The number of financial advisers has fallen below 20,000, with just 19,382 operating as of June 30, according to Rainmaker Information.

The financial services data provider says the figure represents a five-year low for the profession. Not since 2015 has the industry seen adviser numbers dropped below the 20,00-mark.

Around 9000 have left since 2018, a decline of 30%.

“This adviser exodus has been associated with the massive disruption now befalling the financial advice sector,” Rainmaker Information Executive Director of Research and Compliance Alex Dunnin said.

“The regulatory disruption that Australia’s financial advice sector is facing is due in large part to the huge push by government, regulators and other stakeholders to improve the quality of financial advice.”

The introduction of several legislations since 2017 corresponded with the industry shifting from a “gradual incline” in the number of financial advisers into a “rapid decline”, Mr Dunnin said.

“We are yet to see the evidence, however, of how all these regulatory changes have improved the outcomes for those who seek financial advice.”