents
One General Secretary
One Asst. General Secretary
One Director (Media)
Five Joint Secretaries
One Treasurer
I request all IFA Associations and IFA's to go through the Draft Bye Laws of the proposed Federation and let us have your views and suggestions. To read the Bye Laws please click on the following link
http://www.akifaa.com/selectedarticle.aspx?id=26;#Topic.
Suggestions may be sent to the following email ID''s :- allkeralaifaassociation@gmail.com and sureshnair.trivandrum@gmail.com.
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