Employment Opportunity for Advisors To Main Page
Hello:
This is our
first invitation to other advisors to join us.
We have spent the past 10 years perfecting systems and we are now ready
to expand the firm. When we put the
firm together in 1996, our goal was to build an independent home for top
quality advisors so they would never have to move again. We tried to identify
those things that we should be doing to properly serve advisors as well as
their clients.
We believe that
advisors should have a say in the operation of the firm so we promote
participation in the decision making process and encourage ownership of voting
shares. We also believe that advisors
should have a way to convert their book of business into a lifetime annuity for
themselves and their families so that they can retire at a reasonable age.
I am looking
forward to meeting you soon to further discuss mutual interests.
Sincerely:
Gary R. Hein / President
What Advisors Will Need To Provide
Who We Are:
First Financial Securities Inc. has been a securities dealer since 1996. Headquartered and wholly owned and operated by Gary and Diane Hein in Courtenay B.C. First
Financial is currently registered with the I.D.A. from B.C. to Ontario with sub-branches in Winnipeg, Lloydminster, Prince George, Kelowna, Pemberton, Vancouver, Nanaimo, Comox Valley and Campbell River.
First Financial
was established primarily to accommodate experienced advisors who:
-
Desire maximum allowable independence and freedom
-
Prefer to pay their own expenses in return for high
commission payout
-
Want assurance that their clients belong to them
-
Are permitted to acquire some meaningful ownership
-
Are able to share in profits
-
Will have access to a decent exit strategy on retirement
First Financial
Securities was not established to make a lot of profit for the owners or to
build up a saleable commodity. Our goal
was to build an independent home for
advisors who are
client service oriented.
Our Culture:
Current Culture
is about 90% Mutual Funds, 5% Securities and 5% other (deposit accounts, LP’s,
VCC’s, flow through entities).
This culture
exists solely because Gary is the largest producer and he has chosen to focus
on Mutual Funds. Certainly more active
trading of stocks and bonds would
be welcome.
In the near
future First Financial plans to offer Margin Accounts, Managed Accounts,
Discretionary Accounts and Options and Futures Trading.
Services We Offer To Clients:
-
Superior Statements
-
Unbiased Advice
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Retail Cash Accounts
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Fee Based Cash Accounts
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Trading in all Securities listed on Canadian or American
Exchanges
-
Some IPO’s (when available)
-
Extensive Bond Offerings
-
Most Canadian Mutual Funds
-
Certain LP’s, Flow Through Entities and VCC’s as available
and approved for sale
-
Life Insurance Products and Segregated Funds through a
closely held Associate General Agency for dual licensed Advisors.
-
Tax Preparation Services through a closely held Tax
Preparation Company
-
Fee for Service Financial Planning (through qualified
advisors)
-
Access to RSP Loan Programs
-
Online Account Review
-
Online Non-Financial Changes
- C.S.S. Settlement for all Mutual Fund Trades (T+1 ready)
What We Offer Advisors:
-
Independence
-
No Production Quotas
-
You Own Your Book
-
Dealer Ownership Options
-
Exit Strategy for Retirement
-
Profit Sharing
-
High Payouts on all Commissions and Residuals
-
Easy to Use Software
-
Solid Compliance
-
No Pressure to Sell In-House Proprietary Product
-
Reward Program
Pay-Out Grid:
Note Payouts are shared by negotiation
between advisors and their branch manager.
Although Branch Managers are remunerated by head office for compliance
duties, they
may also require a percentage of the advisors share of commissions to
compensate for time spent for training or additional supervision.
80% Pay-Out Model (Suitable for
advisors grossing less than $100,000)
First Financial pays out 80% of commissions and trails less recovery of trading costs. Electronically traded mutual funds cost $3.00 (a switch is 2 trades). PACs, SWPs, and internal and external transfers are exempt. Manually traded mutual funds cost $6.00. Most stock trades cost $30.00 and most fixed income trades cost $65. Large volume low valued stock trades can cost $100 or more to clear. In self-directed registered plans, stocks trades cost $45 and fixed income trades cost $65.
