In a statement, Count Financial said Canberra-based Sapphire Coast Financial Services – a former Godfrey Pembroke practice – along with ex Meritum practice Next Generation Financial Planning, and former Garvan firm Aspire Financial Planning Group, had all joined the dealer group.
The news caps off a number of ex-MLC adviser movements to Count, with the licensee adding Godfrey Pembroke practices Plan Protect in February and Venture Financial Advisers in December last year.
Sapphire Coast Financial Services adviser and director Darren Stevens said the firm had chosen Count because of their advice-led business philosophy and sustainable dealer group model.
“The biggest drawcard for joining Count Financial is that they are an AFSL that believes in advice first, with no conflicts of interest in manufactured product,” Mr Stevens said.
“They are not aligned with a product provider or platform and are purely advice-led, which aligns closely with our own business values. There is also great comfort in being involved with a financially stable licensee that is profitable.”
Count chief advice officer Andrew Kennedy said the group was “delighted” to have the three practices come on board.
“Sapphire Coast, Next Generation and Aspire are three exceptional advice firms that we are delighted to have joining our national network,” Mr Kennedy said.
“They bring experience and expertise which the rest of our member network will be able to benefit from. With our annual conference just two months away, we’re excited that all of our new firms will have the chance to come together and experience Count Financial’s renowned sense of community in a dynamic and engaging environment.”
I wonder how the trade press will report 350+ MLC advisers joining IOOF in the next few months?
Is Renato and Darren so far removed that they and the board don’t realise that the licensee fee hikes and extremely strict over the top interpertations of 515 and OGS (plus others) is driving away practices in droves? At what point will it dawn on them and they say “oh shit !!!”
and as Renato said himself, ” we (IOOF) have no plan B”
Hopefully these firms got one of the 6, 12 or 18 months free licensee fee offers that Count have been waving around. I wonder how existing Count firms are feeling, knowing they’re paying full freight while subsidising the fees of these new practices…. It’s like having your bank offer a lower home loan rate to new borrowers…loyalty has no reward it seems…
Haha like those MLC AFSLs had no product conflicts! BS virtue signalling
No doubt more non-profitable funds that IOOF have shown the door to…….according to IOOF
Count now owns their clients. Let’s hope that works out and Count doesn’t ask for anything unreasonable.
Do Count bother still doing that? I thought that Barry only required departing advisers to have every client sign a release letter so he could keep the trails. He knew that accountants would do the numbers & not bother spending an inordinate amount of time chasing Mrs Scrubbins to retain her $50 pa from her insurance policy. All just ended up in the Count unallocated pool…. But if there’s no trails any more, would they still insist on owning the clients?
“Not aligned with a product provider”…ah does CBA still own 35% of Countplus?
not since May 2020
Nah, CBA sold it for like $3M and threw in about half a billion for remediation. Such a great outcome by the CBA after paying nearly $400M for a dog of a business.