AMP/Asgard roll out final eWRAP to planners

AMPhas launched the last of four customisedAsgardeWrap accounts - WealthView eWrap - for its dealer groupAMP Financial Planning.

AMP struck a deal with Asgard back in July to provide it with wraps, with the first three wraps — PortfolioCare eWrap, Rhapsody eWrap and Carta eWRAP — subsequently rolled out to aligned dealer groupsHillross Financial Services,Arrive Wealth Managementand the fledgling Magnify Financial Planners group.

AMP director of advice based distribution, Steve Helmich says WealthView is designed to help AMP financial planners centralise control of investments for high net worth clients with account balances of $100,000 or more.

As a result of the WealthView launch, AMP has closed its Investment Solution product and migrated almost $600 million to the new product - representing one of the largest known fund transfers from one wrap to another in Australia.

In the coming months, however, some of these customers will be transitioned to alternative products such as AMP Flexible Lifetime Investments and AMP Flexible Lifetime Super.

“WealthView works well with AMP’s Flexible Lifetime range to provide solutions for customers from all walks of life that suit their individual investment requirements,” Helmich says.

The first three wraps have received $112 million in new business since their rollout.

At the time of AMP and Asgard striking the deal, which is scheduled for five years, Helmich said, “The new wrap products will provide the best possible blend of functionality and services to AMP, Hillross and Arrive planners and their high value clients [and] complement AMP’s existing master trust platforms, including PortfolioCare and the recently-enhanced Flexible Lifetime range of super, retirement and managed fund products.”

AMP spokesman Mike Smith also commented that competition from BT Wrap and Asgard’s own wraps had put pressure on AMP to boost its wrap offering.