SA financial advice firm takes stake in risk practice

Calder Wealth Management (CWM) has formed a strategic partnership with risk advice firm Life Insurance Planning Australia (LIPA), a specialist life insurance advice business that is also based in South Australia.

Under the arrangement, CWM has taken a minority ownership stake in LIPA, although the two businesses will operate independently and Darren Cheek will remain as LIPA’s managing director. With Cheek having worked in risk advice for over 35 years, the deal will also help with future succession planning at LIPA.

LIPA offers risk insurance, income protection, life and total and permanent disability insurance, while CWM was founded in 1974 and has multiple offices across South Australia.

CWM previously acquired advice firm Retirement Strategies last September as its director Ben Cheney was looking to step back from providing advice after a decade.

Ben Calder, managing director of CWM, said: “Life insurance advice is a complex and highly specialised area that continues to be under-represented in Australia. We’ve provided insurance advice for over 50 years and have seen the real-world impact of having the right protection in place during life’s most difficult times. Partnering with LIPA allows us to support even more families and businesses through access to truly specialist advice.

“We’ve worked with Darren Cheek for more than three decades, and we have deep respect for his expertise and the reputation he has built in this space. Our investment in LIPA reflects a shared commitment to high-quality, ethical advice and positions both businesses to meet the growing demand for life insurance advice.

“With fewer advisers offering life insurance due to regulatory and technical challenges, LIPA’s offering has never been more relevant.”

Last month, Envest Group, part of global insurance distribution group Ardonagh Group, acquired a 60 per cent shareholding in financial advice firm Wealth Architects, which then took ownership of PSC Life from Envest to support the firm’s growth ambitions in life insurance. PSC Life provides specialised advice around business, group and personal life insurance.

In January, it acquired Victorian life advisory business Fitzpatrick Financial Services which specialises in life and disability insurance for individuals, families and business owners.

“We expect the business to be evenly split between financial advice and life insurance in the future. At the moment, it is weighted towards financial advice, but we want it to be across both areas,” said Wealth Architects chief executive Callum Mitchener.

“Envest already owns a life insurance business in New Zealand as well, and that will be moulded into the Wealth Architects brand.”