Investment advice website relaunches with former leaders
Investment 'supermarket’ InvestSmart has restored its two founders to the helm, who say they have revamped the website to “trumpet the virtues of diversification”.
The advice website, which was launched in 1999, was sold to Fairfax Media in 2007 and purchased by ASX-listed Australasian Wealth Investments (AWI) late last year. It has brought back Ron Hodge and Nigel Poole after a seven-year absence to lead the diversified asset allocation charge.
“The fallout from the Global Financial Crisis and the introduction the Future of Financial Advice (FOFA) legislation has reconfirmed the importance of general financial advice in Australia, which can only be delivered effectively using technology,” Hodge said.
“The new website will trumpet the virtues of diversification, asset allocation and of taking a disciplined and strategic approach to investing.”
It also partnered with research house Van Eyk to integrate trends research into its online offering, Hodge said.
The purchase of InvestSmart by AWI marked the listed company’s expansion into the online advice space.
AWI CEO and managing director said he hoped online advice trends in the US and UK can be replicated in Australia.
“In the US and Britain, online direct distributors such as Hargreaves Lansdown, which has £43.4 billion of assets under administration, are winning market share and we believe InvestSMART can be a big player in the general advice space here in Australia.”
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