NEWS - 64 Media

THE SMSF ACADEMY LAUNCHES SMSF QUARTERLY WRAP-UP WEBINAR

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -1100

The SMSF Academy will kick off its 2012 webinar training program at 1:00 pm (AEDST) tomorrow, Wednesday 1 February 2012, with the launch of a new self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) Quarterly Wrap-Up.

The one-hour webinar explores topical issues impacting SMSFs over the past quarter, including Australian Taxation Office (ATO) updates and discussions, government announcements and industry reforms.

The SMSF Academy’s Managing Director, Aaron Dunn said the webinar will review the latest ATO SMSF statistics and will also cover:

Definition changes to SMSFs and remuneration of trustees
Refund of Excess Contributions Tax (ECT) draft legislation
Recent cases impacting ECT
Proposed changes by Government in Mid-Year Economic & Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO)
Latest ATO Interpretive Decisions (ATOIDs)

Mr Dunn said the webinar is pitched SMSF professionals including accountants, financial planners, auditors and other professionals who need to keep up-to-date with issues affecting self-managed super funds.

“The aim of our quarterly wrap-ups is to help advisers keep up-to-date with the latest legislative and other changes in Government policy impacting SMSFs,” he said. “With CPD points available with SPAA and the FPA, we provide high quality training in a cost-effective environment. The uptake each month continues to grow.”

The webinar, which will air from 12:00pm tomorrow, can be accessed free of charge by journalists and SMSF Academy Advisor Gold and Platinum Members. A charge of $99 (incl. GST) applies to Non-Members.

To register for the webinar, visit https://student.gototraining.com/r/3811774056827565824

Mr Dunn is also presenting at the 2012 SPAA National Conference in Sydney, 15-17 February on the topic Attracting SMSF Business Your Way.

About The SMSF Academy

The SMSF Academy is a specialist SMSF education and training provider. The SMSF Academy aims to provide the most up-to-date, easily accessible, user-friendly, affordable and best quality online SMSF education for trustees and their professionals. The SMSF Academy also equips SMSF professionals with practical, web-based white label tools that help them attract and work more effectively and efficiently with their clients. The SMSF Academy is the brain child of Solicitor and Director of the SMSF Academy, Ian Glenister and Managing Director, Aaron Dunn, author of the SMSF blog, thedunnthing! and the only educator in the space to have been personally invited by the Chair of the Super System Review, Jeremy Cooper to share his views regarding the Phase Three Issues Paper on Structure, including SMSFs.

More Information: Media Contact:

www.thesmsfacademy.com.au Julie Bennett, 64 Media 0407071121

FINANCIAL STANDARD APPOINTS MELANIE TIMBRELL TO THE TEAM

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -1100

Melanie Timbrell has been appointed journalist at Financial Standard following the exit late last year of Matt Woodington who returned to the UK.

In an email announcing the appointment this afternoon, Financial Standard Head of Media and Publisher, Michelle Baltazar, said:

"Financial Standard is pleased to announce the appointment of a new journalist, Melanie Timbrell, to the editorial team.

"Prior to joining Financial Standard, Melanie worked at FST Media and Directories Group. She completed a Masters in Journalism with Distinction (Charles Sturt University) and a Bachelor of Business and International Studies at UTS.

"Melanie fills in the role left by Matt Woodington who returned to the UK for personal reasons."

MEDIA MOVEMENTS - 2011 ROUND UP

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -1100

It’s the end of the year and the make up of many finance media outlets looks very different from this time last year.

THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW

At the Australian Financial Review (AFR), Bianca Hartge-Hazelman, who had moved across from finance training provider Kaplan earlier this year to work on the financial services desk, has now moved on to cover markets. Zoe Fielding, long-time Asset magazine deputy and acting editor, has moved to the property desk at the AFR while former Financial Standard journalist, Ruth Liew is covering financial services. Leng Yeow has returned from her second stint of maternity leave to resume her role as editor of Asset.

MONEY MANAGEMENT

Jayson Forrest, publisher of Money Management and Reed Business Information (RBI)’s other finance publications, has moved over to head up an RBI foray into finance education and conferencing. Forrest has been with RBI for a whopping 15+ years and is being ably assisted in the new venture by veteran financial services sales exec, Brad Lawson. Zeina Khodr, whose last gig was as general manager - eBusiness & Digital Media at The Tax Institute, has filled Forrest’s publisher role.

