Hello and welcome to the E&P Financial Group half-year-ended December 2023 results briefing. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question-and-answer session, and if you would like to ask a question during this time, simply press * 1. I will now turn the conference over to Ben Keeble, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. Please go ahead. Thank you and good morning, everyone. Welcome to the E&P Financial Group results briefing for the half-year ended 31 December 2023. My name is Ben Keeble, and I'm the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. I'm pleased to be here presenting to our shareholders for the first time since I was appointed last December. Joining me today is Stephen Hill, our Chief Financial Officer and Joint Company Secretary. In today's briefing, I'll provide an update on the progress we've achieved to date in addressing a number of our key strategic objectives, the strong momentum behind our core businesses, and our focus for the year ahead. I will also talk to the operating and financial performance of our three divisions for the first half of this financial year. Stephen will then present the group's consolidated financial results in more detail before I conclude with some comments on the outlook for the group. Moving on to the presentation itself. During the half, we made progress across a number of our key strategic objectives. As we announced in November last year, the group reached a conditional settlement of the representative proceeding filed by Shine Lawyers. A federal court hearing to consider and approve the settlement is scheduled for the 3rd of April. If approved, it'll be an important milestone for the group and bring to a close a long and challenging chapter. I would like to thank our shareholders, clients, stakeholders, and importantly, our staff for their patience. I took over as CEO on December 1st after four and a half years under Peter Anderson's leadership. Peter led the business through a period of substantial change, and together with a senior team, developed a clear strategy to focus on the businesses in which we have a strong presence and a distinct competitive advantage. The refocusing of our strategy has put us in a position to now accelerate growth, which I'll discuss in further detail shortly. Finally, in our funds business, we had a productive six months finalizing initiatives to complete the exit from real asset funds management and made further progress towards exiting responsible entity services, which we hope to complete by the end of this calendar year. On the next slide, we summarize the key strategic priorities for each of the group's three divisions, all of which are ultimately directed towards delivering growth in both revenue and in margin. In E&P Wealth, we'll continue to leverage our deep advice capability and the sector's strong macro tailwinds to grow the client base and uncertain the annuity revenue of our disciplined and targeted business development initiatives. In E&P Capital, we've invested in our core verticals, enhanced our ECM and fixed interest capability, and expanded our equity research coverage, and we're already seeing the benefits of that investment. Last but by no means least, in our funds business, we continue to leverage the excellent performance of Claremont Global into our business development efforts and provide enhanced investor access to grow the Claremont Global strategy. A key milestone in this process post-balance sheet date was the launch of the Claremont Global Exchange-Traded Managed Funds on ASX earlier this month. Before I move on to the financial performance of the half, I want to highlight the progress in a number of the KPIs across our business over the past five years, as these aren't always evident in the headline reported numbers. In our wealth business, we've more than doubled the proportion of client assets on a FUA-based fee, providing the division with leverage to market performance and therefore alignment with client objectives in addition to our own growth efforts. This, in turn, has assisted in increasing the proportion of the wealth division's revenue that we describe as annuity-like, which sits at 85% of the total divisional revenue as of 31 December 2023. In our capital business, we've seen a 50% increase in the number of stocks under coverage across an expanded set of industry sectors. These numbers, of course, only tell part of the story, and our commitment to independent sell-side research is central to the value proposition of our high-touch institutional business and is a key differentiator for our private wealth business relative to many of its domestic competitors. Finally, despite all the noise that's impacted our fund business over this time, we've continued to invest in growing our flagship Claremont Global strategy. Over the past five years, Claremont has doubled its funds under management and significantly expanded its external distribution reach. This growth has been achieved through disciplined implementation of our investment process, which has delivered returns among the best in market alongside the investment we've made in our distribution capability in recent years. So the strategic focus for our divisions is clear, and it's simple. If we continue to prosecute as we've been doing, we continue to manage the costs within our control and assure that we attract and retain quality people who feel incentivized and empowered to perform, we know that this will translate to value creation for our shareholders. With that, I'll now move to the first half 2024 update, starting with the financial performance highlights on slide 10. First half revenue was supported by a strong performance from E&P Wealth with growth in annuity-like revenue lines and margin recovery following the successful efforts to convert much of the revenue base to a fee-based model. The challenging market environment for our transactional businesses in E&P Capital, however, led to a materially lower result for the group, with the softness in our M&A business in particular more than offsetting