Financial services group AMP has recorded another decline in bottom-line profit, but says its pool of financial advisers is growing despite a nationwide shortage.
Interim net profit fell by almost five per cent to $98 million in the first half of 2025, mainly due to "business simplification and litigation costs". The result is a marked improvement on a 61 per cent slip in the first half of 2024.
The firm's underlying earnings jumped by 9.2 per cent to $131 million, which chief executive Alexis George linked to strong cashflow in AMP's wealth business and North, its superannuation and pension wrap platform.
While shares in the group sold off after the results were announced, signs of growth flagged in the earnings briefing sparked a reversal and pushed prices more than one per cent higher to around $1.70 per share in early afternoon trade.
"The number of advisers who are supporting North that is the most critical thing," Ms George told investors shortly before the price rebound.
AMP provides banking, super and retirement solutions in Australia and New Zealand. It has more than one million customers and employs more than 2,300 people.
North has about 2,200 active financial advisers, defined as having more than $1 million of funds under management, and more were joining the platform despite a nationwide shortage in the profession.
The group is leveraging technology such as its AI FileNote tool that helps manage client review meetings.
"It's a combination of actually innovating, driving service, but also building that sales capability and getting the message out to new advisers," Ms George said.
"We really are driving AI improvements that can help the advisers with the customers, (and) we've got one of the best rated apps available to customers that advisers can use."
AMP is still dealing with class actions in the wake of the banking royal commission, concluded in 2019, which found it had charged clients fees for no service, although some cases had not yet eventuated.
"Those near-term negatives haven't gone away yet, and we are back in court on that class action in October," Ms George said.
"So yes, I think there's positives coming through, but also we've got some still uncertainties arising there."
Ms George also highlighted the company's digital banking offering AMP Bank Go, which launched in February and had about 7,500 customers and $123 million in transactional balances as of June 30.
"With our digital challenger bank, we remain focused on growth and those smaller segments that offer margin opportunity," she said.
AMP will pay a dividend of two cents per share for the half-year ended June 30, in line with guidance.
