Life advisers missing in action

This time last year, 4,533 advisers worked for 28 life-focused dealer groups and represented around 32 per cent of the industry. This year there are 4,088 advisers working for 23 life-focused dealer groups representing a little over 28 per cent of the industry.

Gone from the list areNow Securitiesand Inscorp which have merged to become Financial Services Partners (FSP) which, according to Jodie Wakefield from FSP, specialises in both risk and securities.

Commonwealth Financial Solutionsis also omitted from this year’s list after rolling into the more broadly-focusedFinancial Wisdom. In addition, Lynx and AustAdvisers have merged with Partnership Planning to becomeTandem.

Identifying how many of the 450 advisers missing from this year’s list of life advisers actually exited the industry is therefore fraught with difficulty.

But the tale at Tandem is telling. Last year, Lynx and AustAdvisers alone had a combined total of 195 advisers. The merged entity, which also includes Partnership Planning, today has only 72 advisers.

The numbers forMLC Financial Planningreveal a net loss of 91 advisers, but the numbers for sister groupGarvan Financial Planningincreased by 10. This suggests a net loss of 81 life advisers.

While an MLC spokesperson argues that some life advisers moved over into other more broadly focused NAB/MLC groups, the Top 100 figures reveal that the total number of advisers working in MLC/NAB groups slipped from 1,547 in 2002 to 1,369 in 2003 — an overall net loss of 178 advisers.

Mawson Securitieslost 65 advisers over the course of the year.

Mawson Securities director Robb Musgrave confirmed that a number of Mawson advisers decided the new FSR environment meant it was time to move on. However, the group has put together a new dealer group, Aurora Financial Services, which has recruited 50 life advisers.

He says the group designed a cost-effective package specifically suited to life advisers and expects numbers to increase to 100 over the course of a year.

Three life-based dealer groups increased in size —Aonadded 67 advisers to its force, whileGuardianadded 28 andAssociated Plannersadded 22.

Aon has been providing risk-based services to the likes ofAXA,INGandTowerfor a number of years, but is now moving beyond risk to financial planning. In some instances Aon has been marrying planners with risk advisers throughout its practices and in others the group has been ‘upskilling’ existing advisers.

“Over the past three and a half years we have upskilled 200 advisers with them completing 800 DFP [Diploma of Financial Planning] subjects,” says Aon Financial Planning and Protection managing director Denis Owens.

Last year, Aon struck a joint venture deal withIpac, to spawn Aon Wealth Management to offer ‘whole of life’ planning advice. The new group currently has 15 advisers.

Associated Planners (AP) managing director Ray Miles claims that AP has taken on 11 new member firms since July 1, 2003, which translates to an extra 30 planners.