Head of Wealth Markets, Alexandra Tullio, announced the appointments as part of what will be the continuing evolution of the new Bendigo Wealth division which was launched in April 2011, heralding an exciting new era in the evolution of the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Group.

The new Bendigo Wealth division has been warmly received in the IFA market place and is playing an increasingly important role in helping our distribution partners meet the needs of their clients.

Part of this new focus has been to generate awareness of the broader banking and wealth solutions that the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Group have on offer to the IFA market.

The new Bendigo Wealth division is fortunate in that there is a broad range of skills and resources across the Group from which to draw. “These new appointments are effective as of Monday 20 June and are pivotal in enabling the Distribution, Business Development and Manufacturing areas to deliver on expectations within the Bendigo Wealth division ”, Ms Tullio said.

New Regional Managers:

• Richard Brown, Regional Manager, WA/SA/VIC/TAS/NT. Richard joined the Bank in November 2006 in the role of National Sales Manager, WealthDeposits. For the past four years Richard has held the position of State Sales Manager, SA/NT – Wealth Distribution. Prior to joining the Bank, Richard worked in a variety of sales management, recruitment and operational roles with Hillross Financial, Colonial, Prudential, AMP and Hudson Global.
• Keith Hilsdon, Regional Manager, QLD/NSW/ACT. Keith has held manydiverse roles during his 27 years within the financial services industry,bringing funds management, financial markets, business strategy, credit assessment, training, business and retail banking experience to his role.

New Manufacturing roles:

• Darryl Drown, Senior Manager, Bendigo Wealth Manufacturing
• Gillian Carless, Senior Manager – Manufacturing.
• Julie McKay, Senior Manager – Technical and Research

New Business Development roles:

• Nick Jackson, Senior Business Development Manager (SBDM) in NewSouth Wales
• Nicola Thiel, Senior Business Development Manager (SBDM) in WesternAustralia

The post New Bendigo Wealth division builds capacity in IFA market appeared first on AdviserVoice.

• Wealth is at record highs. Wealth held by Australians in property, shares and other assets hit record highs at the end of September. The latest data produced by Federal Treasury and the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that private sector wealth rose by 1.3 per cent to $5.86 trillion at the end of September.
• Per capita wealth. On a per capita basis, wealth is also at record highs. CommSec estimates that on average each Australian has wealth equivalent to $261,500, up $2,500 over the quarter.
• Debt levels continue to slide. Private sector debt fell by 3.2 per cent in the September quarter – the third straight decline and the sixth decline in seven quarters. Debt is down 2.9 per cent on a year ago and has consistently fallen in annual terms over the past 15 months. The slide in debt levels is almost unprecedented over the past 50 years.
• The rental market remains tight. The rental vacancy rate fell from 1.9 per cent to 1.86 per cent in the September quarter.

What does it all mean?

• In light of the major floods across eastern Australia, some would be questioning whether Australia is really the ‘lucky country’ after all. But along comes data showing that wealth levels in Australia are at record highs and it puts things in a different perspective. Clearly the global financial crisis is becoming a distant memory with a sharp lift in share prices driving wealth to unprecedented levels.
• It’s important to note that wealth is not just at record highs in nominal terms, suggesting inflation may have had a lot to do with it. After adjusting for inflation, and after adjusting for the sharp increase in population levels in recent years, wealth is still at record highs, almost doubling in the past decade.
• Australia may be susceptible to natural disasters like floods, bushfires and drought, but remarkably our prosperity levels are unaffected. Disasters strike, we deal with the effects, and then we move on, as we have always done.
• CommSec estimates that the average Australian has wealth totalling almost $262,000 while per capita debt is far lower near $24,000. In the past, wealth has gone up, but so has debt. But that’s not the case at present. At the same time as wealth levels are rising, debt levels are falling. And there are no signs of these favourable trends being reversed any time soon.
• At no point in the past 36 years has there been a more significant reduction in private sector debt. It may have taken a global financial crisis to change our attitude to debt, but our new-found desire to live within our means has favourable long-term consequences.

What do the figures show?

Modellers’ database

• Federal Treasury’s “Modellers’ Database” shows that Australia’s private sector wealth stood at a record $5,862.3 billion as at the end of September 2010, up 1.3 per cent over the quarter and the fifth gain in six quarters. Wealth stands 8.9 per cent higher than a year ago.
• CommSec estimates that per capita wealth stood at a record $261,500 as at the end of September, up $2,500 over the quarter.
• In real terms, CommSec estimates that private sector wealth rose by 1.0 per cent in the September quarter to stand 6.8 per cent higher over the year.
• Unfortunately no detailed break-up is provided of the quarterly wealth figures calculated by Federal Treasury but higher share prices would have driven the lift in wealth, offsetting a slight fall in home prices.
• By comparison, private sector debt fell for the third straight quarter and sixth time in seven quarters. Debt fell by 3.2 per cent in the September quarter to a near three-year low of $547.0 billion. Debt stands 2.9 per cent down on a year ago.
• Both Australian-dollar denominated debt and foreign debt fell in the quarter. Per capita debt fell from $25,300 to $24,400.
• Over the past decade private sector wealth has lifted by 122.8 per cent with real wealth up by 77.9 per cent.
• Overseas holdings of Australian equity rose by 4.7 per cent in the September quarter to $698.75 billion. Australian holdings of foreign equity also rose, lifting by 3.3 per cent to $593.2 billion.
• The national rental vacancy rate eased from 1.90 per cent to 1.86 per cent in the September quarter, well down on the long-term average of 2.7 per cent.

What is the importance of the economic data?

• The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and Federal Treasury release the Modellers’ Database each quarter. The ABS notes: “the Modellers’ Database consists of over 500 quarterly times series constructed from the NIF and TRYM econometric models. They are useful to economists, econometricians, financial analysts and students.

What are the implications for interest rates and investors?

• Wealth is at record highs and the job market is in great shape but people are still not spending freely and are reluctant to borrow. The Reserve Bank views these trends positively, removing upward pressure from interest rates.
• Ordinarily, the lift in wealth levels would be good news for retailers and other consumer-focussed firms. But the mood of conservatism still prevails, meaning that consumers are saving, not spending, and cutting debt levels.
• The rental market remains tight. Governments need to do more to encourage private sector investment in the housing market as there is upward pressure on rents and inflation.

The post Wealth hits record highs; Debt slides again appeared first on AdviserVoice.