Money Marketing
1 July 1998

  • ཮% of public aware of ISAs'

    6 Jul 1998

    Commercial Union figures reveal that half the public claim to know about the Individual Savings Account.

  • 'Big four' managers losing ground

    6 Jul 1998

    There are signs that the four major pension fund managers in the UK are losing market share to smaller groups because of underperformance.

  • 'Bigger EU will mean opportunities for investors'

    6 Jul 1998

    The proposed enlargement of the European Union will stimulate growth in eastern Europe, creating opportunities for investors, claims Fleming.

  • 'Crazy' A&L ads push mortgages

    6 Jul 1998

    Alliance & Leicester is going mortgage crazy with a £1m campaign to promote its "completely insane" homeloan offers.

  • 'Hourly rate' ignores servicing

    6 Jul 1998

    Lorna Bourke has made the usual journalistic error (Money Marketing, January 24). Commission relates not just to the sale of a financial services product but to the year-on-year servicing and advice at no extra cost to the client.

  • 'McOik' makes its debut from Templeton

    6 Jul 1998

    A new investment product dubbed "the McOik" is being launched on April 16. The first open-ended investment company North of the border has been given the nickname by its creator Templeton Investment Management in Edinburgh. It will be officially named Templeton Funds and absorb three existing unit trusts - Templeton global growth, Templeton value and Templeton global balanced. It will have £49m in funds under management.

  • £300m aim for NPI no-load bond

    6 Jul 1998

    NPI is aiming for £200m-£300m of business a year with its new no-load with-profits bond.

  • 16 April 1998

    7 Jul 1998

    While in most respects the Budget was fair and reasonable, there is one particular bit of retrospective legislation which will have an adverse affect on many clients of independent financial advisers unless the Inland Revenue or Parliament change their minds.

  • 400 IFAs ask about joining Portfolio 'network'

    7 Jul 1998

    IFA Portfolio's pseudo network Anglo Caledonian is claiming to have had an "enormous" response which could make it the third-biggest network.

  • A CONSUMER'S VIEW

    6 Jul 1998

    With-profits policies - both lump-sum and regular savings - are arguably the only mass-market investment products worth having since, unlike unit-linked endowments, they offer both greater flexibility and lower charges

  • A CONSUMER'S VIEW

    6 Jul 1998

    Economists have been predicting a slowdown in the economy and in particular consumer spending for at least six months. They now express surprise that this is not happening. Do they live in the real world?

  • A game of two halves

    7 Jul 1998

    Last week, we launched the second half of our Game of Two Halves competition, offering the sporting day of a lifetime with Save & Prosper. We are now in week two. If you missed the questions on page 5 (how could you?) turn back.

  • A Game of two halves

    6 Jul 1998

    There are just two more weeks to go after this week in our fantastic competition with Save & Prosper. The runners and riders with a chance of being in the top 16 in the league will be revealed soon.

  • Aberdeen Prolific aims for 8% yield with bond fund

    7 Jul 1998

    Aberdeen Prolific is launching a high-yield bond unit trust which aims to return more than 8 per cent a year.

  • ABN Amro recruits two Baring directors

    6 Jul 1998

    ABN Amro Asset Management has appointed Nick Wells as operations director and Dick Turpin as sales director. Both Wells and Turpin have been recruited from Baring Asset Management, where they worked from 1993.

  • Abuse is blamed as de minimis faces axe

    7 Jul 1998

    The Inland Revenue is set to axe the de minimis funding limit for pension schemes, claiming that IFAs are abusing the system.

  • Act to remedy this sorry state of pension affairs

    6 Jul 1998

    At least three out of five people face the prospect of relying on just the state pension in their retirement because they do not have a personal or company pension.

  • Aegon profits leap by 36%

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Equitable's Dutch parent company Aegon has increased profits by 36 per cent to £473m in the first nine months of the year compared with £347m in the same period last year.

  • Another new spin to our CD-Rom

    7 Jul 1998

    The Money Marketing CD-Rom this month introduces another innovation to the Investment Fund Index, the first interactive online investment key features service for IFAs.

  • Apcims bids to change 'stereotype'

    6 Jul 1998

    The Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers is offering two new brochures.

  • ASA slams Direct Line ad

    6 Jul 1998

    The Advertising Standards Authority has upheld complaints against Direct Line over its claim to offer an instant-access savings account.

  • Attack on public sector pensions

    6 Jul 1998

    Public sector pension funds have been slammed after a National Audit Office report revealed errors in a water industry scheme which could cost the taxpayer £300m.

