MBF-owned ClearView is looking at launching a number of products that assist retirees with meeting their health needs and will boost the number of planners based in its health centres.

The group has 30 financial planners but only a quarter of those are in MBF health centres. ClearView recently added an OFM reverse mortgage to its approved product list. “We did a lot of analysis on that marketplace and how reverse mortgages fit in with advice. We trained all our advisers,” Alan Merten, ClearView general manager, said. While the reverse mortgage product was added partly to assist retirees in funding their health expenses the group also plans to leverage off the expertise of its parent in the health protection and life insurance space. “We’re looking at a customised health insurance product to suit the retirement market,” Merten said. ClearView funds under advice rose by 25 per cent over the last 12 months and are currently $2.5 billion. “It was a really good year in terms of sales and jobs growth. We went way better than we expected,” Merten said. MBF bought ClearView off the IAG Group in December 2003 for a total of over $250 million. At that time ClearView had just $1.7 billion in funds under advice.