Big Berkley offices choose merger
More than 75 per cent of the revenue and profits of the total Berkley Group will join the merger with Centrestone Wealth Advisers, despite over half of the group’s advisers rejecting the deal.
As reported in Money Management last week, at least 14 planners have decided to leave the Berkley Group rather than go through with the merger with Centrestone, choosing to either band together to form a new dealer group Byron Capital, or go out on their own.
But according to Centrestone joint chief executive Michael Pillimer, the breakaway planners only represent 20-25 per cent of the Berkley Group’s revenue.
Pillimer has also confirmed that only four practices have decided to reject the merger deal, rather than the five previously reported.
Contrary to previous reports, only one authorised representative, Malcolm Phillips, has left the group’s Canberra practice. The principals of that practice, Roger Hancock and Denis Vanzella, will be going through with the merger and will add approximately $450 million in funds under management (FUM) to the combined entity.
Berkley’s highly lucrative practices in Sydney and Brisbane are also on board, Pillimer said.
He said both Berkley and Centrestone always knew some planners would reject the deal.
“None of this was unexpected for us. Everyone who was involved in the merger would have been aware at least six months ago that 20-25 per cent of the value of the Berkley advisers was not going to come along in the merger, so there’s no big surprises.”
A “range of personal and financial reasons” may have prompted their departure, he said.
“Certainly our model suits advisers who have the larger FUM per adviser, and the advisers with the largest FUM, they’ve come along.
“Ours is an integrated model rather than an aggregated model, so it’s all about fully integrating the businesses into the group … we’ve accepted that that model just hasn’t been the fit for some.”
Pillimer said the group formed by the merger would have over $3 billion in funds under advice, with the funds coming equally from Berkley and Centrestone.
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