Point One managing director, Shaun Godfrey said he expected regulation to create more medium to large-sized firms, taking on graduates who could advise across all areas of financial advice, from pensions and investments to general insurance and mortgages.
There are also not enough young advisers, said Godfrey, who plans to look for wider industry support on formal training from the beginning of next year. He added: “We need to resolve this issue, otherwise the mortgage advice industry will wither on the vine.”
“Under the MCCB, mortgage brokers are supposed to have operated under a training and compliance regime, although ignorance, not negligence has been at the root of most of the advisory problems in the past,” said Godfrey.
Godfrey suggests three-tier training where graduates start as appointed representatives (ARs) with a single speciality and progress on through a multi-tied stage, to attain fully-independent, whole-of-market advice after two or three years.
Bankhall’s regulatory proposition caters for both AR and direct authorisation (DA) status, but sees the AR route as a training ground from which brokers can move on to apply for DA.
Tony Jones, managing director of Pink Home Loans, said: “The average age of mortgage brokers is so high because often they have to build up capital before they can make the transition to the advice industry.”
He added: “It is a peculiar industry with no professional model and with all the barriers to entry, Bankhall’s concept is a good one.”
Bankhall, which announced its acquisition of Prudential’s mortgage club, Premier Mortgage Services (PMS) in January expects to complete full integration with the mortgage distributor by 31 March.
