Financial planning collective the Best Advice project has began the process of merging together its member practices.
The project's 11 member firms are expected to be merged into the one entity by April.
"I can confirm that the proposal to merge the 11 initial firms has reached the formal proposal stage. It's scheduled that we will complete the mergers at the start of April." Best Advice Project chief executive Tony Fenning told InvestorDaily.
"We've put in an enormous effort to undertake due diligence and do some planning. It's gone well and we're looking forward to pulling the proposal together and working together from then going forward."
As the merger process kicks into high gear the project's strategy of acquiring new member firms has been placed on hold, Fenning said.
"We've put a hold for awhile simply because we've been busily working through the members that we already have," he said.
"The Money Managers are ones that we are still working on and we hope to bring them along. Pretty much once the dust settles between March and April, we'll be talking to the people who have already approached us and possibly some others."
The group's total funds under advice is understood to be around $10 billion.
The 11 project member firms are Arnheim Gillard and Partners, Gannon Growden Schonell and Associates, Guest McLeod, Heraud Harrison, Keysbrook Financial Services, Douglas Wenck, Ellwood Barry McPherson, Kilkenny Rose, Shadforths, Haintz and the Money Managers.
The Best Advice project has offices in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart, Perth and regional centres.
