This marks the seventh year Money Management has produced the Top 100 Dealer Groups Survey and it remains the most extensive report of its type in the industry.
The survey is based on data collected and collated on behalf of Money Management by Dexx&r Research, which provides a range of research on retail and wholesale managed funds, superannuation, platforms and risk insurance.
The methodology used by Dexx&r is a continuation of the process developed over the life of the survey with data gathered from primary sources — the dealer groups themselves, and secondary sources — company web sites cross-referenced with data available through the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) authorised representatives register.
Initially Dexx&r sent a questionnaire via e-mail to the industry’s larger dealer groups compiled from Dexx&r’s resources, Money Management’s Blue Book listings, details from the ASIC register and dealer groups that requested a survey form for inclusion in this year’s table.
The complete data set was collated and the Top 100 Dealer Groups table was formed — ranked by the number of financial planners in each firm as at April 1, 2005. Data was also collected on gross revenue, funds under management and the number of clients for each of the dealer groups. Other data fields include platform, software and research providers, professional indemnity insurance, advisers and offices per state and membership of the Financial Planning Association.
All efforts have been made to make the final league table as accurate as possible, however, some dealer groups were not forthcoming with information. Both Money Management and Dexx&r have made every effort to gain the necessary information, but where a group was still active and information was not supplied, it has been drawn from corporate web sites and the ASIC register.
Money Management would like to thank all those groups that did respond and have assisted in adding to this important body of knowledge. There were a number of smaller dealers that supplied data but did not make the list. To all, and particularly the latter, the time you have taken out from conducting your business is appreciated.