  • Autif survey reveals wide ignorance on endowments

    7 Jul 1998

    Almost two out of five people do not understand that there is a link between stockmarket performance and the return on endowments, according to a poll by Autif.

  • Axa and Sun Life investment arms merge

    6 Jul 1998

    Axa Equity & Law Investment Management and Sun Life Investment Management have merged, creating a fund manager with £30bn under management.

  • Axa presses on with £40m bid for global brand

    7 Jul 1998

    The Axa Group is launching a £40m advertising campaign in a bid to build its brand name across the globe.

  • Axa puts its faith in global branding

    6 Jul 1998

    Axa Group is planning to spend £100m between now and 2000 in an attempt to build its global financial services brand.

  • Axa Sun Life rethinks whole product range

    6 Jul 1998

    Axa Sun Life is revamping its entire product range in its first major drive into the IFA market since the £690m Axa Equity & Law merger with Sun Life.

  • B&B to doff bowler hats?

    6 Jul 1998

    Bradford & Bingley Building Society is embarking on a strategic brand review in a move which could spell the end for its bowler hats logo.

  • B&W hopes to recruit Eagle Star sales staff

    6 Jul 1998

    Bristol & West is hoping to take on 100 of Eagle Star's ditched direct salesforce in the next four weeks. The move will expand its salesforce to 300. Eagle Star revealed last week that it was pulling out of direct sales.

  • Barely any formality to trust set-up

    7 Jul 1998

    Much has been made recently of the tax benefits of bare trusts. What is a bare trust and what are its benefits?

  • BAT looks at selling parts of Eagle Star

    7 Jul 1998

    Templeton will convert its three unit trusts into Oeics next month after unitholders agreed to the change.

  • BBN to seek acquisitions under MD Berry

    6 Jul 1998

    Berry Birch & Noble is to hit the acquisition trail follow ing founder shareholder and chairman Derek Berry's decision to take control of the firm.

  • Bed and breakfasting off the menu

    6 Jul 1998

    The Government is clamping down on the practice of bed and breakfasting shares to reduce capital gains tax bills. Bed and breakfasting involves selling shares at the end of business one day and buying them back at the start of business the next day. The Government says any shares sold and repurchased within 30 days will be matched, so any gain or loss will not be realised.

  • Big guns' price war blasted us out

    7 Jul 1998

    Britannia Life managing director Des Hudson is sticking to his guns - he has no doubts that the decision to quit the IFA market was the right one.

  • Bob Yerbury

    7 Jul 1998

    Perpetual chief investment officer Bob Yerbury is a man with a huge weight of responsibility resting on his shoulders.

  • BoS offers James Bond fans a licence to spend

    6 Jul 1998

    Bank of Scotland plans to give James Bond fans a licence to spend when it launches a new 007 credit card in the New Year.

  • Brief

    6 Jul 1998

    Two European funds help break the dominance of UK tracker funds in the Standard & Poor's Micropal list of top unit trusts.

  • Brief

    7 Jul 1998

    The recent performance of smaller-cap US stocks has driven the Schroder US smaller companies fund into the top 10 performing unit trusts.

  • Briefs

    6 Jul 1998

    1. Which of the following are correct in respect of the date January 31, 1998?

  • Briefs

    6 Jul 1998

    "It's better than Mogadon - it sends you to sleep and is not addictive." - Former PIA Ombudsman Adam Samuel on his book on trusts.

  • Briefs

    6 Jul 1998

    Britannia Life has closed to new IFA business. Will you miss it?

  • Briefs

    6 Jul 1998

    "I was hoping you wanted a prediction on the price of cigarettes or petrol, or would that be too easy?" - Labour backbencher Ivor Caplin, asked for predictions on the Individual Savings Account.

  • Briefs

    6 Jul 1998

    Do you think the Financial Planning Certificate should be overhauled to include more emphasis on investment products?

  • Britannia Life tightens up drawdown training

    6 Jul 1998

    Britannia Life is tightening its income-drawdown requirements for its broker consultants by forcing them to pass tough new exams.

  • Britannia opens branch in store

    7 Jul 1998

    Britannia Building Society is setting up a branch in Northampton retail store Beatties.

  • Britannia to pay out £39m in loyalty bonuses

    6 Jul 1998

    Britannia Building Society is sharing out £39m to over a million members as part of its loyalty bonus scheme.

  • Broker business booming as IFAs head for 50%

    7 Jul 1998

    As life and pension sales return to the boom days of 1993, IFAs' share of the market continues to rise amid signs that more and more people are turning to independent advice.

