Amid the current and impending exit of advisers from Financial Wisdom and AMP Limited, other licensees are looking to attract their attention suggesting that a home within a dealer group can be a less stressful option than self-licensing.
However, while some dealer groups are openly touting to attract the attention of displaced advisers, others are making clear that given the continuing scrutiny of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) they are going to be highly selective in their recruitment.
One of the licensees looking at the opportunity to attract displaced advisers is Queensland-based Infocus whose chief executive, Darren Steinhardt said the business recognised that the banks and major institutions no longer represented the safe haven they once did for advisers.
Steinhardt is also arguing that while self-licensing may look attractive to independently-minded advisers, the increasing complexity of the compliance framework can make self-licensing problematic.
“There is a growing army of displaced advisers looking for new dealer groups to call home but at a time when advisers need more support than ever,” he said.
Steinhardt said that as the banks and institutions headed to the exit, he believed the stars might be aligning for independent dealer groups who had been largely regarded as being in the background in the past.
He said that as advisers surveyed the landscape, did their due diligence and considered their options they needed to recognise that the financial advice industry would never be the same again.
Other dealer group executives said that while they saw opportunity in the impending exit of advisers from the Financial Wisdom and AMP licenses, they would be carefully screening recruits to ensure they did not bring any adverse issues with them.