the growth delivered by the wealth division. In light of these challenging capital market conditions, the underlying result was softer than the prior comparable period, with net revenue of AUD 67.5 million down 28% on the comparable period, which translated to an EBITDA loss, an underlying EBITDA loss of AUD 4.7 million. The first half was also impacted by non-recurring items related to the simplification of the funds division and costs associated with the CEO transition. It's worth noting that the prior period also benefited from asset disposal fees and performance fees in the funds division, neither of which were received in the first half of this year. The group recorded a statutory loss after tax of AUD 26.3 million, which was heavily impacted by a AUD 19.3 million non-cash impairment of goodwill in E&P Capital. Underlying NPATA for the half was an AUD 5.9 million loss, and underlying earnings per share was negative AUD 0.026, both down significantly on the prior comparable period. Underlying NPATA and EPS exclude the impact of non-underlying items, the goodwill impairment in E&P Capital, and the amortization of acquired intangibles, and we've set out a reconciliation of statutory profit to underlying profit as an appendix to the presentation. I also note the board has determined not to declare an interim dividend given the first half loss. The board understands that dividends are important to shareholders and remains committed to a dividend policy that targets a full-year payout ratio of 75%-85% of NPATA in normal trading conditions. Moving now to the divisional update, starting with E&P Wealth. E&P Wealth benefited from strong growth in funds under advice, total client assets up 10% over the six months to December 2023 to a total of AUD 25.7 billion. The uplift resulted from a combination of growth in existing client portfolios, increased share of wallet, and solid investment performance. The E&P family office service sorry, family investment office service also benefited from solid growth during the period, with funds under advice up 33% over the half. During the half, we achieved consistent revenue growth from the wealth division, reflecting the shift in favor of fee-based revenue lines. Annuity-like revenue grew 9% on the prior comparable period, driven by client and FUA growth, as well as the annualization of industry standard pricing initiatives implemented in prior periods. Transactional revenue was down 10% on the prior comparable period, reflecting a quieter capital markets environment and a deliberate focus on the fee-based revenue model. Pleasingly, the division returned to net client growth over the six-month period, ending the half with just over 7,500 clients. Advisor numbers remained stable over the period, which includes significant capacity for future growth with a strong pipeline of associates at various stages of their advisor development pathway completing their regulatory training requirements. Finally, we've implemented a framework for annual pricing reviews for our remaining fixed-fee clients on the back of work undertaken in prior periods to review and align with industry standard pricing structures. As Peter's mentioned in previous results, the growth of our retail wealth management service offering has underpinned the shift to funds under advice-based revenue and materially improved the quality and absolute earnings in our wealth division. As of 31 December, we had over 2,100 clients on the service, representing AUD 3.9 billion in FUA. This represents a 16% increase in the number of RWM clients and a 9% increase in retail wealth management FUM in the six months since 30 June 2023. In the past periods, we were focused on transitioning existing clients to the service, and with that process now tapering off, our focus has shifted to expanding the client base. We focus on a number of key client growth initiatives during the period, including further investment in advisor-specific marketing, dedicated sales enablement tools and sales training, a further investment in building our digital presence, and finally and importantly, a firm-wide refresh and uplift to the E&P and Evans & Partners client-facing brands. Moving on to the financials for the wealth division, the division delivered a solid result with net revenue up 6% and underlying EBITDA up 64% on the prior comparable period. Consistent growth in advice and services revenue with control over costs led to improved earnings, highlighting the operating leverage embedded in the business. Net revenue for the half was AUD 43.3 million and underlying EBITDA AUD 7.6 million. Assisting the underlying EBITDA results were several cost efficiencies achieved during the period as the division focused closely on optimizing its divisional overhead expenses. Direct expenses were down 1% compared to the first half of last financial year, despite material cost inflation being observed across most of our service providers. The underlying EBITDA margin for the first half was 17%, which is six percentage points higher than the prior comparable period. We expect there to be an opportunity for further margin expansion should we see an improvement in capital market conditions, given the strong FUA at period end and the division's general greater leverage to market performance. Moving now to E&P Capital. As I touched on upfront, E&P Capital produced a materially weaker result for the division, as the division's corporate advisory business was heavily impacted by lower transaction activity across the market as a whole. The division's financial result was further impacted by the group's decision to continue its selective countercyclical investment in the capital platform with a number of further senior hires, with a view that these investment decisions will ultimately materially benefit the division over the medium term. Net revenue for the half was 51% lower than the prior comparable period, partially offsetting the softer corporate advisory result with strong growth in our institutional revenues, reflecting the prior period investment in the platform, particularly