People

You can’t judge a book by its cover in the far north of Australia, says adviser Anthony Menico. Sometimes it’s the most unassuming clients that have the most complex financial advice needs.

The emerging markets pioneer turned a $100 million fund into a $60 billion behemoth over 30 years. And even now, well past 80, Mark Mobius still spends 250 days of the year on the road researching companies.

Handling emotionally charged phone calls as a Lifeline counsellor taught Jon Moses the patience required to conduct forensic searches for lost shares and dividends belonging to deceased estates.

A visit to an adviser at a young age gave Paul Nicol pause for thought. Instead of just investing with the help of a financial planner, why not put in the hard work and become one?

By age 24 he had more clients than he could handle. On his 26th birthday Josh was appointed as a director at Link Wealth Group. “I hit the ground running,” he says. “I enjoyed doing it and just engulfed myself in it.”

Hatry’s downfall certainly provides a cautionary tale of the dangers of financial excess and the depths individuals will plumb in seeking to avoid exposure and catastrophe.

The public appears to be rewarding efforts to reshape the financial advice and banking industries after the royal commission, with advisers and the banks both enjoying an increase in faith across the community.

Hartley, who joined AMP from Sunsuper in January 2021, will help transition the AWM business to a flatter human resource model before leaving the group in late November.

To give him a taste of the farming life, Stephen’s father sent him to a neighbour who offered him $400 per week in wages, with $200 of that quarantined by his employer for rent and bills. He declined, and headed straight into a career in financial advice. “I was going to be a wool baron, until I very quickly wasn’t,” he says.

While FoFA was the right policy for its era, Ripoll says the industry has come a long way and has different needs. The Quality of Advice Review’s proposals are an “important step” for today’s industry, he believes.

Anne Graham and her fellow co-founders named their advice business Story Wealth because they believe every client has a compelling story to tell. Turns out Anne’s own story is quite the odyssey, as well.

AMP recently promoted senior economist Diana Mousina to a new role, deputy chief economist, in recognition of her achievements and succession path. Like other economists, Mousina sees a recession on the cards for Australia, although the timeline may be longer than many hope.