Association Of Financial Advisers

What Association Of Financial Advisers does

The Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA), formerly the Association of Financial Advisers and founded in 1946, is the leading professional body representing financial advice professionals in Australia. The association serves two primary constituencies: practising financial advisers, planners, and advice professionals who require certification, ongoing continuing professional development (CPD), and industry representation; and Australian consumers seeking to find qualified financial planners through the Find a Planner directory and the co-branded Money & Life financial literacy platform. FAAA is structured as a private, membership-based association headquartered at Level 11, Suite 11.02, 55 Clarence Street, Sydney, with 11-50 employees and a national operating footprint across Australia.

FAAA's core offerings span four pillars. First, professional certification — most notably exclusive Australian licensing authority for the globally recognized CFP® (Certified Financial Planner) marks via agreement with the Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB). Second, professional development delivered through the FAAA Learn online learning platform, the Masterclass 2026 program (15 hours of CPD across three streams), CPD accreditation services, specialist designations, and the Financial Planning Education Council. Third, member services and community including the FAAA Portal (CPD tracker, community forum), FAAA Communities networking, FAAA Wellbeing mental health support, FAAA SafeID identity verification, the Career Centre job board, and the Advice Academy new-adviser pipeline program. Fourth, advocacy and events, comprising the FAAA Congress, FAAA Roadshow 2026, the FAAA Awards, policy submissions, and dedicated regulatory hubs (AML/CTF, CSLR, Delivering Better Financial Outcomes). Sub-brands include Money & Life (consumer), FAAA Learn, Advice Academy, and FAAA Wellbeing.

The business model is a subscription-based membership association: members pay recurring dues and receive the integrated package of certification, CPD, community, advocacy, and ancillary services. Revenue is supplemented by CPD accreditation fees, event registrations, sponsorship, awards programs, and directory-related services. The go-to-market is community-led and advocacy-driven, leveraging content (blogs, media releases, research publications including the Financial Planning Research Journal and Value of Advice Research), events (national roadshows, congress, awards), webinars, the FAAA Communities forum, and the consumer-facing Find a Planner directory. Distribution is primarily domestic single-country (Australia) through direct membership enrollment via the website and phone, an online self-service portal, and event-based channels. Leadership comprises Phil Anderson (Chief Executive Officer) and Sam Perera (President).

Name

Association Of Financial Advisers

Legal name

Financial Advice Association of Australia Limited

Website

https://afa.asn.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2026

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) is a Sydney-headquartered professional association, founded in 1946, that serves Australian financial advice professionals through CFP® certification licensing, continuing professional development, advocacy, and member community services, while supporting consumers via the Find a Planner directory and Money & Life platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Finance, Accounting & Risk (CFA/CPA/FRM) Certifications (EDAAANAD)

Keywords

• Professional association services
• Financial advice certification
• CFP certification program
• Member professional development
• Industry advocacy services

Headquarters

HQ city

Sydney

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: FAAA generates revenue primarily through membership fees from financial advice professionals. Members pay to join and receive benefits including CFP certification, professional development, community access, advocacy representation, and various member services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) is a membership-based professional association that serves as the united voice for financial advice professionals in Australia. It sells membership subscriptions that include access to the globally recognized CFP Certification program (the only such offering in Australia, licensed via FPSB), continuing professional development through the FAAA Learn online platform and Masterclass program, member networking through FAAA Communities and events (Roadshow, Congress, Awards), advocacy representation, and consumer-facing services such as the Find a Planner directory and the Money & Life platform.

Product overview

Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) operates as a professional association offering a unified platform of member services rather than a traditional product company. The core offerings include professional certification (CFP® Certification), online learning (FAAA Learn, Masterclass 2026), member portal access, and professional development programs. The association also provides consumer-facing services including Find a Planner directory and Money & Life consumer website. Events and awards programs (FAAA Congress, FAAA Roadshow, FAAA Awards) serve member engagement, while compliance hubs (AML/CTF Hub, CSLR Hub, DBFO Hub) support regulatory needs. Additional services include FAAA Wellbeing support, Advice Academy for new advisers, Career Centre, and Research Journal publication.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Money & Life: Consumer-facing financial guidance platform offering tips and articles for financial wellbeing.
• FAAA Learn
• Advice Academy
• FAAA Wellbeing

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFPSB is the global owner of the CFP certification program outside the U.S. FAAA is the exclusive licensing authority for CFP marks in Australia through agreement with FPSB, making FAAA the sole organization in Australia authorized to offer the globally recognized Certified Financial Planner designation.
• Money & LifecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMoney & Life (moneyandlife.com.au) is the consumer-facing platform co-branded with FAAA, providing financial literacy content, tips, and articles for Australian consumers to help them achieve financial wellbeing. FAAA logo appears alongside Money & Life branding on the FAAA website.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CFA Institute: CFA Institute is a global professional body offering the CFA designation, CPD, ethics standards and advocacy for investment professionals — directly analogous to FAAA's certification-plus-advocacy model for financial advisers, operating globally rather than in a single geography.
• CPA Australia: CPA Australia is a major Australian professional membership body for accounting and finance professionals offering certification, CPD, advocacy and member services — directly comparable to FAAA's structure, GTM motion and value proposition, but for accountants rather than financial advisers.
• Institute of Public Accountants (IPA): IPA is an Australian professional accounting membership body offering CPA designations, CPD and advocacy — comparable peer in scale, structure and recurring subscription revenue model serving finance professionals in the same geography.
• Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB): FPSB owns the CFP® certification program globally outside the US and licenses FAAA as the Australian marks authority; FPSB is the closest structural peer and principal partner, operating the same certification, advocacy and member-body model worldwide.
• Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ): CA ANZ is the peak body for Chartered Accountants in Australia/NZ providing designation, learning, advocacy and member communities — closely analogous to FAAA's role for financial advisers, including national CPD, policy influence and member events.
• Financial Services Council (FSC) Australia: The FSC is the peak industry body for Australia's financial services sector, providing policy advocacy, member events and industry research — directly comparable to FAAA's advocacy-led GTM motion, but representing product issuers and super funds rather than individual advisers.

Regional players

• Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI): CISI is a UK-headquartered professional body offering financial services certifications, CPD and membership services — comparable in business model and certification focus to FAAA, but serving UK and other non-Australian markets rather than competing directly domestically.
• CFP Board (US): CFP Board is the US licensing authority for the CFP® marks and the closest direct functional equivalent of FAAA, but operates only in the United States and therefore does not compete in FAAA's Australian market.

Emerging players

• Australian Investment Industry Association (AIIA): AIIA is an Australian industry association for the investment management sector providing advocacy and member services — an emerging/niche peer overlapping with FAAA in financial-services advocacy and CPD, but focused on investment managers rather than individual advisers.

Broad incumbents

• AICPA & CIMA: AICPA & CIMA is a large global professional body offering the CPA and CGMA designations, CPD and member services — comparable broad incumbent in the finance-professional certification and membership space, though it is significantly larger and serves accountants rather than advisers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/AFAVoice
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/financial-advice-association-australia
• Instagraminstagram.com/faaa_au
• Xx.com/AFA_Voice

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

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