Professional ‘not sold’ on need for more advisers

The debate around adviser numbers and whether they are adequate has picked up over recent years, driven partly by a recent rebound which was preceded by a fairly significant downturn.

But, according to the chief executive of Verse Wealth, Corey Wastle, it’s time for the industry to direct its attention elsewhere.

“I’m not sold that we actually need more financial advisers,” Mr Wastle told ifa recently.

“Going forward, I think part of how we meet that demand [for advice] is by continuing or beginning the process of deregulating advice.”

Once the deregulation is completed, he suggested that advisers can proceed to build businesses that better harness technology and artificial intelligence (AI).

“All those things will enable us to, with the same amount of resources, serve more clients,” said Mr Wastle.

“I see a future in 10 years’ time, with the same level of staff, a firm could look after twice as many clients as they do now by harnessing technology, leveraging artificial intelligence, and integrating technology into their client experience,” Mr Wastle continued.

“Advice has been a complex thing to deliver. It’s been done with cumbersome technology and a lack of technology.”

He projected that, over the next decade, opportunity will abound for those looking to “do more with less”.

“There’s a lot we could be doing that we aren’t yet doing as a collective to deliver more advice faster, better, and cheaper,” Mr Wastle said.

“We don’t have complete control over what regulations are applied or the educational pathways, but we can control how businesses are built, how processes are run, how technology is utilised, all those types of things, to serve more people with the same amount of resources.

“I have no doubt that the advice firms that win over the next decade will be those that do exactly that,” he said.

Mr Wastle believes that businesses that fail to harness technology and AI, quite simply, “won’t be around”.

“Those that they’ll be competing with will be worldly, more efficient, and will deliver a much better experience at a lower price point to more people.”

The Association of Independently Owned Financial Professionals (AIOFP) has previously suggested that Australia has enough advisers to meet demand.

Namely, using Super Consumers Australia research, AIOFP suggested that only 25 per cent of Australian adults look to the expertise of professionals (e.g. advisers) to assist with retirement planning.

The research, which covered 45 to 80-year-olds, found that while one in four Aussies plan to consult an adviser, as many as a third (37 per cent) are looking to take a DIY approach to plan for retirement, while 38 per cent are disengaged with few assets.

This, according to AIOFP’s Peter Johnston, suggests that if we assume that 25 per cent of Australia’s adult population plans to seek advice at some point or another, we come to a group of some 4.5 million people – a group, he believes, is easily serviceable by our existing advisers.

“Divide that by 15,000 advisers and you have exactly 300 clients per adviser. Advisers can have up to 500 clients and risk-only advisers can have up to 700,” Mr Johnston said.