OS entrants to disrupt bank-owned distribution

Speaking to ifa, Mr Prendeville said that while 2015 saw the beginnings of international interest, this year the financial services industry can expect groups from Asia, Europe, the US and even South Africa to act on their intentions this year.

According to Mr Prendeville, bank-owned businesses will be a "prime target".

"There is [Italian-owned fund manager] Azimut and others of the same ilk that have different types of agendas which is to be disruptors within the market place and particularly bank-owned distribution," he said.

"They see that end of the market was relatively immune to the GST, where around the world there was significant adoption of technology. So they are coming to our market with capital and/or with successful business models."

Mr Prendeville added that these international entrants will also be looking to target the bigger end advice practices.

"They are coming in with a certain amount of capital and they are really looking at the top end of our market," he said.

"That is family offices, high-net-worth or large practices [so they can] make a significant footprint in the Australian market."

The high level of compliance that is mandated across the financial services industry is also a pull factor for many of these international entrants, Mr Prendeville noted.

"They are actually gaining comfort because of the level of controls. Additionally, it is intellectual property that they can take back to their own domiciles," he said.