  • Budget shows a sense of venture

    7 Jul 1998

    Venture capital received a surprise boost when the Chancellor announced he would be raising capital gains tax reinvestment relief by 50 per cent to £150,000 a year. The benefits apply to Enterprise Investment Schemes not VCTs.

  • Bupa axes 150 HCAS staff and revamps role of force

    7 Jul 1998

    Bupa is slashing the size of its commission-only private medical insurance salesforce by nearly half in the latest round of cutbacks at the health- care giant.

  • Business rises by 50% at Clinicare

    6 Jul 1998

    Private medical insurer Clinicare saw the number of people covered by its schemes rise by 50 per cent last year compared with what it claims is an average industry growth of 5 per cent.

  • By Darren Behar and James Moore

    7 Jul 1998

    Life offices have delivered a stinging attack against the PIA's calculations for persistency rates, claiming they distort the true picture by up to 10 per cent.

  • Call for independent ratings agency

    6 Jul 1998

    Standard Life economic adviser Professor David Simpson is calling for an independent ratings agency to be set up to ensure that investors get the best-value financial products for their needs. Simpson believes that more reader-friendly information should be available to customers by using a star-rating system for financial products.

  • Capulet sues lead-generation firm

    6 Jul 1998

    Capulet Financial Management financial planning director Richard Facer is issuing a county court summons against Stewart Kennedy, principal of lead-generation company Business Appointments, and not a county court judgment as stated in the February 12 issue.

  • Case for putting an end to MIGs

    6 Jul 1998

    You know that moment when your client's eyes glaze over with a complete lack of comprehension? There you are, merrily making your way through a mortgage application. You have explained the deposit, the interest rate, redemption charges and what they should and should not budget for.

  • Cashback loan from Kensington

    6 Jul 1998

    Kensington Mortgage Company is offering a 1 per cent cashback product through Private Label.

  • Caught in network

    6 Jul 1998

    I read with interest a recent letter concerning the way that some networks treat their members.

  • Challenge for pole position

    6 Jul 1998

    Get on to the grid for the second (and final) lap of our Norwich Union/Scalextric comp etition. Norwich Union is offering Money Marketing readers the chance to win one of 10 Scalextric sets to celebrate its new Managed Portfolio.

  • Chapman takes helm at Permanent

    7 Jul 1998

    Income-protection specialist Permanent Insurance is promoting sales and marketing manager Andrew Chapman to managing director. Chapman, 39, formally takes over from Patrick Harris-Deans on January 1. Harris-Deans will continue in his role as managing director of Medical Sickness.

  • Charcol may seek buyer after split with Private Label

    6 Jul 1998

    Mortgage broker John Charcol is considering listing on the Stock Exchange or seeking a buyer within two years after splitting from Private Label.

  • CII bans candidate over exam cheating

    6 Jul 1998

    A Chartered Insurance Institute examination candidate who sneaked in notes written on a handkerchief has been banned from taking any CII exams until October 2000. Pauline Jennifer Wood was disciplined after admitting the attempted cheat. The CII disciplinary committee also found Atul Patel guilty of changing a certificate to indicate a pass had been obtained in FPC2 when the CII's records showed he had not passed.

  • Clerical bids to double share

    6 Jul 1998

    Clerical Medical is unveiling the first stage of a radical five-year plan to nearly double its IFA life and pension market share by revamping its pension policies.

  • Clerical suspends portfolio bond pending legislation

    6 Jul 1998

    Clerical Medical is suspending its highly personalised portfolio bond following the Chancellor's pledge to close offshore tax loopholes.

  • CMC cuts 'severe' penalties on loans

    6 Jul 1998

    Sub-prime lender City Mortgage Corporation has bowed to pressure from the Office of Fair Trading to scrap high interest rates and massive early redemption penalties on its loans.

  • CML chairman apologises for predicting two conversions

    6 Jul 1998

    Council of Mortgage Lenders chairman John Massey has apologised to the Nation wide and Bradford & Bingley building societies after saying they would not survive as mutuals.

  • CML to crack down on fees

    6 Jul 1998

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders is to clamp down on lenders and intermediaries who dodge its fee-disclosure regime.

  • Cochrane fights against Fimbra winding up

    7 Jul 1998

    IFA Compliance boss Brian Cochrane has begun a campaign to get IFAs to vote against plans to dismantle Fimbra next month. He is asking IFAs to send their voting slips to him so that he can present strong opposition to the plans at the AGM on December 11. Write to: 14 Union Road, Camelon, Falkirk, FK1 4PG.