We have it on good authority that Money Management’s deputy editor, Lucinda Beaman, who took maternity leave this time last year, will be contributing to the title next year. Journalist Tim Stewart, who was previously employed in a sub-editing role at RBI, now works alongside new recruit Andrew Tsanadis and Money Management stalwarts, Mike Taylor (Managing Editor), Chris Kennedy (News Editor) and Milana Pokrajac (Features Editor). Pokrajac took on the Money Management features gig following the departure of Angela Faherty to the position of news editor at Australian Banking + Finance (AB+F).

MORNINGSTAR (INVESTOR DAILY, IFA, SMSF)

A re-shuffle at Morningstar saw SMSF editor, Darin Tyson-Chan promoted to managing editor and long-time staffers, Kate Kachor and Wouter Klijn into positions as editors of Investor Daily and InvestorWeekly respectively. Philippa Yelland left her role as senior journalist at Conexus Financial to take up the position of editor of IFA and Samantha Hodge joined the team after having worked in various journalistic positions in the UK commodities and business press.Krystine Lumanta was brought over from Professional Planner to fill the role of journalist, following the departure of Vishal Teckchandani, who had been with Morningstar for almost four years. Vish is now working with Kaplan. Victoria Tait remains as senior journalist with Morningstar Media, while Christine St Anne, who has been with the group for more than six years, continues to work in her role as online funds and ETF editor, Morningstar Australasia.

FINANCIAL STANDARD

New faces turned up at Financial Standard after Michelle Baltazar was promoted to Head of Media and Publisher about this time last year. Rachel Davis was recruited as editor and, more recently, Claire McGreal was brought on board to fill the journalist role left vacant after Matt Woodington unexpectedly returned to the UK. They work with journalist Elise Burgess, who has been with the title for almost 18 months.

CONEXUS FINANCIAL

Andrew Starke has returned to the world of financial services journalism after a stint away, to join Professional Planner as online editor and will work closely with editor, Simon Hoyle. Conexus Financial also has Brett Cole as editor, I&T News, Simon Mumme as editor of Investment & Technology and Sam Riley as senior journalist, Top1000Funds.com.

RISK INFO & INSURANCE NEWS

Peter Sobels and Emily Saint-Smith continue in their roles with RiskInfo as does journalism veteran John Wilkinson at InsuranceNews.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

Two newish titles are also making waves this year – Wealth Professional, edited by Ben Nice, who is assisted by journalist Alex Holevas, is KeyMedia’s foray into financial services while Quarter magazine, edited by Neil Donnelly is Spark Partner’s push into the finance and accounting professions.

MEDIA TRAINING

While December is traditionally a full-on month as media houses write up round-ups of the year that was, the first couple of weeks of January have, in the past, been quite cruisey. But those days are probably over - the AFR hardly ever sleeps and the trades are kicking off from as early as 5 January. Our advice - if you want to profile your business in the media next year, start preparing for it now. 64 Media runs media training programs designed to suit your particular needs. Call us to find out more on 1300 64 MEDIA.

That’s all the news we have on media movements this year – subscribe to our newsletter for more next year.

RUNNING BETWEEN THE RAINDROPS

Looking for the perfect Christmas present? Why not purchase Gwen Fletcher's biography - Running between the Raindrops - with a foreword by David Koch. CLICK HERE to find out more.

PIECES OF THE FOFA JIGSAW STILL MISSING BUT SG INCREASE WELCOME

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -1100

The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) welcomes the passing this week of the Mineral Resource Rent Tax (MRRT) legislation through the House of Representatives which will lift the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) from 9% to 12 per cent.

“Increasing the SG will help build superannuation account balances to the levels they need in order to live in dignity in retirement,” AFA CEO Richard Klipin said.

However, Mr Klipin expressed concern about the second tranche of the Future of Financial Advice (FOFA) legislation introduced into Parliament yesterday.

“The financial advice profession has had to deal with a huge reform agenda in 2011,” he said. “And while the jigsaw puzzle that is FOFA is now becoming clearer, we must look at FOFA Tranche 1 and Tranche 2 in concert and assess whether together they truly deliver on the original strategic intent of FOFA – that is, increasing transparency and access in the financial advice market.”

Mr Klipin said the AFA has consistently called for, but has yet to see, any robust modelling on the impact and outcomes of the reforms on consumers and the industry. “Without this modelling it will be all but impossible to confirm whether FOFA can deliver on its promises,” he said.

