Industry backs AFA/FPA merger

Adviser Ratings has found more than 80% of advisers back the merger of the Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) and the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) as most prefer to hold only one association membership.

The merger was proposed  in September and the two bodies had been consulting with their membership on the proposed benefits of the merger.

The FPA and AFA boards said there are “substantial synergies and other benefits” for their members from a merger, such as creating a united voice and allowing stronger advocacy for financial planners and advisers.

Over three-quarters of members were required to approve the vote and Adviser Ratings research found 81% were in favour of it proceeding.

VIEW ALL

View all

The merger came at a time when advisers were increasingly opting to hold a singular membership, the share of advisers holding one membership now represented over half of the industry.

The share who held multiple membership had declined from 22% in December 2021 to 20%.

A factor contributing to this could be cost as the FPA annual fee cost $995 and AFA cost $840 annually, although they had various different membership tiers.

Breaking it down between the two different associations, the FPA had seen the most pronounced growth of the two with 44% being members of the FPA, up from 38% in FY20. This compared to 13% who were AFA members, up from 12% over the same period.

Adviser Ratings posited the smaller volume of AFA members was because it had traditionally been  favoured by risk advisers who had been leaving the industry in high volumes recently.