Financial Services Guide

Financial
Services Guide
Issued 1 April 2025

About this guide

This Financial Services Guide (FSG) explains the financial services provided by Consultum
Financial Advisers Pty Ltd (Consultum) and your adviser (who is authorised through Consultum).
It is designed to help you make a fully informed decision about whether you want to use our
services.
Please take the time to read this guide carefully. Sound financial advice is based on open
communication. Understanding our services and our fees is the cornerstone of this communication.
It’s also important that you know who authorises your adviser, the nature of their associations and
relationships and what to do if you have a complaint.
If you have further questions, or if there is anything that isn’t clear, please talk to your adviser or
contact us.
Not independent
We provide services in relation to products in our Approved Product List, which doesn’t include all
possible products available in the market. In addition, we may receive commission on life insurance
products as explained in this FSG under the heading ‘How we are paid’. For these reasons, we do
not refer to ourselves or our advice as independent, impartial or unbiased.
About Us
At its heart, good financial advice is all about making the most of life – helping you to decide what
you want to achieve and setting the financial strategies to help you do it. Everyone has different
goals in life, but for most of us, finances play an important role in reaching them.
Consultum Financial Advisers was established in 2006 and is part of one of the largest advice
networks in Australia. Consultum works closely to support advisers to build an end to end
integrated solution so they can help clients to achieve their financial needs and objectives.
Your adviser provides professional advice to help you achieve what you want out of life. Consultum
practices are locally owned, employing highly qualified financial advisers. Each adviser has a legal
obligation and an ethical duty to act with integrity and in the best interests of their clients. Your
adviser is a self-employed practice owner or employed by the practice.
Your adviser, or the practice they work for, has chosen to partner with Consultum, who provides
your adviser with research, training, compliance, technical and operational support. Consultum is
responsible for any financial service your adviser provides on its behalf.
Consultum is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rhombus Advisory Pty Limited (Rhombus Advisory).
Rhombus Advisory provides various services and support to Consultum to enable it to operate its
business and support its clients.
Consultum Financial Advisers Pty Ltd
ABN 65 006 373 995 | AFSL 230323
Suite 3, Level 8, 309 Kent St,
Sydney NSW 2000
Phone: 02 9127 7699
Email: enquiries@rhombusadvisory.com.au
Website: www.rhombusadvisory.com.au
Who we are
Freedom Financial Planning Pty Ltd as The Trustee for the FFP Hybrid Unit Trust (255423) is a
Corporate Authorised Representative of Consultum (230323).
Authorised Representatives
The following financial advisers are authorised to provide the financial services referred to in the
‘Products and Services we provide’ section of this FSG to you on behalf of Consultum:
Adviser Name Authorised Representative No. Adviser Profile
Lee Robert Jackson 230878 Click here
Mark Struik 252560 Click here
Richard Unmack 252561 Click here
Ryan Dupuis 252562 Click here
Stephanie Anne Mitchell 1267366 Click here
In addition to the above Authorised representatives, the following Provisional advisers work within
Freedom Financial Planning Pty Ltd as The Trustee for the FFP Hybrid Unit Trust
Provisional Advisers
Provisional adviser Authorised
Representative No. Supervising Adviser Adviser Profile
Georgia Rose Maher 1316897 Richard Unmack Click here
Consultum has authorised us to provide you with this Financial Services Guide.
Contact us
For more information on anything you have read in this FSG, to obtain a copy of our privacy policy
or if there is anything else we can help you with, please contact us:
In person: Suite 29 270 Ferntree Gully Road Notting Hill VIC 3168
Phone: 03 9542 3200
Email: askus@freedomfp.com.au
Website: www.freedomfinancialplanning.com.au
Products and Services we provide
Consultum’s network of advisers provide a range of financial services including investing,
superannuation, retirement and insurance.
Financial products and services
Consultum authorises us to provide you with general and personal financial advice on the following
class and types of products.
Deposit and payment products
Life investment or life risk products
Interests in managed investment schemes, including investor directed portfolio services
(IDPS)
Retirement savings accounts
Superannuation
For any specialist accreditations for your adviser, click on their Adviser Profile link in the Authorised
Representatives section above.
Our Approved Products List
Our Approved Products List (APL) is a list of what we consider to be sound quality, fully researched
products, but doesn’t include all possible products available in the market. Only products and
services that have been examined by our experienced research team are placed on our APL.
When selecting products for you, your adviser is generally limited to the range of investment
products and a selection of 12 insurance providers on the APL.
Your adviser will first source from the APL before providing any recommendations. They will only
recommend a product or service after considering its appropriateness in relation to your individual
objectives, financial situation, needs and best interests. Where your strategy requires products and
services other than those on the APL to act in your best interests, our research team will be
consulted, and we will seek to find an alternative solution.
