Website encourages churn

Australasian Wealth Investments (AWI), which is headed by Andrew Barnes, has established a website, YourShare.com.au, that promises to give Australian consumers their share of $3 billion paid in commissions to advisers every year.

Barnes most recently came to prominence in New Zealand after buying Perpetual Trust for $12.3 million from George Kerr’s company Pyne Gould. Before that he established Australian Wealth Management, a spin off from TOWER Australia.

He says a New Zealand version of the Australian website is a possibility.

The site collects the fees and commissions generated by sales of insurance, mortgage and investment products and gives half of the money back to consumers, above $75.