Short takes: Third-Party Marketers' Client Base Seen Eroding

By the end of this year, investment marketing firms will lose 13% of their current relationships with large banks, according to a recent study conducted by Marketing Metrics, a New York research firm.

The study also said these firms - known as third-party marketers - will lose 30% of their relationships by the end of 1996.

Third-party marketers help banks set up and manage their brokerage units and provide them with annuities and mutual funds. The sector is in the midst of a consolidation wave.

The results are part of a study conducted over the summer involving banks with $750 million or more in assets.

The study, also found that 40% of all banks with more than $5 billion of assets said they were likely to drop their third-party marketing firms. The banks said they wanted to create or expand their own sales forces of brokers to capture more fee income.

The study also found that Essex Corp., New York, was the leading provider of investment products to banks, with 20% of the 208 banks surveyed.

Independent Financial Marketing Group, White Plains, N.Y., and Invest Financial Corp., Tampa, Fla., were the next largest with 9%.