Mr Klipin also said that despite three years of FOFA and PJC discussions, many pieces of the jigsaw are still missing.

Specific Concerns

Lack of robust modelling – the government must provide modelling which proves that FOFA legislation will fulfil its strategic intent
Insurance Remuneration – the government has created confusion with different insurance remuneration arrangements for inside and outside superannuation. This confusion will ultimately affect the take-up of insurance in an already dramatically under-insured population
Opt In – opt in will add three levels of costs: at the adviser to client level, the licensee level and the product manufacturer level. This will price advice out of the reach of many ordinary consumers
Projected loss of jobs for 6,800 advisers (as noted in the Tranche 1 Explanatory Memorandum – 13 October 2011) + staff + clients + communities – the costs to small business advice practices of implementing changes associated with FOFA will force many out of business resulting in tens of thousands of job losses. The market will be concentrated and consumers will have fewer choices in where they access advice.
Lots of devil in the detail – the legislation as it currently stands is complicated and confusing for both consumers and the advice profession.
Best interests duty – while the principle is sound, the AFA believes the devil will be in the detail. A best interests duty may also increase the cost of professional indemnity insurance.
Start date of July 2012 is unworkable – implementation will take a considerable investment of time, energy and money

The AFA will be reviewing the proposed legislation more closely over the next few days in order to understand the full impact it will have on advisers and their clients.

“What we can say for certain is that the legislation is nowhere near ready for implementation in July 2012,” Mr Klipin said. “As with any major industry change, the success of FOFA will depend on how well it is handled. The industry will need to make a significant investment in terms of time, money and resources in order to get ready. Rushed implementation will only end in tears.”

ends

Media Contacts:

Richard Klipin CEO

Association of Financial Advisers

Tel: 0412 127 834

Richard.Klipin@afa.asn.au www.afa.asn.au

Julie Bennett Principal

64 Media

Tel: 0407 071 121

julie@64media.com.au www.64media.com.au

About the AFA

The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) is the longest running professional financial adviser organisation in Australia and its members have been providing trusted advice to consumers for 65 years. The AFA celebrates its diamond anniversary this year. Through individual memberships and relationships with licensees, the AFA represents over 7,000 members. These members offer a broad range of financial advice services to ordinary Australians with many having specific expertise in risk protection. The AFA aims to provide a robust united voice for all financial advisers and their clients, continually improve practices and to focus firmly on the exciting, dynamic future of the financial advice profession. With six and a half decades’ success, the Association's ongoing relevance is due to its philosophy of providing leadership and direction to advisers and their clients. It is an association run by advisers for advisers - this means advisers set the agenda, decide which issues to tackle and shape the organisation's strategic plan.

CELEBRATE WHITE RIBBON DAY ON THE CENTRAL COAST

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -1100

Women of the Central Coast are invited to bring a friend along to morning tea and learn some easy and effective self-defence.

WHEN: 10am Friday 25th Nov

WHERE: Munen Muso Studio, Unit 5, 185 Central Coast H’way, Erina

Help us make the women of the Central Coast safer and raise awareness and funds for White Ribbon in their campaign to reduce violence against women.

Entry by gold coin donation

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FLYER

RSVP Sue 0414 783 019 or

sue@strengthisthekey.com.au

THE SMSF ACADEMY: PENSIONS WEBINAR - TUESDAY 29/11/11

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -1100

The SMSF Academy will host an SMSF Pensions Webinar on Tuesday 29/11/11 from 12:00 noon AESDT. The webinar will explore many of the important considerations of structuring and managing retirement income streams, including understanding further the impact of the draft tax ruling, TR 2011/D3, when a pension commences and ceases.

For more information and to register for the webinar, CLICK HERE

TROY MACMILLAN TAKES OUT AFA’S TOP AWARD

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -1100

Troy MacMillan, The Wealth Designers, Western Australia, has taken out the 2011 AFA Adviser of the Year Award (the Award), proudly sponsored for the ninth consecutive year by Zurich Financial Services Australia (Zurich).

The announcement was made at the AFA’s Gala Awards Dinner on 25 October, which marked the close of the AFA’s National Conference on the Gold Coast.

AFA CEO, Richard Klipin, said each year the number and quality of candidates continues to make the judging process tough. “The finalists are outstanding,” he said, “and they demonstrate that the future of the profession is here."

