Bendigo Wealth launched
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has announced the launch of Bendigo Wealth, a new wealth management division that will leverage off the bank’s high brand recognition and leading customer satisfaction ranking.
Managing Director, Mike Hirst said, “As Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has grown, so too has our ability to understand how we can better meet the needs and expectations of our distribution partners.
“Our distribution partners told us that they would appreciate the greater convenience of new bundling options and a similar look and feel across our product range. These conversations have been very valuable in setting the direction of our wealth business and we will now bring these findings to life.
“The realignment and expansion of our wealth management operations will see us pursue opportunities that will position the group to manage a greater share of the growing Australian managed investment pool, along with life, risk and general insurance that our distribution partners may have overlooked when dealing with one part of our wealth offering”, Mr Hirst concluded.
Bendigo Wealth Executive, John Billington said:
“In keeping with our aim to be Australia’s leading customer connected banking group, we undertook a survey of our retail banking customers, financial advisers and also included people who didn’t currently have a relationship with us. Overwhelmingly, they thought Bendigo Wealth as a name was appealing and best encapsulated the full suite of products and services we’re now delivering.
“Bendigo Wealth as a brand will make it easier for our highly valued distribution partners to explain the product range to clients - and for clients to more easily make the connection to a financial services brand that they both recognise and trust.
“What we needed was a simple way for our distribution partners to be able to connect to the full suite of financial services and products we now have on offer after the various mergers, acquisitions and partnering arrangements the bank has undertaken in recent years.
“We also want to make it easier for financial advisers to not only be able to see the full range of investment solutions we offer, but to make it easier for them when they are having conversations with their clients about our products. The dots are easier to join for all parties and investing with the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank group is now an easier story for advisers to tell.
“This is an exciting new era in the evolution of the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank group and I look forward to seeing Bendigo Wealth play an increasingly important role in helping our distribution partners meet the needs of their clients.
“The Bendigo ‘experience’ is deeply embedded in the DNA of Bendigo Wealth. We are highly recognised and awarded for epitomising service, reliability and trust as a bank and this tradition and heritage will continue to grow with the launch of Bendigo Wealth”, Mr Billington concluded.
What’s the story?
- From small beginnings in 1858, we have had wealth management products on offer in some parts of the Bendigo and Adelaide group since 1888.
- Bendigo and Adelaide Bank enjoys a high level of brand awareness, satisfaction and importantly - a growing customer base of 1.4 million people who willingly recommend our bank to family, friends and associates.
- The adviser community is well aware that at the heart of our business is the experience we create for our customers. This overlays our commitment to a consolidated wealth business and is a solid foundation upon which to build Bendigo Wealth.
- We will promote Bendigo Wealth by continuing to open more branches, training more staff, recruiting more financial advisers and growing our distribution networks.
- The new division will increase the connection with our partners and external distribution channels by implementing a clearer path to our brands and enabling us to create product bundles relevant to our customers.
- Bendigo Wealth will help customers to bridge the well documented retirement savings and insurance gaps, growing and protecting wealth and enabling people to continue to reach their goals should adverse events - such as illness, death or injury occur.
- Our strategy will open up access to the full range of Bendigo Wealth financial services to people who may have previously overlooked our wealth management capacity.
- Customers like the Bendigo brand and they will be more inclined to exercise their option to invest with us - as well as save - now that our branding and livery has been extended to the products that now come under the Bendigo Wealth umbrella.
- People will be able to make an appointment with a financial planner or they can research our products beforehand via our on-line portal and make their own informed decisions, but ultimately, it will be their trust in Bendigo branded wealth products that will have the greatest influence on the success of Bendigo Wealth.
- For Bendigo customers whose preference is to seek guidance, we can educate and inform our customers and provide financial advice, as well as cater for more sophisticated investors who prefer to self-direct their investments and arrive at their own decisions.
Where Bendigo Wealth sits in the scheme of things
- Bendigo Wealth is a new business unit of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank that sits in the Banking and Wealth division, reporting through to Marnie Baker.
- John Billington has been leading Bendigo Wealth since September 2010 when he joined the Bank.
- Prior to the this realignment, the business unit was called Wealth and Third Party Banking
- Bendigo Wealth is aligned to Banking & Wealth’s focus in supporting and enhancing the customer experience, in whatever way the customer chooses to engage with us – be that under advice – or self-directed.
Is Bendigo and Adelaide Bank keeping the full suite of wealth brands acquired?
- Yes we are. Leveraged Equities, Adelaide Bank Wealth Deposits, Sandhurst Trustees, Victorian Securities, Bendigo Financial Planning and Insurance are now part of Bendigo Wealth
- They’re great, well established brands and they will become product line brands sitting under Bendigo Wealth. The brands will continue to be the issuer of the relevant product chosen by a customer and drive the naming protocols for the products.
- For example, a customer may deal with Bendigo Wealth, but purchase a Leveraged Equities Margin Loan, issued by Leveraged Equities, so that’s how they’ll work together. Nothing changes there.
Financial Planning and Bendigo Wealth
- Bendigo Financial Planners are not commission based and have been fee-for-service since 2006 – well ahead of the pack - and in line with increasing community expectations.
- Bendigo Financial Planners have the same obligations to their clients as external financial advisers. They are focused on delivering relevant and competitive wealth solutions for their clients.
- People seeking financial advice from Bendigo are offered products and services that first and foremost benefit them - not their advisers.
- Bendigo Wealth understands and respects the important relationships our advisers have with their clients and the choice they’ve made to access our products and services through an intermediary.
Trinity3
- Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’s new Trinity3 platform provides investors with access to traditional managed funds, direct shares, cash options and model portfolios managed by professional investment houses. It seamlessly combines all the benefits of IDPS platforms as well as separately managed accounts.
- A key feature of the new Trinity3 platform is the capital protection mechanism available for selected Model Portfolios. A process of dynamic rebalancing ensures that the asset allocation of the Model Portfolio is always optimised and as the Model Portfolio value increases, so too does the lock in level of the continuous protection.
- Trinity3's capital protection feature is different to most others on the market in that there is no fixed term for the investment and investors are able to request redemption at any time.
www.bendigowealth.com.au
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