Veteran mortgage adviser Geoff Bawden sells his dealer group

The Adviser Platform (TAP) has bought established mortgage aggregator Q Group which has around 30 advisers.

Geoff Bawden set up Q Group in 2015 after leaving another group Prosper. He is a veteran of the industry and headed the now defunct NZ Mortgage Brokers Association (NZMBA) for many years.

TAP and Q had been working together for some time, as previously reported by TMMOnline, and share similar values.

"TAP and Q Group have had a strong partnership to date and with shared values and drive to make a difference for advisers, the acquisition aims to leverage the credibility of both businesses to create greater value for adviser members," TAP managing director Ryan Edwards says.

“For the past eight years, we’ve developed a market-leading proposition in the mortgage aggregation space," Bawden says.

"But in an ever-changing industry, we need to evolve to keep up with demands and to continue adding value to advisers. TAP’s greater level of resourcing, capabilities, and exceptional technology platform will offer increased servicing to advisers," he says.

"I’m delighted the acquisition is by a business that shares our values and believe TAP is the right partner for our future. But more importantly, the future of adviser members so they can build a more robust and sustainable business," Bawden says.

Edwards says, “It's a known fact that advisers are currently facing increased cost, regulation requirements and commission pressures. This is what we’re solving at TAP with our mission to give advisers the peace of mind to run their business successfully, allowing them to focus on their clients."

"The acquisition of Q Group is a testament to Geoff Bawden’s knowledge and expertise and will enable TAP to enhance and accelerate our growth plans in providing outstanding service, and an extremely competitive product to advisers”.

Under the new operations Bawden will transition to head of mortgage adviser distribution.