Mortgage Advice Bureau’s (MAB) income from protection and general insurance commission rose 36% in the first half of 2021 to hit almost £36m.
The advice network grew its insurance income from £26.3m in the same period in 2020 and it now accounts for more than 38% of all revenue at the firm.
The firm also noted that it’s Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) levy was likely to rise by around £1m for the current financial year compared to 2020-21.
MAB said regulatory costs typically correlated to growth in revenue, but fees have been a hot topic among advisers as insurance and mortgage intermediaries have been hit with additional levies to cover major issues in the pensions and investment areas.
Adviser numbers break 1,800
Overall, revenue at the firm rose by 46% from last year to reach £92.4m as mortgage business rocketed by 55% thanks to the housing market boom and government stamp duty holiday.
Likewise, profit before tax was up 77% on a year earlier to hit £10.8m.
Adviser numbers rose by 7% to reach 1,694 by 31 June and this figure reached 1,800 by 24 September with further growth planned over the next year.
“With restrictions starting to slowly lift from mid-April 2021, most of the recruitment discussions that were paused because of the lockdown and social restrictions have now completed,” the firm said.
“We expect to see a significant increase in adviser numbers in H2 2021 that will extend into 2022.”
MAB chief executive Peter Brodnicki said he was delighted with the results as mortgage completions increased by 48%.
“Our strategic progress has been excellent during the period, in particular with regards to our lead generation initiatives,” he said.
“We have secured significant new lead sources, including a long-term agreement with Moneysupermarket.
“We also achieved a 7% growth in adviser numbers to 1,694 despite the delay in recruitment pipeline conversion due to the UK lockdown and restrictions for much of H1. We expect to see a significant increase in adviser numbers in H2 and moving into 2022.
“I am confident the recent developments in lead generation and continued enhancements to our technology platform put MAB in an ever-stronger position to accelerate the pace of its growth.”
