Tue, 18th Feb 2025

In this week's Finance News Wrap, major changes affect financial advisors, requiring them to hold a bachelor's degree in any discipline with a financial element and comply with robust standards from January next year. This change aims to balance accessibility and professional integrity, negating the need for annual ASIC registrations from July 2026. Anticipation rises around the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) decision on potential interest rate reductions after four years. Despite inflation reaching a sustainable level within the RBA's target range, experts cautionary flag inflationary pressures from the strong job market. Lastly, speculation persists on whether the RBA will cut policy rates from 4.35% to 4.10%, given international tensions and domestic uncertainties like election year and trade volatility.n