Neil Kendall OAM and the Barron’s List
Our Managing Director, Mr Neil Kendall OAM, talks about the Barron’s list of Top Financial Advisers after his 6th placement on the list since it entered Australia 8 years ago.
About the Barron’s List
The Barron’s List began in 2004 in the US, with their Top 100 Financial Advisors list, they aimed to spotlight the best wealth managers in America and to raise the standards of the profession. The rankings are to help clients who are looking for a financial adviser, to help them narrow down advisers and firms that are performing well for their clients.
The collaboration of Barron’s and The Australian first bought the Barron’s Top Financial Advisers list to Australia in 2017. At launch the list featured the Top 50 Financial Advisers in Australia, including Neil. They expanded in 2020 to the Top 100 Australian Financial Advisers, then last year in 2024 we saw another expansion of the list to the Top 150 Australian Financial Advisers.
We asked Neil why he applies to be on the list every year, when he has already placed on it before. He told us that it is one of the only publications that highlights good financial planners. Bad financial planners get significant publicity, but it is rare to see anything positive in the media about good financial planners, leaving potential clients who could benefit from the financial advice profession wary and without a clear guide to choosing a financial adviser. The Barron’s List spotlights financial planners who are delivering good outcomes for their clients, and running long-term, successful, sustainable businesses.
Neil is able to tell us that the process for application is comprehensive, and requires a significant amount of information from the invited financial advisers. The criteria, and therefore the formula to success, is known only to Barron’s. They collect the information and filter it through their algorithm, drawing conclusions from the results. It is impossible to cheat your way onto the Barron’s List because no one knows what the criteria for success actually are.
Over the 8 years since the Barron’s List launched in Australia it has evolved significantly, Neil was on the inaugural Barron’s Australian Top 50 Financial Advisers List, and in 2024 placed on the now expanded Barron’s Australian Top 150 Financial Advisers List. We asked him what has changed between then and now. He notes that placement on the list is very competitive, and repeat placements on the list are difficult to achieve for most financial planners. He considers himself, and Tupicoffs, very fortunate to have placed on the list so many times, from the initial Barron’s Top 50 Financial Advisers in 2017, to the twice expanded Barron’s Top 150 Financial Advisers in 2024.
What the Barron’s List means for Financial Planners
There have been comments made in the media about the Barron’s List building trust in financial advice, but does the Barron’s List make a difference to clients seeking advice?
In Neils’ opinion, the Barron’s List makes difference because there are so few independent groups that are recognising good financial advice. For hardworking financial advisers that are doing a great job, it adds legitimacy. As Neil put it “Saying you work hard for your clients and you care about their success is important, but an independent globally respected publication placing you on a concise list of the best planners in the country is excellent proof to back you up.”
“I think the growth in the Australian Barron's List represents an increase in the number of financial planners doing a good job for their clients. The rise of the list from the top 50, to the top 150 financial planners, still represents only about 1% of all the financial planners in Australia.”
- Neil Kendall OAM
So, when only 1% of financial planners across Australia make the list, is it a reputable guide?
Neil certainly thinks so. The Barron’s List has been running in the United States since 2004, and has long been considered a well respected and reputable guide. Neil says, “We are lucky that they are now delivering their expertise to Australian consumers through The Australian in an effort to highlight the best financial planners in the country.” The Barron's List acknowledges that there are many other successful financial planners in the industry, it is about finding the absolute best of the profession and highlighting the good work that is being done for financial advice clients.
Additionally, Neil notes that many financial advice firms are starting to specialise in areas of advice, as it becomes more and more complex and expensive to provide financial advice. Tupicoffs’ specialty is assisting those who have built up significant wealth, to maintain and grow that wealth. This means we work with a lot of business owners, and retired business owners, between 50 and 70. We also specialise in helping those who have come into wealth unexpectedly, including divorcees, lottery winners and people receiving an inheritance, as they're often unprepared to manage a sudden and significant influx of wealth.
Financial Planning and the Family Office
Recent articles indicate that The Australian believes we are seeing a boom in the family office financial advice sector, as intergenerational wealth instances increase. Family office financial advice is a fast growing segment of the financial advice sector, as successful business owners and entrepreneurs sell their businesses and create multi-generational family wealth. More and more of these business owners, and retired business owners are looking for professional help managing their finances, in the way they would have employed a manager or management team in their businesses.
The main difference between standard financial planning and family office wealth management is the breadth of service. Family office looks at a wide range of factors, it involves the goals and objectives of the larger family unit, across the generations, and the management of the family money to meet those goals. A family office adviser will often assist with the day-to-day management of the family’s cash and investments.