in equity research. While lower net revenue was partially offset by lower costs stemming from reduced variable remuneration, an underlying EBITDA loss of AUD 6.3 million was significantly below the prior comparable period as earnings were impacted by the fixed component of the cost base. Operationally, however, the institutional research team performed very well. This was demonstrated through our results in the 2023 Peter Lee Australian Equity Investor Survey. We received first place in small-cap trading and second in capability of sales. I spoke earlier about the quality of our research, and in our research team, we now have five analysts ranked in top five in their respective sectors, and we were ranked second overall in research independence and objectivity. During the half, we continued the wind-down of our non-core strategies. This included completing the transition of US Solar Fund to a replacement investment manager, as well as the liquidation of New Energy Solar Limited, which is now in its final stages. This effectively marked the exit of our solar business entirely. The internalization of the URF responsible entity is progressing as planned, and we hope to have this completed within calendar year 2024. After careful consideration regarding the future of the global disruption strategy, it was announced in December that we will be partnering with independent investment management firm Loftus Peak to offer a sustainable solution for the ongoing management of the global disruption strategy. Under this transition arrangement, Loftus Peak will be appointed as the replacement manager for the Orca Global Disruption Fund and as portfolio advisor for the Evans & Partners Global Disruption SMAs, effective from 1st of March 2024. So while our clients still have access to the global disruption strategy, these initiatives allow for sharpened focus on our core Claremont Global strategy, which continues to deliver strongly and is very well supported both internally and externally with clients. The strategies provided investors with excellent returns, outperforming respective benchmarks over 1, 3, 5, and 7 years, and since inception. At the end of the period, overall Claremont Global funds under management sat at AUD 1.4 billion, with E&P Funds total funds under management of AUD 3.5 billion. The chart on the right-hand side of the page illustrates the pro forma funds under management, reflecting the go-forward E&P Funds offering once the discontinued funds are stripped out. As I briefly touched on earlier, an important milestone post-balance sheet for the Claremont Global business was the launch of two ASX-listed exchange-traded managed funds in response to strong demand from third-party networks. These provide enhanced access for investors through a listed structure and will complement the existing MDA, SMA, and unlisted unit trusts in both hedged and unhedged products. Overall, E&P Funds net revenue of AUD 11.2 million was down materially on the prior comparable period, reflecting the wind-down of the real asset funds. As I mentioned earlier, the prior period did include a disposal fee of AUD 10.6 million from the sale of New Energy Solar and AUD 1.2 million of performance fees received from the group's carried interest as general partner of the third fund in the Cordish Dixon Private Equity Fund series. An underlying EBITDA loss of AUD 0.5 million was down AUD 9.8 million on the prior comparable period and reflects a material reduction in non-fund-based revenue. Staff and operating expense savings were achieved off the back of the rationalisation of strategies, with direct expenses down 31% on the prior comparable period. However, it is worth noting, as you look at these numbers, that these costs remain elevated compared to the expected go-forward cost base, with costs expected to decrease further as we enter the final stages of reshaping our funds business. Next, I'll provide an update on the work we've been doing for our clients and the broader group with respect to ESG and sustainable investment initiatives. At a client level, we've launched turnkey core sustainable multi-asset portfolios to expand product access and enhance our next-generation service offering. We also work to improve brand recognition among high-net-worth investors for our ESG offering, with increased industry participation across areas such as biodiversity, First Nations impact, and sustainable portfolio construction. Pleasingly, we achieved strong foundational scores above industry medians across UNPRI and RIAA assessments for core equity strategies, with enhancement made to processes and to reporting. Overall, we're continuing to prioritize the integration of sustainable investment solutions into our advice and client experience, and we're seeing increased client participation as a result. At a corporate level, we're on track to achieve carbon neutrality across operational greenhouse gas emissions footprint in FY24, and we've committed to expand measurement and reporting to include Scope 3 emissions. During the half, we launched a cross-divisional diversity working group with targeted subcommittees established to improve diversity outcomes. We also have a reconciliation action plan framework under development, with implementation targeted for the second half of calendar 2024. Before I hand over to Stephen, I'd like to expand on the comments I made earlier on the conditional settlement of the representative proceedings against DAS and two former representatives. The settlement amount will be comprised of AUD 4 million from E&P, which has already been provisioned in E&P's accounts, and the remaining available insurance proceeds of at least AUD 12 million. Finally, if the settlement of the Shine proceeding is approved by the federal court in early April, the representative proceeding that was filed by Piper Alderman, which has currently stayed, pending the resolution of the Shine proceeding, will also be dismissed against EP1. I'll hand over to our CFO, Stephen Hill, who'll talk to the group financial results. Thank you, Ben, and good