Important documents you can expect to receive
When your adviser provides personal financial advice for the first time, you will generally be given a
Statement of Advice (SoA). The SoA sets out your personal advice, the basis on which it is given,
the cost of the advice, and information about any associations or relationships that could influence
the advice.
If you require further advice at a later time, providing your circumstances have not changed
significantly since your previous SoA, your adviser may be able to provide the further advice
verbally or via a shorter Record of Advice (RoA).
If you are given verbal advice, your adviser will document the discussion and a copy of this record
can be made available to you on request. If you are given further advice and your circumstances
have changed significantly since your previous SoA, you will generally be given another SoA.
To help you make an informed decision about a financial product, you will generally be given a
Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) which outlines the product features and costs in detail. In
certain circumstances, there is no requirement to provide a PDS (including, for example, where you
already have one).
If you ask your adviser to undertake a transaction without receiving advice from that adviser, you
may be given a letter confirming your instructions and disclosing any costs payable by you in
relation to that transaction.
Important relationships and other benefits
Sometimes in the process of providing advice, we may receive benefits from product providers. Any
payments noted below are not an additional cost to you and will only be made to the extent
permitted by law. Arrangements that are relevant to the advice being provided to you will also be
disclosed in your written advice.
Your financial adviser may be a direct or beneficial shareholder in Rhombus Advisory Pty Ltd.
Shareholders in Rhombus Advisory may be entitled to receive dividend payments.
Product and service provider benefits
Consultum may receive sponsorship payments from product and service providers to fund technical
and professional development training for our advisers. Our practice owners or advisers may also
apply for and may qualify to receive commercial terms on a range of banking products and services
such as interest rates and limited recourse terms.
Conferences
We may attend conferences and professional development seminars that have a genuine
education or training purpose. Consultum, or our employer, may pay for the costs of our travel and
accommodation, and events and functions held in conjunction with the conference or seminar.
Other payments
We keep a full register of any benefits received by advisers of between $100 to $300. By law, your
adviser is not permitted to receive benefits in excess of $300 per year from a product issuer. In
addition, Consultum keeps a register of any other non-monetary benefits your adviser may receive
in relation to education, training, technology support or software that is relevant to the provision of
financial advice. If you would like a copy of either register, please ask your adviser and one will be
made available to you.
Advisory fees
Product providers may pay advisory fees to Consultum or an investment management entity
associated with Consultum. This fee is for the provision of portfolio management advisory services
where Consultum model portfolios are utilised via managed accounts or separately managed
accounts. In the event of this occurring, the fee is calculated as a percentage, likely to be up to
0.15% of the managed account or separately managed account portfolio balance. Your adviser will
not receive any of this fee.
Referral partners
We may have referral relationships with third parties. These third parties may include accountants,
mortgage brokers, general insurance brokers, solicitors, real estate agents and other third parties
who specialise in a specific field and who may pay us a referral fee or commission (or to whom we
may pay a referral fee or commission). Your financial adviser will provide you with details in writing
of any referral arrangements that may be relevant to any advice provided to you, including any
payments made to or from your adviser in connection with any referrals. You may also request
particulars of any remuneration (including commission) or other benefits that we may receive prior
us providing any financial service to you.
Our related companies
Consultum is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rhombus Advisory Pty Limited (Rhombus Advisory).
Rhombus Advisory provides various services and support to Consultum to enable it to operate its
business and support its clients.
Other companies within the Rhombus Advisory group include RI Advice Group Pty Ltd, Rhombus
Finance Choice Pty Ltd and Rhombus Asset Management Pty Ltd.
Rhombus Finance Choice
Rhombus Finance Choice holds an Australian Credit License and is a credit assistance provider.
Rhombus Finance Choice provides mortgage broking services to clients, which may include clients
referred to it by authorised representatives of Consultum. If your financial adviser provides you with
a referral to Rhombus Finance Choice, you will be provided with written information detailing any
payments made to your adviser in connection with that referral.
Rhombus Asset Management
Rhombus Asset Management provides professional investment research and investment
management services including constructing and managing portfolios and/or investment strategies
for model portfolios, managed accounts/ separately managed accounts and/or managed
discretionary accounts.
When providing financial advice, your financial adviser may recommend acquiring or maintaining a
financial product for which Rhombus Asset Management is paid a fee. This fee may be included as
part of, or in addition to, the indirect costs of the portfolio. The amount of any fee payable to
Rhombus Asset Management will be disclosed to you and set out in the PDS and disclosure
documents provided.
