Financial services firm AFS Group is in advance discussions with a second institutional company, believed to be IOOF, over a sale of the dealer group.
AFS Group managing director Peter Daly would not confirm nor deny the group is close to selling to the listed financial services group.
"All these kinds of discussions are subject to confidentiality agreements and sadly we're not in a position to comment on whether it's them or anyone else for that matter," Daly said.
"So definitely no sale, we're in a very strong financial position we don't need to sell and unless the figure is right we won't."
He said while AFS has not been sold, the dealer group and an institutional firm are in deep talks with due diligence now completed.
On 31 December, AFS and the unnamed institutional firm entered into an exclusivity period.
News of the new deal comes three months after a deal between AFS and another institutional group collapsed.
"Unfortunately the company right towards the end started making demands in terms of how much product or platform we had to support so negotiations collapsed," he said.
Daly said AFS has three considerations for a deal to proceed, that the group's approved product list remains independent, that AFS management continue to oversee the group's compliance and that the dealer group retain the relationship with their advisers.
IOOF would not comment on market speculation it was the institution in sales discussions with AFS.
