Following the latest adviser exam result, more than two dozen provisional advisers have joined the ASIC Financial Adviser Register, according to research from Wealth Data.
The researcher noted growth of 31 advisers, dominated by new entrants, after a loss of 30 in the previous week.
There were 19 new entrants that joined, with a further 10 the week before, meaning 29 advisers had joined since the August financial adviser exam results were released.
While the Financial Services Council had pushed for the exam to be expanded, it is currently legislated that only professional year advisers can sit.
The industry is currently home to 15,710 advisers – remaining steady after an exodus following the Hayne royal commission, prior to which there were around 28,000 advisers on the register.
The industry fell below the 16,000-threshold last October after the final adviser exam deadline which granted advisers who had failed twice a further nine months to pass the exam.
The industry had shrunk to under 17,000 advisers a few months earlier in May and 18,000 in January.
The close of the financial year – when departing advisers typically decide to whether to continue licensee registration – was 15,584.
The new financial year has seen a net increase of 149. Some 45 licensee owners had net gains of 55 advisers, while 18 licensee owners had net losses for (-24) advisers.
In previous blogs, Wealth Data has noted a “surplus” of 3,476 candidates that have passed the adviser exam which is 22 per cent of the current advisers as of August 2023 – according to ASIC, 19,172 candidates have passed the exam (out of 20,718).
The researcher noted there had been thousands who had passed the exam with the intention to exit the industry and forego fulfilling the tertiary education deadline in 2026, using the time to get client books in order for sale.
In pointed to the 713 advisers that have ceased on the FAR this year that would have completed the exam.
