Insto acquisitions place independent advice in peril: adviser
Independent advice could cease to exist if planning laws continue to back institutions’ current charge of acquisitions, an adviser fears.
The expansion of institutional bodies, like banks, into the planning space has seen a much higher concentration of aligned advice firms and business models, often to the detriment of clients seeking an alternative, Neil Salkow, co-director of Roskow Independent Advisory in Brisbane, said.
“I think the big loser is the clients¨ If I were a client, I would not want to go to an independent adviser if I knew their end game was to sell out to institutions,” he said.
Roskow said while independent advisers have a commitment to the client, institutions have more complicated obligations.
“People should remember that the first responsibility of those institutions is to shareholders not to their clients,” he added.
“The status quo right now needs to be turned upside down and shaken up because it is not equal. Current financial planning laws favour the banks and institutions at the expense of mums and dads in the community.”
His comments follow the recent acquisition of the SFG advisory by IOOF, a deal worth $670 million.
Roskow said larger institutions “belong in the financial product manufacturing space” and not the advice space.
Recommended for you
With an advice M&A deal taking around six months to enact, two experts have shared their tips on how buyers and sellers can avoid “deal fatigue” and prevent potential deals from collapsing.
Several financial advisers have been shortlisted in the ninth annual Women in Finance Awards 2025, to be held on 14 November.
Digital advice tools are on the rise, but licensees will need to ensure they still meet adviser obligations or potentially risk a class action if clients lose money from a rogue algorithm.
Shaw and Partners has merged with Sydney wealth manager Kennedy Partners Wealth, while Ord Minnett has hired a private wealth adviser from Morgan Stanley.
