AMP is countering the loss of retiring advisers by attracting new advisers and practices to its premium dealer group Hillross.
Hillross has signed up 11 newcomers, helping them set up their own businesses, while a further seven established practices, representing over $1 billion in funds under advice, have also joined in the last 12 months.
This comes as a growing number of advisers retire from AMP Financial Planning and Hillross.
Hillross acting managing director, Chris Digby, said a number of principals had retired in the last year but no member firms had left to join a competitor or to gain their own Australian Financial Services Licences.
Hillross’ new additions include Sydney-based JA Hordern, Western Australia’s Boutique Advisers, South Australia’s Ward Wealth Management and Victoria’s Accent Financial Planning and Primeplan Securities.
Newcastle-headquartered Prosperity Wealth Advisers, which also has offices in Sydney and Brisbane, has also joined. Prosperity Wealth Advisers is an incarnation of Prosperity Advisers, which was embroiled in the 2006 collapse of property manager Westpoint.
Prosperity Advisers reached an out-of-court settlement with clients who collectively lost approximately $17 million and alleged the firm provided negligent investment advice.
Digby said an increasing number of self-licensed advice businesses were approaching Hillross, attracted to its value proposition. He said the group had turned its back on a growing trend among the banks and institutions to pay sign-on bonuses to lure new practices across.
“There has been a lot of talk in the profession about incentive payments, but that is not our style.” he said. “We do not offer one-off payments for firms to join.”
However, Digby said Hillross had struck confidential commercial agreements with each individual firm. “There are commercial terms as we have with all our firms, but I can’t go into specific details. These are quality practices that are aligned to our business from a cultural and commercial perspective,” he said.
As for the new advisers, many came through AMP’s career change and training program, The Horizons Academy. Digby said Hillross had developed a “start-up offer” for new entrants to the financial planning industry, which included “assistance” to acquire a registry of clients from retiring AMP principals as well as outside the AMP group.
