Wilson HTM to ride acquisition trail

THE Wilson HTM group is set to stay on the acquisition trail it started with the purchase of BNP Paribas’ Australian asset management business, confirming it is currently in discussions to buy both a financial planning and funds management business.

Wilson HTM director of wealth management Tim Samway says the group will look to acquire the two businesses as part of its bid to diversify away from its traditional stock broking activities and boost its burgeoning funds under management.

The group, which officially signed off on the BNP deal last week, is now managing some $800 million in its funds management division.

While not willing to discuss the groups involved in the negotiations, Samway says they both have the potential to further spread the Wilson HTM business outside its Brisbane home base.

“We want to buy culturally similar businesses that can be part of our strategic goal to continually develop our Sydney and Melbourne operations,” he says.

The move comes as Wilson HTM also continues to make its way up the list of Australia’s largest financial planning dealer groups.

The group, which was Australia’s 68th largest financial planning dealer group with 27 financial planners last year, is now the 45th largest dealer with 67 financial planners.

However, Samway says the growth is not a result of the group’s recruitment of financial planners, but rather of a strategy to re-skill its existing staff, such as brokers, to provide financial planning advice.

“It has been a change that we have been pushing towards for five years, so that any client [of Wilson HTM] can also get financial planning advice,” Samway says.