Dixon Advisory again skews advice complaints data

The latest Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) data has confirmed that financial advice complaints, excluding those related to Dixon Advisory, remain only a minor part of those being handled by the external dispute resolution body.

AFCA yesterday updated its data to reveal the complaints it handled across last financial year (01/07/2023 – 30/06/2024) and it confirms that financial advice complaints are a fraction of those being handled with the majority being directed at banks, general insurers, credit providers and superannuation funds.

Indeed, within the investment and advice segment, the vast majority of complaints (76.02) related to derivatives, hedging and securities, followed managed investments and superannuation.

What is more, AFCA’s table of firms against which most complaints were made listed Dixon Advisory and Superannuation Services Ltd as the financial advice firm with most complaints at the same time as noting that it had been “expelled”.

Sitting just under Dixon Advisory was Oztures Trading Pty Ltd covering LG Financial Planning and Binance Australia which AFCA noted was “pending cancellation”.

AMP Financial Planning was also listed with 22 complaints progressed and 18 complaints closed.

The release of the AFCA Data Cube update came at the same time as the latest analysis of the Financial Adviser Register (FAR) by WealthData revealed that adviser numbers had again moved back above 15,500 to 15,512.

Key Adviser Movements This Week:

• Net change of advisers +16
• Current number of advisers at 15,512
• Net Change Calendar 2024 YTD (-113)
• Net Change Financial YTD +169
• 25 Licensee Owners had net gains of 30 advisers
• 13 Licensee Owners had net losses for (-16) advisers
• 4 new licensee commenced and zero ceased
• 8 New entrants
• Number of advisers active this week, appointed / resigned: 67.

Growth This Week – Licensee Owners

• A new licensees commenced with three advisers, a firm moving from CHPW Financial
• A new licensee commenced with two advisers, both moving across from Interprac
• Lifespan also up by 2 with one adviser moving across from Securinvest and another from Interprac
• Arthur J Gallagher (Gallagher Benefit Services) with the advisers moving from VIAFGA Pty Ltd
• 21 licensee owners up by net one each including AMP Group who appointed three and lost two, Centrepoint who hired two and lost one and Infocus who hired a new entrant.

Losses This Week – Licensee Owners

• CHPW Financial who lost three advisers to a new licensee
• Picture Wealth down by two, neither adviser appointed elsehwere to date
• A very short tail of just 11 down by net one adviser including Connectus, AIA Company and WT Financial Group