The Canadian Association of Financial Planners is proposing to hive off those members holding the RFP designation into a new organization, further fragmenting the battle over financial planning proficiency designations in Canada.

In a letter to CAFP members this morning, chair Cheryl Bauer Hyde says that CAFP wants to, “raise the professional bar for all financial planners, not just those who have the R.F.P. We want to be the association of choice for all professional financial planners, regardless of their educational achievements. We cannot pursue those goals if we remain focused on the RFP”

She says that CAFP’s board of regents has concluded that the best way to promote the RFP is to create a new organization dedicated to its administration and promotion, “separate and independent from CAFP”.

The CAFP board is pledging to financially support the creation of this new organization. “The board has agreed to pay an amount of money that should cover the start-up costs of the new organization and fund 50% of its first year’s estimated operating costs. This will provide the resources that the new organization will need to communicate its message to its constituents, and to reach the critical mass necessary to sustain itself into the future.”

Bauer Hyde says that, “In the opinion of the CAFP Board, this is fair and reasonable, and is an equitable and amicable solution to an issue that has polarized this association for far too long.” She also says that it believes that this solution meets its fiduciary duties to the rest of the CAFP.

“CAFP can now implement various new programs and initiatives that will further distinguish its Practitioner Members in the Canadian financial services marketplace. We will be making appropriate announcements regarding those initiatives shortly,” she says.