morning, everyone. Group net revenue for the half was AUD 67.5 million, and underlying EBITDA was a loss of AUD 4.7 million. The weaker result was driven by low transaction volumes in E&P Capital and the continued reduction in E&P funds with the wind-down of the real asset funds. Staff expenses were 13% lower than the prior comparable period due to lower revenue-linked staff remuneration and reduced headcount. As of 31 December 2023, firm-wide headcount was down approximately 17% from the same time last year. Operating expenses were 1% lower than the prior comparable period, despite inflationary pressures and increased marketing spend, particularly within E&P Wealth. The group recorded a statutory loss after tax of AUD 26.3 million. As Ben mentioned earlier, this result was primarily due to softer underlying earnings from E&P Capital and the associated AUD 19.3 million non-cash impairment of goodwill. The result was also influenced by non-underlying items totalling AUD 0.9 million, primarily relating to the resolution of legacy issues and the wind-up of the real asset funds business. These non-underlying items are detailed in the appendix to this presentation on slide 29. The underlying financial measures reflect adjustments for items or events that are not part of the usual business activities or reflect the underlying performance of the company. On the next slide, we've set out the group's cash flow statement. The key items to note for the period relate to the net operating cash outflow of AUD 14.6 million, driven primarily by the lower cash from operating activities due to challenging market conditions in our transactional revenue businesses. As is always the case in the first half of the financial year, cash flow was affected by annual bonus payments made in September 2023 relating to the prior year. Proceeds from investments over the period reflect the sale of URF units in December 2023, while dividends received were from our investments in the CD Private Equity joint venture and US Solar Fund. Net cash from financing activities was overall neutral in the period, with lease payments offset by reclassification of short-term deposits to cash and cash equivalents. Moving now to the balance sheet on slide 24, and as of 31 December 2023, the group held cash totaling AUD 38.8 million and no debt. The cash balance was down 27% on 30 June 2023, primarily due to lower cash from operations, which, as I mentioned, included the payment of annual bonuses in September. The decrease in trade and other receivables compared to the 2023 financial year-end balance reflects fewer corporate advisory invoices outstanding a cutoff from six months prior. The reduction in financial and available-for-sale assets primarily reflects the sale of URF units in December 2023 and marked-to-market fall in the value of the US Solar Fund units at period end. goodwill and other intangible assets decreased due to the aforementioned AUD 19.3 million impairment charge in E&P Capital during the year. The movement in lease assets and liabilities reflects further office rationalization, which is ongoing and expected to be fully reflected in the FY24 full year result. The movement in provisions during the half was primarily driven by the payment of annual bonuses in September. Annual bonuses are paid in the first half of the year, which produces a strong operating cash flow bias in favor of the second half of the year. I'll now pass back to Ben to talk about the outlook for the company. Thanks, Steve. So as we look ahead, it's clear that the business transformation and strong underlying momentum in our core businesses positions the group in a growth trajectory. The board and the management team are focused on delivering on our strategic priorities. Firstly, leveraging our deep advice capability to grow annuity in E&P Wealth. Secondly, leveraging the investment we've made in our core verticals, enhanced ECM and fixed interest capability, and expanded equity research coverage in E&P Capital. And thirdly, continuing our business development efforts and providing enhanced investor access to grow the Claremont Global strategy. Before we finish today, I'd like to make a few comments on our financial outlook. We expect our financial results to be buoyed by further earnings growth in E&P Wealth following the shift in favor of a FUA-based model, cost-based rationalization, and ongoing business development efforts. Investment made in our E&P Capital platform over recent years, including expansion of our research offering and our senior origination capability, means that business is well-positioned for strong revenue and earnings recovery as market conditions continue to improve. In our funds business, we've created a simplified business through the exit of our real assets investment management and other non-core strategies. We expect the final stages of the wind-up to occur before the end of 2024. In terms of outlook, while full year earnings are expected to be materially below FY23, we do anticipate that an improvement in trading conditions should see an uplift in the second half of the financial year relative to the first half. As I mentioned before, while the board has not declared an interim dividend, the board remains committed to its full year dividend policy payout ratio of 75%-85% of NPATA in a normal operating environment. Thank you, everyone, for joining today's briefing. That's it for the formal presentation, and we now have an opportunity for Q&A for those on the line. Thank you. If you have a question, please press star one on your telephone keypad. If you have queued up and want to withdraw your question, simply press * one again. Again, that is * one to ask a question at this time. There are no questions at this time. I will turn the call back to Ben. Thank you. So again, thank you all for joining. As I said, this has been my first of these results announcements, and I look forward to updating you all as we make further progress through the course of the year. This concludes today's conference call. We thank you for joining. You may now disconnect.