LaVista Licensee Solutions Hits Key Milestone

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ClearView-backed dealer services provider, LaVista Licensee Solutions has welcomed its 30th Australian Financial Services Licensee benefiting, it says, from the fallout of the institutional retreat from personal advice.

A statement from LaVista says many former bank-aligned practices have gained their own AFSL in the past 12 months, with a number choosing to partner with LaVista for licensee support services including former MLC Financial Planning practice, Investorplan, and former Financial Wisdom practices, LifePath Financial Planning and Parrish Financial.

LaVista Licensee Services Chief Executive Officer Mike Pope says that unprecedented structural and regulatory change continued to create opportunities for LaVista to support quality self-licensed advice businesses.

Mike Pope …support for self-licensed advice businesses…

Coinciding with the group’s second anniversary in November, it welcomed its 30th AFSL. Three additional former bank-aligned practices are set to join by year-end, with their AFSL-applications in progress.

“Some institutions have voluntarily closed their dealer group businesses and, at the same time, a large number of professional financial advisers are moving to gain their own AFSL, creating demand for a quality, outsourced B2B licensee services provider,” Pope says.

He says LaVista can provide the “…flexibility, control and support” advisers need to “…remain compliant and focus on achieving profitable growth”.

Brad Monk, Partner and Senior Financial Adviser at Brisbane-based LifePath Financial Panning said the decision to become self licensed was a big step for the former institutionally aligned practice, noting that people under-estimate the work and cost involved in being self-licensed.

“We certainly did by around 30 percent…” adding that La Vista helped it establish a robust risk and compliance framework, advice policies and licensee standards.