Mr Klipin said today’s financial advice practices are now corporatised businesses with:

• Specialised staff

• Strong propositions

• Systems that work

• Clients that are delighted

Mr Klipin said it was Troy’s absolute commitment to excellence, superior client service, strong community involvement and streamlined systems and processes that marked him as the winner of the AFA’s premier award.

"It’s fair to say that all of this year’s finalists excelled in the four key areas - giving advice, business acumen, community service and industry service,” Mr Klipin said. “But Troy’s strong all-round practice and absolute commitment to excellence ultimately set him apart from his peers.”

Speaking on behalf of Zurich, Chris Rutherford - Life Risk Chief Operating Officer - said since Zurich first sponsored the award in 2003, the standard of adviser nominations has increased at a phenomenal rate. “This year's finalists are of exceptional quality,” he said. “At a time of enormous change in our industry, the best advisers once again have shown themselves to be leaders and visionaries, who embrace change for the benefit of their clients and themselves.”

Zurich is one of the largest global players in life risk, offering innovative customer-driven products.

The six finalists were:

Finalists

• Craig Ball, The Carter Group, Queensland

• Anne Graham, McPhail HLG Financial Planning, Victoria

• Troy MacMillan, The Wealth Designers, Western Australia - Winner

• Mark Rando, Rando & Associates, Western Australia

• Nicholas Sinclair, Wealthfarm, Queensland

• Brian Woods, Nexus Wealth Management, Western Australia

The Judges

• Dr Rebecca Sheils, Director of Research, Beaton Research and Consulting

• Brad Fox, President, Association of Financial Advisers

• Richard Klipin, CEO, Association of Financial Advisers

• Peter Sobels, Director, Riskinfo

• Philip Kewin, General Manager, Sales & Marketing, Zurich Retail Risk

• Marc Fabris, National Manager, Sales Strategy and Research, Zurich Life Risk

• Graham Peatey, Managing Director, Encore Group

ADVANCE COPIES OF GWEN FLETCHER’S BIOGRAPHY FETCH $2,300

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -1100

BRISBANE: 17 November, 2011 - The first three advance soft cover copies of Gwen Fletcher's biography, Running between the Raindrops, co-authored by Gwen and Julie Bennett and published by Generation Publishing, have sold for $1000, $800 and $500 respectively at the Financial Planning Association (FPA) Professionals Dinner held in conjunction with the FPA Conference in Brisbane. Gwen's profits from the sale of the book will be donated to Future2, the foundation of the Australian financial planning profession.

In acknowledging Gwen’s extraordinary services to the Australian financial planning profession, Future2 Chair, Steve Helmich said, “Long before the establishment of Future2 in 2007, Gwen had the vision for a charitable foundation - a vehicle for the profession to give back to the community, so we were honoured last year when she accepted the invitation of Future2 trustees to be our inaugural Patron. We are also very pleased that Gwen has made Future2 the recipient of her profits from the book.”

Running between the Raindrops will be officially launched at the FPA Sydney Chapter Christmas lunch on December 8. To book your seat, please CLICK HERE.

Gwen, who has been described as Australia’s First Lady of Financial Planning, played a vital role in extending the financial planning profession far beyond America’s shores to Australia. It was Gwen who took the first step towards globalisation of the profession and thanks to her, Australia became the first country in the world to adopt America’s Certified Financial Planner™ designation.

Gwen’s services to the Australian financial planning profession were recognised by her country in 2007 when she was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List. Her contribution to global financial planning was recognised by the American financial planning community when she was awarded the prestigious Heart of Financial Planning Distinguished Service Award in 2007.

Final copies of Running Between the Raindrops, published by Generation Publishing, will be available for purchase at the FPA Sydney Chaper Christmas Lunch in hard cover ($49.95) and paperback ($39.95). The book will feature forewords by media personality David Koch and financial planning entrepreur, Paul Clitheroe. Copies of the book can be also be ordered online by CLICKING HERE

Further Information:

Julie Bennett – Generation Publishing/64 Media – 0407 071 121

CSSA: MYSUPER NEGATES RIPOLL'S CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT AMBITIONS

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -1100

Measures to be introduced into MySuper will undermine the ambition of Bernie Ripoll, Chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services (the PJC), to improve consumer engagement with their retirement savings, according to the Corporate Super Specialist Alliance (CSSA).

Mr Ripoll was reported yesterday as saying he hoped the introduction of Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) legislation would lead to more people taking a greater interest in their retirement savings and investments.

