CountPlus commits to further M&A to boost advisory model

CountPlus has indicated it is seeking further acquisitions with 12 active M&A opportunities in the pipeline.

Announcing its AGM presentation to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), the firm said it had been actively building its M&A pipeline and adviser recruitment since 1 July, 2022.

This followed the earlier acquisition of WSC Group and two tuck-in acquisitions of CountPlus One and Advice Co as well as the divestiture of Cooma Accounting.

It currently had 12 active M&A opportunities, 24 early-stage M&A discussions taking place and 16 new advisers having joined the firm in the FY22/23 financial year so far. A further 156 advisers were prospective.

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Count had previously been named by Wealth Data as one of the leading firms in adviser recruitment against a backdrop of adviser exits.

The firm now represented 136 firms and 3,455 people across accounting, wealth and services with the majority (2,663) sitting in the wealth space.

In a statement by non-executive chairman, Ray Kellerman, he said: “It is our intention to continue to identify acquisition opportunities that enable us to leverage the broader CountPlus network of clients, businesses and services provided.

“Whilst demand for the services we provide continues to grow, we are acutely aware of the increased competition for fewer advisers, and higher valuations for acquisitions of accounting and wealth firms. Despite this, the strength of our proposition is reflected in the growth of our acquisitions pipeline which has increased over the prior year.

“We will continue our focus on attracting the best talent and enable them to do their best work through delivering efficient processes and access to market-leading technology, which is key to growing engagement with both existing firms and prospects.”