Shrinking APLs deter financial advisers
Most financial advisers want access to a broad Approved Product List (APL) before they make the decision to join a licensee.
That's according to Pinnacle Practice director Anne Fuchs, who said advisers do not want to be told by their dealer groups how to run their businesses, and many are willing to pay more in fees in order to have that choice.
"They have always felt this way, but given the additional pressures they face with the Future of Financial Advice and difficult market conditions, this sentiment is more emotionally charged than ever before," she said.
Young financial advisers, in particular, are less intent on making money from the sale of products and want their value offering to be based on delivering the most appropriate advice for clients, she added.
As a result of the best interests duty, Fuchs said some non-institutional licensees are following the lead of institutional financial services providers in reducing the number of platforms on their APLs.
"While advisers who work outside a vertically integrated model can pay more in fees and receive less in terms of support than those who work within one, it is a price many are prepared to pay," she said.
According to Fuchs, there has been a trend towards smaller groups of advisers forming co-operative licensee businesses, allowing members to run a non-institutional business model with a range of products to choose from.
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