  • Colonial set to take over GAN salesforce

    6 Jul 1998

    Colonial is set to buy GAN Life's 800-strong direct salesforce for an expected seven-figure sum.

  • Colonial term cover available on CTP

    7 Jul 1998

    Colonial has launched its term insurance product to IFAs via The Exchange's Common Trading Platform. Colonial offers a rate of £7.85 a month for a non-smoking man aged 30 next birthday for a sum assured of £50,000 for 25 years. Commission is 140 per cent of Lautro rates.

  • Company to offer leads for mortgages

    7 Jul 1998

    A new lead-generation and mortgage marketing company called The Mortgage Guild is to be launched in the spring.

  • Compulsory provision wouldn't erode IFAs' role

    6 Jul 1998

    The public are becoming increasingly aware of the reducing role of the welfare state in areas such as pensions and long-term care. However, awareness alone will not lead the public to make higher levels of private provision.

  • Contributions Agency joins with Revenue

    7 Jul 1998

    The Government is pulling together the Contributions Agency and Inland Revenue to form a single organisation to help align tax and National Insurance contributions.

  • Corporation tax rejig as ACT axed

    7 Jul 1998

    Advance corporation tax will be abolished from April 1, 1999 and the famous instalment method of payment of corporation tax announced in the Green Budget last November has been firmed up in the actual Budget. There are, however, some important changes.

  • Correspondent's Week

    7 Jul 1998

    Wednesday lunchtime, the Chop House by Tower Bridge. This is when Correspondent's Week technically starts for me because it is when a remark by Polhill PR Terry Hepplewhite triggers a memory that had been mercifully erased from my mind earlier.

  • Correspondent's Week

    7 Jul 1998

    "Ethiopia. I'm going to Ethiopia. Why?" This was my initial reaction when I was pre sented with a trip to this African paradise.

  • Cost fears sparked by Govt SSAS rethink

    7 Jul 1998

    The Government's plans to clamp down on abuses by small self-administered schemes threaten to hit schemes with additional costs.

  • Costs of regulation

    6 Jul 1998

    Am I seeing news management in action or what? The headlines seem to applaud the PIA for freezing regulatory costs for members and we are meant to be eternally grateful for this small mercy. But has anyone looked behind the scenes at the sleight of hand that has been performed?

  • Could you be our 'Oscar' winner?

    7 Jul 1998

    Money Marketing this week starts its annual search for the best IFAs in the country with a call for entries for our prestigious industry awards.

  • Court extends pension rights for part-timers

    6 Jul 1998

    The European Court of Justice has opened up the possibility of part-time workers applying for backdated pension payments. The court ruled last week that part-time workers can claim entitlements to pension benefits back to April 8, 1976. British law says companies have to backdate part-timers' entitlements by only two years.

  • Coventry fixes loan at 6.9% until 2002

    6 Jul 1998

    Coventry Building Society is offering a mortgage fixed at 6.9 per cent until November 2002 up to 75 per cent loan to value.

  • Coventry gives choice of five-year fixed rates

    7 Jul 1998

    Coventry Building Society is launching a range of five-year fixed-rate mortgages, including a fix at 6.2 per cent for up to 75 per cent loan to value.

  • CU is the first to return to EPP loanback sector

    6 Jul 1998

    Commercial Union is to become the first life office to return to the executive personal pension loanback market after the Pensions Act 1995 forced many life offices to quit.

  • CU simplifies pension plans

    7 Jul 1998

    Commercial Union has revamped its pension range with the launch of its Lifestyler and Optimiser plans.

  • Curious way to treat friendlies

    7 Jul 1998

    In his article on Frank Field's book on welfare reform (Money Marketing, , Patrick Collinson says he finds Mr Field's call for a revival in the friendly society movement as a key player in future welfare provision to be curious (Money Marketing, October 30).

  • Currie gives 2% discount on UK growth

    6 Jul 1998

    Martin Currie is offering a 2 per cent discount on the initial charge for the UK growth fund throughout March, dropping the charge to 3.25 per cent. The annual charge is 1.25 per cent. Initial commission is 3 per cent. Renewal is 0.5 per cent if the fund is in a Pep wrapper.

  • DAvy hits back at new Liddell attack on DBS

    7 Jul 1998

    DBS has come under fire from Treasury economic secretary Helen Liddell for lack of progress in the pension review.

  • DBS spins a compelling story with AssureWeb

    6 Jul 1998

    In the last two weeks, I have looked at ways in which the communications revolution will change for ever the way in which we will deal with clients.