Unfortunately, MySuper runs counter to that objective.

CSSA President, Douglas Latto, said under measures to be introduced via MySuper, corporate super specialists, who currently provide proactive financial education services to millions of employees via their corporate super funds in the workplace, will not be able to be effectively remunerated.

“If that happens, corporate super specialists will obviously have to withdraw their proactive financial services from the workplace,” he said. “What will that mean? It will mean more Australians will lose, rather than gain, interest in their retirement savings.”

CSSA advisers provide a range of services to employees, including:

Conducting financial literacy and education seminars, personal on-site meetings and distributing newsletters in the work place
Negotiating better terms and conditions with super funds
Monitoring the super fund on a continuous basis, correcting the many errors that occur and overcoming administrative issues
Playing a member advocacy role in negotiating lower fees
Helping the fund with its group risk requirements; negotiating better features and lower life insurance premiums for members and helping members with life insurance claims

“We believe it is highly unlikely that product providers in the space will adopt our proactive approach to financial literacy,” Mr Latto said, “which will ultimately compound the problem.”

A survey across CSSA membership reveals the current cost of providing financial services to corporate superannuation funds is about $1per member, per week.

Mr Latto said that research conducted by CoreData on behalf of the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) earlier this year reveals that the services provided by CSSA advisers are very highly valued by the majority of employees.

“The research also confirmed our belief that if our services were not available, many employees would not actively seek out financial services education and advice,” he said. “It really doesn’t make sense to introduce measures which will remove consumer access to our services.”

About the CSSA

The CSSA represents corporate superannuation specialist advisory businesses. CSSA members provide financial advisory services to thousands of corporate superannuation funds across metropolitan and regional Australia and play an essential role in managing Australia’s large and growing superannuation savings pool. CSSA members work with Australian companies and their workers to provide them with improved life insurance and superannuation outcomes via their corporate superannuation plans. CSSA members provide a broad range of services to corporate super plans at four levels – the employer level; the policy committee (representative body) level; the individual super fund member level and to super fund members collectively. These services help employers and policy committees ensure members are getting competitive benefits and features, at a competitive price, and that members have access to general advice and information to help them improve their decisions about their retirement savings and life insurance choices.

Media Contacts

Julie Bennett, 64 Media 0407 071 121

IRESS LAUNCHES UK WEALTH MANAGEMENT DIVISION

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -1100

IRESS SELECTED AS STRATEGIC SUPPLIER BY SESAME BANKHALL GROUP

LARGEST UK DISTRIBUTION NETWORK TO DEPLOY XPLAN

IRESS UK WEALTH MANAGEMENT ESTABLISHED

WITH EXPERIENCED LOCAL EXECUTIVE TEAM

IRESS is pleased to announce the launch of its Wealth Management division in the United Kingdom on the back of its selection as strategic supplier of wealth management advice technology by Sesame Bankhall Group (SBG), the largest distributor of retail financial advice in the UK.

IRESS’ goal is to establish a competitive and comprehensive advice platform to meet the needs of the UK advice market, and over time to build a business similar to its leading wealth management operations in other markets.

The UK division has been initiated with a local management team comprising the directors of the respected financial services consultancy, AT8 Group. This experienced local management team will be responsible for the delivery to SBG, and management and growth of the IRESS business in this strategically important market.

This opportunity will leverage complementary capabilities:

IRESS’ market leading and differentiated technology;
IRESS executive team experience, relationships, and knowledge of the UK marketplace through local management; and
SBG’s significant adviser distribution network and knowledge of local requirements, and commitment to leverage IRESS technology.

These represent a unique set of capabilities to establish and prove local capability from which to build a highly competitive and substantial operation with strong growth prospects.

United Kingdom Wealth Management

The UK wealth management software market is at least twice that of Australia, serviced by a range of niche technology vendors. Advisory networks tend to use a combination of suppliers to meet the range of advice and technology requirements, across which there are varying degrees of integration.

The UK financial advice market is facing a new regulatory regime from 2013 as part of the UK government’s Retail Distribution Review (RDR). RDR will require many advisory firms to change their businesses to operate under fee-based service models. These impacts will require a new generation of software to support fundamental changes in practice management.

IRESS considers this environment an opportunity to leverage its scale, experience and integrated technology suite to differentiate from existing providers and provide a compelling option to distribution networks.