Your financial adviser will not receive any portion of this fee.
How we are paid
We receive remuneration from:
Advice and service fees paid by you (fee for service)
Commissions from insurance providers
Other payments and benefits as outlined above
As the licensee, Consultum collects all fees and commissions which are paid on to your adviser’s
practice. Consultum receives a licensee fee from your adviser’s practice of up to $350,000 per
annum, which is in part based on remuneration paid to your adviser’s practice.
Client fee and payment options
Before providing advice, we will agree the fees and payment options with you. The fee you pay will
depend on the complexity of your circumstances and the services you require. Your options to pay
for our services can include fee for service, commission, or a combination of both.
Fee for service: Fee for service is based on the service we provide. This fee can be determined
by:
An hourly rate.
A fixed dollar amount.
A percentage of funds invested (excluding borrowed funds).
A combination of these methods.
We can invoice you directly for our fee for service. Alternatively, some products allow an adviser
service fee to be deducted from the balance of your investment.
Commissions: Some product providers pay commissions to Consultum. The amount of
commissions received will depend upon the type of product and the premium paid.
Life insurance providers typically pay both initial and ongoing commissions in connection with
recommendations to acquire their products. These amounts are calculated as a percentage of the
premium that you pay. The actual amount of any commission payable in relation to any life
insurance advice provided to you will be fully disclosed in your advice.
Note that different commission amounts may be payable depending upon when a product was
issued to you. For life insurance products issued after 1 January 2020, the initial commission
payable is up to 66% of the first year’s premium that you pay and up to 22% of the ongoing
premiums paid by you.
If you have a complaint
If you have a complaint about financial services provided to you, your complaint can be directed to
your adviser in the first instance. You can also raise your complaint at any time by contacting us at:
Email: advicecomplaints@rhombusadvisory.com.au
In writing to: Customer Resolution
Suite 3, Level 8, 309 Kent Street,
Sydney NSW 2000
Phone: 02 9127 7699
We will investigate and endeavour to resolve your complaint promptly and fairly. If your complaint
has not been resolved to your satisfaction within 30 days, you can lodge a complaint with the
Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
AFCA is an external dispute resolution scheme which provides fair and independent financial
services complaint resolution that is free to consumers. AFCA’s contact details are:
Email: info@afca.org.au
Website: www.afca.org.au
In writing to: Australian Financial Complaints Authority
GPO Box 3, Melbourne VIC 3001
Phone: 1800 931 678
The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has an information line 1300 300
630 which you may use to obtain information about your rights, and to make a complaint.
For more information, please visit their website www.asic.gov.au
Professional indemnity insurance
Consultum is covered by professional indemnity insurance satisfying the requirements under the
Corporations Act for compensation arrangements.
Our insurance arrangements cover claims made against us as the licensee and both our current
and former authorised representatives.
Privacy policy
Your personal information will be handled in accordance with our privacy policy, which is located
on our website. We will generally collect personal information directly from you. We may collect
personal information about you from a third party if we believe you have authorised that third party
to provide the information to us.
The main reason we collect, use and/or disclose your personal information, is to provide you with
the services that you request. In addition, as a financial service provider, we are obligated to verify
your identity and the source of any funds.
We provide financial services under the Australian Financial Services License of Consultum.
Consultum monitors our compliance with the law and provides us with a range of support services,
including the financial planning software we use. As a consequence, Consultum has access to your
personal information and may use that information to facilitate the provision of financial services to
you and to ensure we are complying with our obligations.
We may also disclose your information to external parties such as your accountant, banks,
insurers, and product providers.
In order to keep our costs competitive, our Practice may use specialist business support resources
that are located in the other countries.
Any organisation/s we have contracted to support our business have confirmed to us they will
adhere to the Australian Privacy Principles when dealing with your personal information. They will
not contact you or share your information with any other party unless they have your express
approval.
Please refer to our Privacy Policy for more information about how we will handle your personal
information, including how to access or correct your personal information and how to make a
privacy related complaint.
For more information about your privacy, you can also visit the Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner’s website at www.oaic.gov.au
Want more information?
If you have any questions about the information in this guide or about our services, talk to your
adviser or contact Consultum directly.
Phone: 02 9127 7699
Email: enquiries@rhombusadvisory.com.au
Website: https://rhombusadvisory.com.au/advice-afsls
Consultum Financial Advisers Pty Ltd | ABN 65 006 373 995 | AFSL 230323 | Suite 3, Level 8, 309
Kent St, Sydney NSW 2000
Consultum has authorised the distribution of the FSG by its authorised representatives. Consultum
acts on your behalf when providing services to you or when financial services are provided to you
on its behalf.
1 April 2025