Rabobank financial advisory arm continues expansion - Acquisition extends presence North

25 June 2008

Rabobank has announced the further expansion of its financial planning arm, Rabo Financial Advisors Ltd (RFA), with the acquisition of a Queensland based financial advisory business, Dayas Financial Services.

In the transaction, Rabobank has purchased the client portfolio of Dayas Financial Services, with Dayas Financial Services staff, including principal advisor Perry Dayas, also moving to the employ of RFA.

Announcing the purchase, Rabobank Australia & New Zealand CEO Bruce Dick said that the acquisition of Dayas Financial Services was a catalyst for future growth in Queensland.

“Our overall strategy is to grow the RFA business nationally and into New Zealand. To do this we need scale and a presence in key centres. Dayas adds to our scale and immediately provides a strong presence in Queensland.”

Mr Dick said that Dayas Financial Services’ culture, values and aspirations were well aligned to RFA, with a great emphasis on building strong relationships with clients.

“Dayas Financial Services’ dedicated and experienced staff, led by Perry Dayas, will be an invaluable asset to RFA, as will the excellent reputation they have built in the Queensland market and the rapport they have fostered with clients,” Mr Dick said.

RFA was established in 2002 by AAA rated Rabobank, the world’s leading agribusiness bank and the second largest lender to rural Australia, to provide specialist financial advisory services primarily to the rural and regional community. The business has undergone rapid expansion. RFA now operates from seven locations around New South Wales and has recently expanded into Western Australia.

Head of RFA, Colin Williams said the Dayas acquisition was part of a wider expansion strategy for RFA in Queensland and internationally, with plans to bolster its presence in New South Wales and Western Australia in addition to pursuing opportunities in other states and New Zealand.

“We believe a combination of purchasing businesses and organic advisor growth is our best strategy for achieving our goals and we aim to secure similar businesses over the coming 12 months. We will continue to hire advisors along with developing our own staff internally as we continue to grow RFA,” Mr Williams said.

Mr Williams said that RFA viewed the Dayas Financial Services acquisition as an opportunity to commence a Toowoomba branch of RFA and increase its presence in Queensland.

Dayas Financial Services principal, Perry Dayas said that while the Dayas Financial Services business would be re-branded under the RFA name and would be operating as Rabo Financial Advisors (AFSL 224 709) from Monday 23 June, there would be no significant changes for clients, with all current products and services to be maintained.

“For our clients, it’s business as usual. We will continue to provide the same personalised advice, through the same people, and can now offer a broader range of products and an even higher level of service through RFA’s network,” he said, adding that as a subsidiary of a AAA rated bank, RFA brings great security to clients.

Rabobank Australia is a part of the international Rabobank Group, the world’s leading specialist in food and agribusiness banking. Rabobank has more than 100 years’ experience providing customised banking and finance solutions to businesses involved in all aspects of food and agribusiness. Rabobank has a AAA credit rating and is ranked as one of the world’s safest bank by Global Finance magazine. Rabobank operates in 42 countries, servicing the needs of more than nine million clients worldwide through a network of more than 1500 offices and branches. Rabobank Australia is one of Australia’s leading rural lenders and a significant provider of business and corporate banking and financial services to the Australian food and agribusiness sector. The bank has 50 locations throughout Australia.

Contact

For further information please contact Jen Reid, Public Relations (Tel: 61 2 8115-2744) or email on sydney.pr@rabobank.com.

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