Boutique dealer group AAA Financial Group (AAAFG) has grown its head count from 10 Adelaide-based advisers at the beginning of the year to 80 advisers nationally, and is preparing to launch a mortgage and finance arm in February 2006.
Chief executive Errol Rabaud said most of the advisers had joined from Aurora Financial Planning following his departure as general manager of that group earlier in the year, but several had joined from other groups including Aurora’s sister company Mawson Securities, Count Wealth Accountants, and Professional Investment Services.
Mawson Group’s Peter Johnson, who has been standing in as chief executive since Les Mace resigned from the role last month, confirmed 40 advisers left Aurora when Rabaud departed, however, he said only one adviser had left Mawson.
Johnson said the outflows to AAAFG had been arrested and there had been four appointments to Aurora in the last few months, taking adviser numbers to 24 in that group, while Mawson Securities maintained around 110 advisers.
He said Mawson Group, which owns dealer groups Mawson Securities and Aurora, had felt no negative impacts as a result of the losses and had not changed its plans to expand through recruitment and acquisition.
Rabaud said AAAFG would continue to expand and had already started discussions with 50 advisers in Melbourne and Sydney.
He expected AAAFG to comfortably reach its target of 150 advisers by the end of 2006.
Rabaud said the group was also preparing to launch a mortgage and finance business called Award Mortgage and Finance on February 1, 2006.
Currently, AAAFG operates three separate businesses specialising in insurance and superannuation, wealth management, and stock broking.
Rabaud said advisers were attracted to the group because of its transparent management structure and the fact that it was not institutionally-owned. Advisers own 40 per cent of the business, while directors hold the remaining 60 per cent.
“We also have a structure of a flat fee business where people do not get penalised for growing their business,” he said.
