Former UGC advisers join new licensee

Overall financial adviser numbers have fallen back into the negative after seeing double-digit growth the week prior.

Wealth Data analysis has seen a net loss of two advisers in the week ending 22 August, dropping overall numbers to 15,507. The negative result followed a growth of 13 advisers the week prior and a rise of five the week before.

The loss of two advisers was despite 10 new entrants joining the profession this week. More than 100 advisers were active with appointments and resignations, while three new licensees commenced operations and one ceased.

In terms of growth, 24 licensee owners had net gains of 39 advisers in total.

This was led by one of the new licensees that opened its doors with four advisers, including two who previously worked at United Global Capital (UGC). The troubled firm recently entered liquidation by the Federal Court after its Australian financial services licence was cancelled by ASIC on 31 July, and an appeal by the firm to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal against this decision has been withdrawn.

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ASIC alleged that UGC’s authorised representatives contacted prospective clients and recommended they establish a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF), rollover their existing superannuation into the SMSF, and invest it in highly speculative investments related to director Joel James Hewish.

Although UGC’s licence is cancelled, ASIC has specified the licence still has effect for limited purposes, including that UGC continues to be an Australian Financial Complaints Authority member until May 2025, and it continues to have insurance cover for clients.

Finchley & Kent continued to transition advisers from Havana Financial owned by O & Z Pty Ltd, Wealth Data noted, consequently bringing its numbers up by three advisers.

Four Australian financial services licensees (AFSLs) welcomed two advisers each to its ranks. This included Fortnum, which added three new entrants and lost one adviser. Financial Advice Co appointed one new entrant and saw one adviser return after a break. Elston Group hired two new entrants, and ABC Financial Planning saw both advisers come back after a break.

Another 24 licensee owners gained one adviser each, including Centrepoint Alliance, Shartru and UniSuper.

Looking at the losses over the week, 28 AFSLs recorded net losses of 66 advisers in total.

Sambe Investments reported a decline of 23 advisers, however, this was after the firm transitioned all its advisers to its Finchley & Kent licensee. Similarly, Havana Financial was down by seven advisers after it brought over its advisers to Finchley & Kent.

AMP Group bid farewell to four advisers, after it lost five and gained one. Meanwhile, seven licensee owners lost two advisers each, such as CBA, Infocus and Rhombus Advisory.

A tail of 18 AFSLs declined by one adviser each, including Fiducian, Ord Minnett and Sequoia Group.

Last week, Money Management reported that the number of ceased advice licensees this financial year was nearly four times higher than the previous period. Since the 2024–25 financial year commenced, 11 licensees discontinued their operations. In comparison, this figure was at just three for the 2023–24 financial year to date – nearly four times the amount.

According to Colin Williams, founder of Wealth Data, the rise in ceased licensees is likely driven by M&A activity among new AFSLs.