The final adviser exit tally for 2024



Final numbers are in for the 2024 calendar year, showing the financial planning (holistic advice) business model saw the largest growth in terms of new licensees.
According to Wealth Data, financial planning (holistic advice) gained 90 new licensees during the year to make it the largest business model.
Some 13 new licensees opened in investment advice, 10 in accounting (financial planning) and five in other, bringing the total number of new licensees that commenced during the year to 118.
Zero new licensees commenced in super fund-based advice, accounting (limited advice) or other limited firms.
While 97 licensees ceased overall, including 60 in financial planning (holistic advice) and 14 in investment advice, Wealth Data noted the majority of advisers affected by the closures are still practising elsewhere.
Overall adviser numbers recorded a total net loss of 145 advisers for the 2024 calendar year, which was slightly higher than preliminary estimates, but “significantly better” than the 182 advisers lost during 2023 and the years prior. The final number of advisers at the end of 2024 was 15,477.
The total number of advisers in the financial planning (holistic advice) space fell slightly from 10,412 to 10,383, a drop of 0.28 per cent or 29 advisers, while investment advice saw a 0.89 per cent loss (26 advisers) from 2,927 to 2,901.
Looking at organic adviser growth by licensee owners, Centrepoint Alliance gained a net 39, followed by Finchley & Kent at 37, and PictureWealth at 33.
Entireti lost 92, but Wealth Data noted most of these occurred at AMP licensees prior to the Entireti acquiring them at the end of the year.
Count declined by 75 advisers, with the majority departing from Merit Wealth, and WT Financial lost 40 advisers.
By the end of 2024, the top 10 largest licensees in order of adviser numbers were:
Source: Wealth Data
Regarding new entrants, 511 came onto the Financial Advisers Register (FAR) during 2024, compared to 407 in 2023, and 484 of those are still practising which represents a retention rate of 94 per cent. The highest proportion of new entrants were hired by Entireti, followed by Count and WT Financial.
Recommended for you
Net cash flow on AMP’s platforms saw a substantial jump in the last quarter to $740 million, while its new digital advice offering boosted flows to superannuation and investment.
Insignia Financial has provided an update on the status of its private equity bidders as an initial six-week due diligence period comes to an end.
A judge has detailed how individuals lent as much as $1.1 million each to former financial adviser Anthony Del Vecchio, only learning when they contacted his employer that nothing had ever been invested.
Having rejected the possibility of an IPO, Mason Stevens’ CEO details why the wealth platform went down the PE route and how it intends to accelerate its growth ambitions in financial advice.