100% Pay-Out Model (Suitable for advisors grossing more than $100,000)
Advisors pay First Financial a fixed fee of $2000 per month plus trading costs as above in exchange for 100% pay out of commissions and trails.
What We Are Looking For:
Investment advisors and mutual fund advisors that are:
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Client oriented
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Experienced
-
Entrepreneurial
-
Independently minded
-
Ingrained with a culture of strong ethics and adherence to
compliance
Ideally, fully
trained advisors already grossing in excess of $150,000 per year are preferred but
no candidate with strong potential will be turned away.
Note Advisors restricted to mutual funds are
welcome in BC, Saskatchewan and Manitoba but Alberta and Ontario restrict the
number that an IDA dealer can register.
In BC, advisors
restricted to mutual funds are not required to complete the Canadian
Securities Course or the Conduct and Practices Handbook but are required
to
complete the
annual Conduct and Practices on-line quizzes to maintain their registration.
Note All advisors are self-employed agents and
are responsible for all of their own operating expenses.
What Advisors Will Need To Provide:
-
Office Space (a registered home office is permissible)
-
Business Telephone Line
-
Fax capability
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Computer System
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Internet Access with E-Mail
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Advisor access to Dealer Software ($40.00 per month)
-
Licensing
-
Continuing Educating Credits
First
Financial Securities Inc. uses Winsted
Group software to handle all mutual fund administration. The back office of First Financial uses the
newly improved C.C.B.,
which will
automatically download fund company data, send electronic wire orders, produce
client statements, mailings, client lists, sales/commission reports etc. The
back office of
First Financial is responsible for all client transactions and asset data as
well as all statement runs. Monthly
statements will be printed for all clients with
activity in
their accounts for that month.
Quarterly statements will be printed for all clients of First Financial,
by head office.
Advisors
and clients can access portfolio information from anywhere at anytime either
through their computer or through their cell phone using Fund Dealer Net
software. Fund Dealer Net connects
with First Financials’ back office through the Internet using 128-bit
encryption. This software allows
clients and advisors access to
portfolio
statements, fund performance, asset allocation graphing capabilities and on
line order entry with automated compliance validation. All client account enquiries
can be addressed
directly on the site, with current order and transaction status, RRSP
contribution totals, assets under management, and complete transaction history
reporting day or
night.
First Financial
also has developed its own software for stock and bond trading, trust
accounting, confirmation slips and superior statement printing. This software is
used by the back
office only, and will become available to advisors in the future.
The
securities industry in Canada is undergoing quantum consolidation that in many situations
has become detrimental to clients and advisors alike. Lower net worth
clients are
being denied access to local advisors and are being shunted aside to call
centers. Advisors are being asked to
increase production even as their pay grid is
being
gutted. Impartiality is becoming
compromised as dealers confer higher rewards for selling in-house product. Where the relationship between the client
and the
advisor was once
paramount, the omnipotence of the dealer has become the “selling” feature.
Production has become king and sadly, nothing else much matters
including the
client and the advisor.
Concurrently,
the investing public is becoming better educated and is demanding highly
individualized service from the industry.
Large centralized organizations have
great difficulty
meeting regional needs let alone the needs of individual clients and it
appears, little interest in doing so.
Thus, there is a growing demand for smaller
independent
securities venues with an experienced and service oriented workforce that has
sufficient independence to be able to effectively deal directly with clients.
This is the
domain of the boutique dealer and to be able to effectively compete, these
boutique dealers will need to be able to handle a wide range of investment
products and not
just mutual funds.
We believe that
the most important relationship is between the client and the advisor and that the
primary purpose of the dealer is to provide a supporting role.
Independent
minded advisors should find our business model attractive where they pay all of
their own expenses in exchange for high commission payout.
Head
Office:
432 10th Street Courtenay B.C. V9N 1P6
Phone: 1 250
338-2702 Fax: 1 250 338-1148
Last revised: Jan 10 2008
Member of the Investment Dealers Association of Canada 
Member -
Canadian Investor Protection Fund