IRESS & Sesame Bankhall Group (SBG)

SBG has been assessing future-ready technology solutions in order to differentiate itself from its competitors, and to address regulatory change and heightened requirements for its advice network. SBG regards the UK’s Retail Distribution Reform (RDR) as a strategic opportunity for financial advisory firms to evolve their businesses, but has recognised that to achieve this in a cost effective and efficient manner, investment in technology is essential.

Over a similar timeframe, IRESS has been encouraged by the opportunity for its integrated product range to meet forward-looking demands of UK advice networks, based on feedback and workshops, to assess functional capability, flexibility, and the direct applicability of XPLAN in the UK. On this basis, identification of a seed client in support of an organic entry has been a key objective.

Following a review of global solutions, incorporating a formal tender process, SBG has selected IRESS’ wealth management platform, XPLAN, as the best suited to meet its short and longer term strategic objectives for the 12,000 direct and indirect advisers it services across the UK.

IRESS and SBG have entered a long-term strategic supply agreement where XPLAN will be deployed as SBG’s next generation advice platform. SBG provides IRESS with first-hand experience and knowledge of local requirements that will focus the delivery of XPLAN in the UK. In addition, the partnered commitment to implement XPLAN (commencing later in 2012) will establish IRESS’ capability and relevance in the region.

Commenting on the significant agreement between SBG and IRESS, George Higginson, CEO of SBG stated “SBG strives to add value to our members, and the provision of XPLAN is an excellent example of this. XPLAN will be SBG’s advice delivery platform to provide tools in support of the transition to a service and fee-based world with streamlined business processes to help our firms maintain first class service to their clients.”

IRESS Managing Director, Andrew Walsh, said “IRESS is delighted to be selected and endorsed as a partner by SBG against strong global and UK based competition. The UK represents a strategic growth opportunity for IRESS and the opportunity to work with SBG to deliver a premier localised offering is unique and significant for both parties.”

For more information, please contact:

Andrew Walsh

IRESS

Managing Director

awalsh@iress.com.au

+61 2 8273 7000

Mark Loosmore

IRESS

Business Development Director

mark.loosmore@iress.co.uk

+44 (0) 121 314 2504

www.iress.co.uk

About Sesame Bankhall Group

The Sesame Bankhall Group was formed in 2009. It brings together the leading network, support service provider and mortgage club to create the UK's largest distributor of Retail Financial Advice.

Our unique blend of over 20 years regulatory experience and business support makes us the number one choice for thousands of advisers nationwide and accountable for almost a quarter of the UK financial advice market.

The group brings together three leading brands within the Financial Services Industry:

Sesame is the largest Appointed Representative Network in the UK, with 1,400 member firms
Bankhall is the market-leading support services business for 1,900 directly regulated adviser firms
PMS operates the largest mortgage club for directly regulated mortgage brokers in the UK

The Sesame Bankhall Group is the largest single distributor of financial services in the UK and today is accountable for almost a quarter of the UK financial advice market.

About AT8

AT8 is a specialist consultancy and business development company, principally aimed at the financial services and related IT markets. Its domain knowledge and expertise combined with the development of relevant products and services create compelling propositions for customers that achieve positive results quickly.

AT8’s services are built around propositions that address specific problems or opportunities in its core and related markets. This requires an in-depth knowledge of the market dynamics and the application of thought leadership.

AT8’s knowledge skill & experience covers:

• Financial Services – delivering effective e-enablement

• Point of Sale

• Back Office & CRM

• Wrap

• Worksite Marketing

• Business process review and re-engineering

• Sales & Marketing – business development

• Regulation and best business practice

About IRESS

IRESS is a principal supplier of share market and wealth management systems in Australia, Asia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa.

IRESS produces innovative, sophisticated solutions for financial market and wealth management participants. Our two core product streams, IRESS and XPLAN, comprise a market information and trading platform and an extensive suite of financial planning and associated tools. Both product streams support a diverse range of roles and offer front, middle and back-office functionality.

IRESS’ clients range from large corporations through to independent operators. We support all financial market and wealth participants who have a need to manage and monitor industry information.

IRESS is a progressive, service-based organisation that employs over 650 staff in 14 offices worldwide. Located in the centre of the major financial districts, our staff have local knowledge and industry experience. Open channels of communication keep us focused and informed across the entire business.

We strive for excellence in our relationships with clients and industry bodies alike. We are client-driven, responsive and promote a culture that supports working with our customers and the industry to face challenges and keep pace with industry developments.