  • Dead settlor goes in offshore onslaught

    7 Jul 1998

    The Government is clamping down on offshore tax loopholes, with the dead-settlor rule and portfolio bonds the first to be hammered.

  • Decisions are based on 'false' return figures

    6 Jul 1998

    On April 17, Standard Life issued a with-profits endowment policy maturity value quotation of £17,200 at 5 per cent a year return and £17,600 at 10 per cent a year return.

  • Declaration of independence

    7 Jul 1998

    The demand for independent financial advice continues to grow despite the publicity over pensions misselling and new direct-sellers such as Marks & Spencer and Virgin.

  • Demutualisation Down Under

    7 Jul 1998

    Australia's biggest mutual, the 148-year-old Australian Mutual Provident, is expected to get the go-ahead next week from its 1.7 million members for a demutualisation deal that will give policyholders up to £5bn.

  • Did Britannia Life get it right?

    6 Jul 1998

    On December 4 last, a colleague and myself were in Glasgow for a long-arranged meeting with members of Britannia Life's marketing management. On arrival, we were greeted by anxious hosts asking to postpone our meeting.

  • Direct Line anger at IIB ad protest

    6 Jul 1998

    Direct Line has slammed the Institute of Insurance Brokers for inaccuracy and "misquotation" after the trade body complained to a TV watchdog about one of Direct Line's ads.

  • Direct Line plans move into pensions

    6 Jul 1998

    Telephone-based insurer Direct Line plans to start selling personal pensions next year. Direct Line, a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Scotland, will offer pensions through Direct Line Life, its 50-50 joint venture with Scottish Widows. It is still waiting for approval for the move into pensions from the DTI.

  • Direct salesforces missing out on building loyalty

    6 Jul 1998

    Life insurance direct salesforces are failing to capitalise on loyal customers by not contacting them regularly enough.

  • Directors facing big pension review fines

    7 Jul 1998

    Directors of the PIA's biggest member firms face hefty fines in four months if they continue to drag their heels over the pension misselling review.

  • DMB&B wins £1m KMC campaign

    7 Jul 1998

    Specialist lender Kensington Mortgage Company has picked DMB&B Financial to run a £1m ad and brand-building campaign.

  • DMG operating officer quits as CFO is appointed

    6 Jul 1998

    Deutsche Morgan Grenfell worldwide chief operating officer Jonathan Asquith resigned suddenly last week.

  • Don't be a test cash dummy

    6 Jul 1998

    Interactive Investor has launched what its describes as phase two of its Interactive IFA service (http://www.ifa.co.uk). Although a fuller review of this service and a more detailed overview of the benefits or otherwise of their services to the market will appear in the near future, I do have some initial reactions.

  • Don't tarnish ISA with brush of high commission

    6 Jul 1998

    Fears for the future scope of the Individual Savings Account are throwing up curious reactions. Now, it seems that charges and commission are taking centre stage. Should they?

  • Draw a real picture of drawdown

    6 Jul 1998

    As usual, Lorna Bourke has done little to further the cause of sophisticated financial journalism with her latest article on income drawdown.

  • Drawdown rundown

    7 Jul 1998

    The flexible drawdown plan from Eagle Star is one of latest entrants into the competitive income-drawdown market. Our panel review the product and compare it with similar plans offered by Scottish Widows and Winterthur Life.

  • DSS may sell stakeholder pensions direct

    6 Jul 1998

    The Department of Social Security may sell stakeholder pensions and annuities over the phone as part of its drive to modernise the benefits' system.

  • Edinburgh merges Latin American funds

    6 Jul 1998

    Edinburgh Fund Managers has merged its two Latin American unit trusts following shareholder approval earlier this month. The £12m Edinburgh Latin American merges with Edinburgh Exempt Latin American, creating a fund worth £20m. The new fund will be called Edinburgh Latin American. Its objective is to achieve long-term capital growth.

  • Effrontery

    6 Jul 1998

    Sun Life's high-profile Putting IFAs In Front ad campaign has ruffled one or two feathers at Norwich Union.

  • EFM turns trusts into Oeics

    7 Jul 1998

    Edinburgh Fund Managers is set to convert its £600m in unit trusts into an Oeic.

  • EPP sales boom as de minimis is scrapped

    6 Jul 1998

    Executive personal pension business boomed last month in a "buy now while stocks last" campaign run following the Government's decision to scrap the de minimis limit.

