Insignia Financial adviser numbers continue to drop

Insignia Financial, formerly IOOF, has reported its adviser numbers declined by 118 to 1,765 as at 31 December 2021, which it attributed to the loss of smaller practices in the self-employed channel “that were unable to transition to a new sustainable advice model”.

The number of practices in the channel fell by 59 to 480.

“Where advisers left due to retirement or exit from the industry, a significant portion of their client books of business have been retained,” Insignia Financial chief executive Renato Mota said.

“During the last 12 months, Insignia Financial has facilitated over 50 intra-group acquisitions and mergers as part of our adviser succession plan.

“This consolidation not only aids succession and retention of clients and FUA, but improves the scale of advice practices, reduces our cost-to-serve and supports the path to break-even of our advice business.”

Insignia said it expects adviser numbers to stabilise in July.

Meanwhile, Insignia reported funds under administration (FUA) of $227 billion (an increase of $4.2 billion over the quarter), with net flows also improving on the back of the group’s Evolve platform and stabilisation of outflows from acquired MLC and Pensions & Investments (P&I) platforms.

Insignia also confirmed a $556 million increase in funds under management (FUM) to $98.8 billion.

“We have recorded a significant improvement in net flows in the quarter, driven by inflows into key segments such as IOOF’s advised platform, and a significant decrease in the rate of outflows in the P&I and MLC segments,” Mr Mota said.

“These results have been achieved amid an integration and simplification programme which is delivering planned synergies.

“The success of the migration to our Evolve platform, along with its scalable technology and enhanced user experience, cements its position as a key growth engine for the group moving forward.”

Neil Griffiths

Neil is the Deputy Editor of the wealth titles, including ifa and InvestorDaily.

Neil is also the host of the ifa show podcast.