Capstone adds eight practices, welcomes FOFA
Non-aligned dealer group Capstone has welcomed a post-Future of Financial Advice (FOFA) world and has announced the recruitment of eight new financial planning practices.
Capstone managing director Grant O'Riley said he did not think the FOFA reforms would spell the end of a level playing field for mid-tier financial planning practices. Capstone had 70 authorised representatives in July this year, according to Money Management's Top 100 Dealer Groups survey.
Capstone's business model will allow it to continue to be an independently owned licensee, regardless of what happens with FOFA, and many of its financial planning practices have operated under guidelines similar to those proposed under FOFA for some time, O'Riley said.
The group is focused on improving efficiencies and adopting new technologies to better support its financial planning practices, Capstone stated.
In preparation for fee-for-service requirements, the group has developed its own integrated client engagement model that "provides a structured methodology with a technology base to assist practices in building or amending a business model for the future," Capstone stated.
The group said it is also fielding several calls per week from financial planning practices looking to align with an independent group. According to Capstone, these requests demonstrate that practices still value licensees and their value proposition, and show many financial advisers are not thinking the big end of town is the solution for the future.
The new financial planning practices recruited by Capstone include Victorian firms PCR Partners from Morwell, Equus Private Wealth from Malvern and BKM Financial Services and HGN Private Wealth from Camberwell. Also included are Brad Tilley from Millicent in South Australia, Agbis Financial Planning from Armidale in New South Wales, Corpacc Financial Planning in Brisbane and Gold Coast-based practice CoastGuard.
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