  • Eureko expanding in Netherlands

    6 Jul 1998

    Eureko, the European insurance and financial services group which includes Friends Provident, has expanded its network of life offices across Europe. Dutch-based Eureko member Achmea has merged with Dutch asset manager PVF Pensioenen. Eureko aims to boost its presence in Holland on the back of the merger. Eureko is the seventh-biggest insurance group in Europe and spans 14 countries.

  • Ex-tied agent sues Axa for £200,000 over 'golden hello'

    6 Jul 1998

    Axa is facing a £200,000 compensation claim from a former tied agent and IFA who is suing over a disputed golden hello payment.

  • Fight for good against PIA evil

    7 Jul 1998

    For all those IFAs buried in deepest Essex, a rare treat is in store at the end of this month. For one week only at the Palace Theatre in Westcliff-on-Sea, the cuddly Kieran Root, former editor of What Investment, will be appearing nightly as the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz.

  • Fimbra apologises in High Court to West Bromwich

    7 Jul 1998

    Fimbra has been forced to make an embarrassing apol ogy in the High Court to West Bromwich Building Society.

  • Fimbra lives on as campaigners block final blow

    6 Jul 1998

    The PIA has failed to wind up Fimbra and is to mail voting slips to 3,600 IFA firms in a second bid to kill off the regulator.

  • Financial Options will self-regulate drawdown

    6 Jul 1998

    IFA network Financial Options is to self-regulate members conducting deferred annuity and income-drawdown business to prevent a possible misselling scandal.

  • Fine Weather

    7 Jul 1998

    As reported in Money Marketing's February 11 issue, Morgan Grenfell's All-Weather equity fund is based on an existing pension fund. Because of its protection strategy, absolute-return performance comparisons can be misleading. Comparisons for this type of fund should be made using risk-adjusted returns. The fund is ranked first in its sector since launch on this basis. Shaun Coleman, Morgan Grenfell Quantitative Investments, London EC2

  • Five GAM unit trusts become Oeics

    7 Jul 1998

    Global Asset Management is transferring five of its UK authorised unit trusts into its UK-based open-ended investment company, GAM Funds.

  • Fixed rates cut in revamped Yorkshire mortgage range

    7 Jul 1998

    Yorkshire Building Society is relaunching its mortgage range with cuts in fixed rates and a new capped-rate product.

  • Flabby advisers should get fit to live off the fat of the land

    6 Jul 1998

    Financial advisers are not well known for their bodies - professional or otherwise - but a recent study suggests that some regular exercise can have positive effects on success in the workplace.

  • For hands that dish out fines....

    6 Jul 1998

    So the PIA is to clean up all those non-pri ority cases and land the indus try with a bill of anything up to £11bn for the pension misselling scandal. Ouch.

  • FSA launches scathing attack on Prudential

    6 Jul 1998

    The Financial Services Authority has publicly humiliated and savaged Prudential's management for failing to put investors before costs.

  • Fund managers dip toes back into the equity pool

    7 Jul 1998

    A month ago, fund managers were being heavily criticised for their defensive positions in holding high cash levels and missing out on the huge gains enjoyed by UK and US equities.

  • Get qualified for pensions

    6 Jul 1998

    It is an undeniable fact that the UK population is ageing. As with many of the so-called demographic timebombs, the financial services industry knows how serious the implications are likely to be.

  • Gilchrist will run for Scottish Parliament

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Life general manager (sales) Jim Gilchrist is making a bid to become an MP in the new Scottish Parliament after failing to clinch the chief executive job.

  • Give common-sense advice as we wait and see

    6 Jul 1998

    This is the most surprising Budget that I can remember. On the face of it, it is give, give, give.

  • Go by the Brooks in divorce case

    7 Jul 1998

    I am in the final stages of a divorce. My husband is a director and shareholder in a family business, the other shareholders being his two brothers. His only substantial assets are our home, his shares in the business and a share of the directors' pension scheme.

  • Govt benchmarks may set the criteria for ISAs

    6 Jul 1998

    The Government looks set to propose a system of benchmarks for the Individual Savings Account in the Budget to make ISAs more attractive to investors.

  • Granfield targets industry

    7 Jul 1998

    PR firm Grandfield is entering financial services after hiring two consultants with 40 years' industry experience between them.

  • GRE transfers staff to cross-sell products

    6 Jul 1998

    Guardian Royal Exchange is transferring its staff into one company, Guardian Direct Services, to enable it to cross-sell products across the group.

  • Green mortgage on offer from Norwich & Peterborough

    6 Jul 1998

    Norwich & Peterborough Building Society is going green in what it claims is a bid to save the planet by launching a greenhouse-gas-free discount mortgage.

