YOUR PROSPERITY

Here is a SMH article by Anthony Hughes relevant to the closure of Your Prosperity: NAB will end Your Prosperity September 18, 2003 National Australia Bank yesterday confirmed long-running speculation by shutting its "Your Prosperit" do-it yourself online financial services operation, which has $342 million in funds under administration. The service's 7300 customers will be able transfer to the bank's other wealth management products offered via MLC, but the group has no comparable offer. NAB plans to shut all accounts for the portfolio service (master trust) by the end of February next year, and move share trading accounts to National Online trading. "It's quite complex but we are working closely with members," a spokeswoman said. "Members have to close their accounts or can transfer them to other products and services." NAB hadn't disclosed Your Prosperity's financial performance but it has been speculated that up to $50 million had been invested in the operation, which employs 32 people. Your Prosperity was inherited from NAB's $4.6 billion acquisition of MLC from Lend Lease in 2000. Your Prosperity was developed in 1998 but was run as a distinct operation from MLC offering discounted fees on retail managed funds and share trading. NAB said its wealth management strategy was based on advisers providing financial advice to clients rather than a do-it-yourself model. Rival AMP last year dismantled its AMP Direct service, which had also been seen to run counter to the company's philosophy of selling advice-based financial services products. These direct services had generally been poorly viewed by these companies' planners because they cut them out of the investment process and were seen as stealing their potential customers.