Who we are

Advance is a specialist asset management business within the Westpac Group. Our focus is on asset allocation and risk management, implemented through a multi-manager process, providing investment opportunities across a range of asset classes, including shares, property, fixed interest and cash.

Why Advance

• We offer investors a wide choice of quality investments and the security of ongoing monitoring and analysis.
• Our investment team provides in-depth analysis of investment funds and the managers behind them, with the aim of offering broad diversification, quality risk management and access to some of the world’s best investment managers – without having to do it all the investigation yourself.
• Our multi-manager approach is based on the belief that different styles, when combined, can produce a more consistent outcome for investors by minimising style and portfolio risk.
• Our blended multi-manager funds offer greater diversification, while benefiting from active investment management and the potential to achieve sustainable outperformance over the longer term.

With a dedicated team of skilled and experienced professionals performing an ongoing investigation into the funds, investors can spend less time worrying about market and manager fluctuations and more time enjoying the more important things in life.

The Advance investment process

Watch Felix Stephen, Head of Strategy & Research at Advance discuss Advance's risk management process.

Watch Felix Stephen, Head of Strategy & Research at Advance outline Advance's investment philosophy.

Watch Patrick Farrell, CIO / Head of Advance Asset Management, talk about the award-winning Advance investment process and the importance of managing risk effectively within our Multi-Blend Funds.

Award winning

Our investment process is tried and tested, and acknowledged by our peers as best practice.

Advance is Money magazine’s Best Fund Manager for 2012 and 2013.

Advance is the 2011 Financial Review Smart Investor Fund Manager of the Year.

Advance won ‘Multi-Manager of the Year’ at the 2009 Money Management Fund Manager of the Year awards, judged by research house Lonsec.

In January 2010, Lonsec also gave the Advance Multi-Blend Funds its highest rating, Highly Recommended*. In its overall assessment, "Lonsec has upgraded the Advance Multi-Manager Funds to ‘Highly Recommended’ reflecting the manager’s well established and thorough manager research process, solid portfolio construction techniques, strong SAA culture and well resourced team."

Advance’s manager of managers expertise is available across investments, superannuation and retirement fund structures.

A member of the BT Financial Group

On 1 December 2008 Advance became a member of the BT Financial Group (BT) - the wealth management arm of the Westpac Group.

Key BT facts

The combination of BT Financial Group and St.George's wealth management businesses means:

• BT is the largest administrator of superannuation, retirement and investments in Australia (measured by funds under administration), with more than $75 billion in total investments.**
• Our BT Wrap and Asgard investment administration platforms are used as an investment hub by over 10,000 advisers around Australia.
• We manage corporate superannuation plans for over 26,000 employers across Australia, with over 550,000 plan-members. ***
• Our insurance business provides general and life insurance protection to more than 1 million Australians.

1. To the extent that any ratings, opinions or other information of Standard & Poor's Information Services (Australia) Pty Ltd (ABN: 17 096 167 556, Australian Financial Services Licence Number: 258896) ("Standard & Poor's) constitutes general advice, this advice has been prepared by Standard & Poor's without taking into account any particular person's financial or investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on any advice, any person using the advice should consider its appropriateness having regard to their own or their clients' objectives, financial situation and needs. You should obtain a Product Disclosure Statement relating to the product and consider the statement before making any decision or recommendation about whether to acquire the product. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Ratings can change or cease at any time and should not be relied upon without referring to the meaning of the rating. For more information regarding ratings please call S&P Customer Service on 1300 792 553 and also refer to Standard & Poor's Financial Services Guide at www.fundsinsights.com. Each analytic product or service of Standard & Poor's is based on information received by the analytic group responsible for such product or service. "S&P" and "Standard & Poor's" are trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. © 2011 Standard & Poor's Information Services (Australia) Pty Limited.

* The 'Highly Recommended' rating applies to the Advance Multi-Blend Funds only. The Lonsec Limited (“Lonsec”) ABN 56 061 751 102 rating (assigned January 2010) presented in this document is limited to “General Advice” and based solely on consideration of the investment merits of the financial product(s). It is not a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold the relevant product(s), and you should seek independent financial advice before investing in this product(s). The rating is subject to change without notice and Lonsec assumes no obligation to update this document following publication. Lonsec receives a fee from the fund manager for rating the product(s) using comprehensive and objective criteria.

**Source: Plan for Life QDS; March 2009; All Retail Products (Admin)

***As at end March 2009