The advice channels reporting largest YTD gains and losses

Wealth Data has examined the calendar year-to-date change in the number of financial advisers offering holistic advice.

In the nine-month period between 1 January and 19 September 2024, growth in the financial planning business model that offers holistic advice remains unchanged. The model still stands at 10,412 advisers, the same figure as when the calendar year commenced.

While zero growth for the year to date may appear negative, it compares positively to a decrease of 0.8 per cent in the same period in 2023.

Moving onto the accounting model, it was a tale of two halves. On one hand, the accounting – financial planning model, which mainly consists of accounting firms that provide holistic advice, saw the largest growth by 1.5 per cent in 2024 YTD or by 13 advisers to 898 in total.

However, the accounting – limited advice model, which offers mostly restricted advice for self-managed super fund (SMSF) clients, saw the highest loss for this YTD at 12.4 per cent or down by 71 to 501 advisers. This is more than double a decline of 4.9 per cent in 2023.

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Merit Wealth is an example of this, with the firm offering restricted SMSF advice. Hugh Humphrey, Count CEO, was recently asked about the adviser churn since its acquisition of Diverger in March, which included Merit Wealth. Around 20 advisers have left the firm this year, according to Wealth Data.

Humphrey said: “When we announced the acquisition, I said 550 financial advisers would be the combined ARs at completion and that’s because the limited ARs on our books, largely within Merit Wealth, are a different type of authorisation who may only give advice once or twice a year or do a piece of work for a client around a self-managed superannuation fund. That’s very different to an adviser who has 150–200 ongoing financial advice clients and very different in their revenue.”

Looking at the superannuation fund-based advice model, generally composed of industry super funds delivering advice, this group recorded a 6.3 per cent decline or fell by 45 advisers to 669 in total.

“This decline is largely due to mergers among super funds and advisers previously limited to basic superannuation advice being removed from the ASIC Financial Adviser Register (FAR),” said Wealth Data founder Colin Williams.

The super fund model experienced a slightly smaller decline of 5.3 per cent in the first nine months of 2023.

Meanwhile, the investment advice model recorded a minor drop of 0.8 per cent or down by 22 advisers to 2,905 during this calendar YTD, compared to zero change in the previous year.

Source: Wealth Data, September 2024

Weekly movements

In the week ending 19 September 2024, the advice profession saw a net growth of five advisers. This was despite another solid week of 16 new entrants, indicating that some 11 experienced advisers dropped off the FAR this week, Williams said.

Some 31 licensee owners had net gains of 36 advisers in total. Four AFSLs were up by two advisers each – Perpetual, Centrepoint Alliance, Ord Minnett, and Sherrin Partners, while 26 licensees gained one adviser each.

Looking at the adviser declines over the week, 27 licensee owners had net losses of 32 advisers in total. Five licensees bid farewell to two advisers each, including Count, while 22 AFSLs lost one adviser each.