The Answers has been established by Simon Fisher and Greg Barratt from Preferred New Zealand. Fisher was previously the sales manager at Partners Life.

They are looking to limit membership to just 100 firms and each firm will be treated equally no matter how big they are.

Fisher says each firm will get one share and one vote.

“It’s not the Simon and Greg show. This is their business.”

Preferred NZ, which has around 20 advisers, will be one member of the group. About 20 other firms have already joined The Answers.

The idea of the co-operative structure is that the group is run by advisers for advisers.

Under this model “the big boys can’t bully the little boys and make changes that would be detrimental to them,” Fisher says.

He says in some of the more traditional group models changes can be made by one or two people.

“They can make changes that affect hundreds of people.”

Fisher says the group isn’t just about aggregating business for commissions, rather it aims to provide services to its members that they want.

Likewise the co-operative isn’t just about providing things like discounted professional indemnity schemes or discounted members of external disputes resolution schemes.

“We want to assist businesses to achieve their business goals,” he says.

Barratt says with regulation coming there are questions about whether over-ride payments from life companies will continue. He says The Answers isn’t relying on overrides.

One thing it plans to do is develop referral services for its members and this will generate extra income and revenue for participants.

“One of the biggest issues with most financial adviser groups is the way they come to depend on over-rides from insurers. Answers members benefit from a range of alternative revenue streams from real estate, accountancy, ACC and other sources.”

Barratt is a director of the new business and Fisher is its chief executive.