Experience Levels Remain High

The average experience of the nearly 14,000 advisers who have departed since FASEA’s introduction was 15 years each, however for those that remain, the current average experience stands at 15.5 years, according to Wealth Data.

The research firm’s Colin Williams says since the introduction of FASEA the adviser count has dropped from 27,982 to 15,690, which he describes as a substantial loss, stating: “This raises the question of how adviser experience has been affected, which yields an intriguing insight.”

He notes the departure of many advisers means a loss of thousands of years of collective experience.

Surprisingly, the current average experience for …advisers stands at 15.5 years

“For example, among the 13,933 advisers lost, the average experience was 15 years… Surprisingly, the current average experience for the 15,690 advisers stands at 15.5 years.”

Williams also points to the “…decline in advisers who commenced in 2018, from 4,184 to 1,562. However, there’s a recent uptick in new advisers for 2023, with 256, plus an additional 334 provisional advisers in training.”

He adds that 2016 marked a significant shift, allowing accountants to join the ASIC FAR.

“Of the 2,677 active in 2018, only 904 remain today, approximately one-third. This context is even starker for Accountants Limited Advice, where the number dropped from 1,107 to 258.”

Williams explains that the chart illustrates the number of advisers who were active on December 31, 2018 (blue bars) compared to current advisers (yellow line). “Notably, provisional advisers are included as a ‘null’ entry with a total of 334 as technically, they are not classified as an adviser.”

He says that going back further in time, the losses as measured in the difference between the blue bar and yellow line tend to follow a similar path, albeit the yellow line at a lower level.