BT Financial Group has signalled expansion plans for its Advice business by announcing the appointment of Phil Butterworth, Mario Modica, Kon Costas and Andrew Rutter to lead a new business unit which will include BT Financial Group’s established and successful Magnitude business.
Butterworth formed and led DKN Financial Group for more than eight years before leaving last month and has a wealth of experience as a senior executive in the financial services industry. With an 18 year career spanning distribution, platform development, dealer services, business acquisition and integration, he has previously worked in senior roles at Macquarie Portfolio Services, Lonsdale Financial Group and Asgard.
Modica has been chief executive of Lonsdale Financial Group since 2000 and has a long history in the banking and finance industry including senior roles with Westpac, J.B.Were and National Australia Private Bank. Costas, whose career has spanned banking, financial planning, wealth management, business coaching and financial services dealership network development and recruiting, was the executive director of Lonsdale Financial Group which he joined in 2005. Rutter has been executive director for distribution at DKN Financial Group for the past six years where he has been responsible for the strategic direction of the distribution business, building on his previous senior distribution roles with Wizard Home Loans, AXA Australia and National Mutual.
The appointment of Butterworth, Modica, Costas and Rutter is part of a strategy by BT Financial Group to continue to lead a market that is transforming as a result of a changed regulatory framework and growing consumer demand for sound strategic advice.
BT Financial Group’s General Manager of Advice, Mark Spiers, said a highly disrupted market is driving many financial advisers to reconsider their future.
“Advisers who want highly successful and sustainable businesses are now looking at who they should partner with for the next decade and beyond.
“While we continue to attract planners into our salaried work force to ensure our banking customers receive quality financial advice, we want to ensure we are best positioned to continue attracting those advisers into our aligned channels who want to partner with a high quality brand with sound strategies and an unquestionable focus on clients and leadership.”
Spiers said the business’ mandate is to deliver business solutions to advice practices which help them utilise the scale advantages available from working with the broader BT Financial Group.
“When combined with business expertise and a strategic perspective, this scale can help practices be more efficient, drive growth and, ultimately, improve their bottom line.
“It’s a very exciting time and we look forward to welcoming Phil, Mario, Kon and Andrew next year to help build on our heritage of industry leadership, product and service innovation, deep client relationships and quality in everything we do,” Spiers said.