  • Grenfell returns with managed risk fund

    6 Jul 1998

    Morgan Grenfell Asset Management is returning to the retail market with a protected unit trust modelled on its institutional managed risk equity fund.

  • Grenfell returns with managed risk fund

    6 Jul 1998

    Morgan Grenfell Asset Management is returning to the retail market with a protected unit trust modelled on its institutional managed risk equity fund.

  • Group aims to protect bankrupts'pensions

    7 Jul 1998

    Pension experts and business representatives are putting pressure on the Government to review the impact of bankruptcy laws on pensions.

  • Group pensions boost Scot Life

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Life's new life and pension business leapt by 35 per cent to £102.1m last year from £75.7m in 1996, following major gains in the group personal pension market.

  • Hard nut to crack for securitisation squirrel

    6 Jul 1998

    NPI has spent much of the last few years struggling to transform itself into a modern mutual life office capable of sur viving well into the next millennium.

  • Hard nut to crack for securitisation squirrel

    7 Jul 1998

    The Exeter capital growth fund keeps its position at the head of the Standard & Poor's Micropal top-10 list of unit trusts this week, with an increase of 67.5 per cent over the past year.

  • Hart quits AITC after 10 weeks

    6 Jul 1998

    Michael Hart has dramatically quit as director general of the Association of Investment Trust Companies after just 12 weeks in the job.

  • Higher return from lower expectations

    6 Jul 1998

    I was very surprised by the comments of the normally excellent Julian Gibbs (Money Marketing, November 20). He is completely mistaken to say that "in reality it is most unlikely that any of the major world stockmarkets will be lower in five-and-a-half years".

  • Hill Samuel sees healthy future for British Pep

    6 Jul 1998

    In the expectation that the UK's biggest companies will continue to outperform the FTSE All-Share index, Hill Samuel Asset Management has launched the British Pep.

  • Homeloans hold key to future

    6 Jul 1998

    Mortgages will become the most important financial services product and IFAs neglecting this area will find themselves squeezed out by other aggressive players, such as banks, building societies and supermarkets.

  • How ratings agency could provide competitive edge

    7 Jul 1998

    In the late 80s and early 90s, hundreds of thousands of people were sold pension plans which were unsuited to their needs.

  • I&S axed from Assets trust

    7 Jul 1998

    The board of the Continental Assets investment trust has dumped Ivory & Sime from running the fund and called in Invesco Asset Management.

  • IBRC in late bid to avoid ICS levy

    6 Jul 1998

    Over 4,000 IFAs regulated by the Insurance Brokers Registration Council are set to contribute to the Investors' Compensation Scheme for the first time.

  • ICS inviting claims on four IFA firms

    6 Jul 1998

    The Investors' Compensation Scheme has declared four IFA firms in default, allowing clients to make compensation claims. The firms are: The Moneywise Centre of Chandos Street, Leamington Spa; London Corporate Securities of Great Eastern Street, London; RH Richards Associates of Malling House, West Malling, Kent; and Analysis Financial Services of Park View, Harrogate.

  • IFA apathy could scupper vote on Fimbra wind-up

    6 Jul 1998

    Apathy among Fimbra members could hold up the PIA's latest bid to kill off Fimbra, a leading councillor is warning.

  • IFA Care launches major LTC push

    6 Jul 1998

    The IFA lobbying and education group IFA Care is to launch a major long-term care campaign as the Royal Commission on LTC investigates the market.

  • IFAA and SLOC unite in promotion bid

    7 Jul 1998

    The IFA Association and direct-sales life office Sun Life of Canada are seeking to fight back against execution-only companies by promoting financial advice.

  • IFAA calls for radical ISA reforms

    7 Jul 1998

    The IFA Association is calling for radical reforms of the Government's Individual Savings Account proposals, calling it a "tax-efficient Christmas club". The IFAA wants to see a minimum investment period, an annual limit of £6,000, fees for IFAs advising on transfer of Pep funds to ISAs, a limit on investment in non-European Union funds because of risk and no overall lifetime limits. It also says there should be more incentives for non-taxpayers to save.

  • IFAA sends out guide to beating 2000 bug

    7 Jul 1998

    The IFA Association is mailing all its 2,500 members a guide to beating the millennium computer bug as the regulators investigate the problem.

  • IHT left alone but Brown rattles rest of the industry

    7 Jul 1998

    Last week, I asked a number of tax planners what they most feared in today's Budget.

  • Income drawdown - fact or friction?

