According to Adviser Ratings’ Adviser Musical Chairs Report- Quarter 3, 2025, Q3 saw the total number of advisers reach 15,447, a net increase of 196 professionals.
This is thanks to a continued influx of 184 new advisers entering the profession, and a slowdown in the number ceasing practicing, with 195 adviser departures the lowest since 2018.
That was just before the financial services royal commission decimated adviser numbers, with Adviser Ratings stating these shoots of recovery can be seen optimistically.
However, the same data reveals that much of this new capacity is going towards larger firms.
“While adviser numbers rose at its greatest rate in seven years, the number of practices dipped slightly from 5,944 to 5,934,” Adviser Ratings said in the report.
“The modest contraction signals that while adviser capacity is returning, it’s increasingly being absorbed within larger, better-resourced firms — an early marker of industry consolidation through acquisition and succession, rather than fragmentation.”
Privately owned licensees continue to set the pace in the advice landscape, accounting for nearly 97% of all practices and maintaining a strong growth trajectory. As Adviser Ratings notes, “Privately Owned licensees continue to dominate, representing nearly 97% of practices and continuing their long-term growth trend.”
By contrast, diversified groups — particularly listed players such as Insignia — are tightening their focus. Rather than expanding their networks, these firms are concentrating on “retaining profitable, strategically aligned practices,” a shift Adviser Ratings describes as a move toward refining, not enlarging, their footprint.
This recalibration is mirrored in deal-making activity. According to Adviser Ratings, ARdata has “recorded record demand from M&A participants seeking granular, practice-level intelligence,” highlighting the heightened appetite for detailed insights as consolidation accelerates.
The result is an advice sector evolving toward fewer but stronger and more commercially aligned practices. Adviser headcount is beginning to stabilise after years of contraction and, as Adviser Ratings observes, movement within the sector “is no longer one-way down,” signalling a more balanced and sustainable phase of industry reshaping.
While consolidation to some might seem like an outwardly worrisome trend, it has so far proven to be an effective method of recovery, with larger firms and licensees able to accommodate larger number of advisers.
A flow on effect of this is helping address the ever-ominous advice gap, with the efficiency gains and increased capacity that come with scale allowing advisers to service more clients more often.
