How has AMP’s exit shaken up the biggest licensees?
Wealth Data has shared an updated ranking of the largest Australian financial advice licensees, with just 59 advisers separating the licensees in third and fifth place.
On 2 December, the divestment of AMP's advice business to Entireti was completed which means Entireti will now have around 1,300 advisers, making it Australia’s largest advice licensee. This is a significant jump from 362 it has currently.
These advisers will sit across Fortnum Private Wealth, Professional Financial Services (PFS) and Fortnum Advice, as well as AMP Financial Planning, Charter Financial Planning, Hillross and those advisers who utilise self-licensed offering Jigsaw.
The new joiners consist of 431 advisers at AMP FP, 293 at Charter FP, 87 at Hillross, and four at AWM Services.
When it comes to implementing advice deals on this scale, there is typically an element of attrition as advisers assess their options and Entireti will be working to retain advisers. For example, Count acquired Diverger in March and lost advisers from the Merit Wealth AFSL where they were restricted to providing SMSF advice only.
Speaking to Money Management, Colin Williams, director at Wealth Data, said: “It can be a challenge to keep everyone onside, especially if you’re operating multiple different AFSLs.
“AMP advisers have been very loyal to the firm for a long time, so there will be an element of stickiness, and some may well be looking at other alternatives. There will no doubt be other licensees knocking on their door trying to compete for them.
“A lot have already left AMP over the last few years, but the ones who are left are pretty solid and generating good revenue.
“Others may look to start their own AFSL which has been a big trend lately, and having Paul Barrett from AZ NGA onside will be a big help if they do decide to sell up.”
Centrepoint Alliance, in particular, previously stated it is hoping to benefit from licensee switching for growth rather than enacting its own inorganic activity.
John Shuttleworth, chief executive of Centrepoint Alliance, said earlier this year: “When two firms merge, there are advisers who hold off joining it until there is stability. You need that recruitment to offset natural attrition so you can be in a position for losing advisers for 12–18 months.
“When people switch, they either find another licensee or they decide to go self-licensed, and we are uniquely positioned in that we have a strong business in both.”
Discussing how it will work to integrate the new advisers, Entireti chief executive Neil Younger said: “Each business had existing resources for their advisers, and we’ve had to ensure that continues to be in place for each brand. We also have our own resources and shared resources which will give support and services to the whole group. We have 180 employees, so there is a depth of resources available there.
“AMP has a strong, full service offering, and we are committed to ensuring that continues, so more of the same, but over time we want to evolve it. We want the advisers to stay with us. For practices who are looking at succession planning, AZ NGA can provide help with that and we will work closely together.”
Licensee ranking
With Entireti now taking the top spot, this sees Count in second place followed by Centrepoint Alliance, WT Financial Group, and Rhombus Advisory in the final spot, as of 2 December. The latter three AFSLs have just 59 advisers separating them, indicating a close race ahead of the end of the calendar year.
Top five largest licensees
Source: Wealth Data, 2 December
Count has 671 advisers which are broken down by 346 at Count, 129 at GPS Wealth, 105 at Merit Wealth and 91 at Paragem.
Count chief executive, Hugh Humphrey, recently shared with Money Management that the firm is open to M&A to boost its adviser numbers further.
“The businesses we tend to partner with or invest in are those with integrated financial planning and accountancy services, or have joint ventures with accountants. Our skill comes in where we have always had an integrated model, and the market recognises that we are a standout in offering both services.”
Meanwhile, Centrepoint Alliance has 555 advisers, divided into 338 at Alliance Wealth, 138 at Matrix Planning Solutions, and 85 at Professional Investment Services.
Closely behind is WT Financial which has 520 advisers – broken down by 256 at Synchron, 104 at Millennium3, 85 at Sentry Advice, 68 at Wealth Today and eight at Sentry Financial Services.
Closing out the top five is Rhombus Advisory, which recently split off from Insignia Financial, with 496 advisers. This is divided by 278 at Consultum and 218 at RI Advice. Insignia retained the Shadforth and Bridges advisers but these are too small in number to sit in the top rankings.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
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