Adviser numbers likely to hit 15k in 2022

The number of current advisers is expected to fall to 17,227 at the onset of 2022, as 1,345 additional advisers are forecast to drop off the ASIC Financial Adviser Register (FAR) on top of the 2,065 that exited the industry earlier this year, new figures from Wealth Data revealed.

According to the calculations, the number of advisers will continue to decline in 2022 to between 15,000 and 16,000.

But Wealth Data alerted to challenges when predicting the number of advisers that would remain on the FAR from 2022, noting that while as many as 1,444 advisers have failed the exam twice or more in 2021, they have the right to keep practising until they pass the exam through to 30 September.

Last week, FASEA released exam results from the 15th Financial Advisers Exam held in November 2021, revealing that only 52 per cent of all candidates had passed the exam.

Just 63 per cent of candidates sitting the exam for the first time passed the November exam, compared with an average of 75 per cent across all exams.

According to FASEA, the areas candidates had the most trouble with in November include applying chapter 7 of the Corporations Act to components of SOA/FSG; identifying consequences of not acting in best interests of clients; demonstrating knowledge and understanding of the Code of Ethics; and identifying misconduct and inappropriate advice.