    6 Jul 1998

    In my article headlined Drawdowns and death (Money Marketing, February 12, 1998), I encouraged advisers to ensure they have control of all the facts relating to income drawdown, particularly when it comes to death benefits.

  • INDEPENDENT VIEW

    7 Jul 1998

    I have crossed swords with the national press more times than I can remember in defence of the endowment mortgage.

  • Institute of Actuaries calls for shake-up of with-profits guides

    6 Jul 1998

    The Institute of Actuaries is demanding that the PIA revamps with-profits guides, claiming that current bonus rules are flawed and misleading.

  • Insurers should be licensed to sell drawdown

    6 Jul 1998

    I note that it is suggested that IFAs must get yet another qualification in order to sell drawdown products. But I would suggest this is more necessary for the insurance companies which have various traps for the unwary in negotiation of this contract.

  • Inter-Alliance issue brings in £3m

    7 Jul 1998

    Ambitious new IFA Inter-Alliance has raised more than £3m prior to seeking a listing on the Alternative Investment Market. The issue is well in excess of its minimum target of £2.2m and includes support from institutions, private investors, directors and staff. The company has 11 offices and 80 registered individuals.

  • investment view

    6 Jul 1998

    Don't you just love American terminology. Glancing at a business magazine as I sped to another seminar, I read that the keyboard on my computer was "toast". It seems that speech-recognition techniques are now so sophisticated that basic functions, such as word processing and controlling computer programmes, can be handled by voice. Speaking as one whose computer keyboard is seldom graced by my fingers, the developments have not come a moment too soon.

  • investment view

    7 Jul 1998

    It does not feel like a happy new year so far. Last week, markets developed distinctly iffy tendencies. After a strong end to the last year, even London succumbed to selling pressure from the US and still more turmoil in the Far East.

  • investment view

    6 Jul 1998

    Smaller-cap stocks are at last returning to favour. Perhaps this is because the FTSE 100 now offers poor value. But the widening gap in the performance between small companies and the FTSE 100 has been a cause of considerable concern. In the US, where the penetration achieved by tracker funds is considerably greater than here, the underperformance of smaller companies has continued for several years. If the same divide remains here, we could see some of our best known names consigned to ...

  • Investment view

    7 Jul 1998

    It was with some alarm that I heard on the radio at the end of last week that electrical giant Philips is to move its headquarters from the small town in southern Holland it dominates to Amsterdam. Philips has been one of the success stories of recent years. Having suffered in the 70s and 80s at the hands of powerful competition from South-east Asia, it has rebuilt its reputation, recaptured market share and established itself as a serious competitor in the consumer electronics industry. ...

  • ISA costs could hit £1bn for the industry

    6 Jul 1998

    The introduction of the Individual Savings Account may cost the financial services industry up to £1bn.

  • ISA limit raised to £7,000 in first year

    7 Jul 1998

    The main features of the Individual Savings Account announced by the Chancellor are:

  • ISAs will cap vital savings funds

    6 Jul 1998

    I am surprised that you see fit to give space to the discussion on exactly how many Pepholders will be hit by the £50,000 cap on ISAs.

  • James Bond is set to leave town.

    7 Jul 1998

    GunDrinkCarGlass!

  • JO Hambro to set up branded IFA group

    6 Jul 1998

    Private-client fund manager JO Hambro is bidding to launch a new IFA with the aim of grabbing 10-20 per cent of the market over the next five years.

  • Jobs' hope for Britannia Life staff

    7 Jul 1998

    Commercial Union, Scottish Equitable and Colonial are considering taking staff from Britannia Life's doomed IFA arm. The 132 broker consultants, led by two regional sales managers, are talking to about five life offices in an attempt to secure new jobs.

  • Johnson Fry goes global with a safety strategy

    7 Jul 1998

    Johnson Fry is the latest provider to introduce a global unit trust to the UK investment market. It is designed to provide exposure to international markets and to reap the potentially high returns.

  • Jupiter trust offers Asia and US funds deal

    6 Jul 1998

    Jupiter Asset Management is offering a fully Peppable global unit trust which gives retail access to Jupiter's Asian and US funds for the first time.

  • KBIM and Thornton merged by Dresdner

    6 Jul 1998

    Kleinwort Benson Investment Management and Thornton Unit Managers are being merged by parent company Dresdner Bank.

  • KEITH BALDWIN

    6 Jul 1998

    Keith Baldwin must be one of the great survivors.

  • Kitemarking can't ensure suitability of a pension

    6 Jul 1998

    One of the key issues in the stakeholder pensions debate is the degree of regulation appropriate to the products. Would it be prudent to exclude stakeholder pensions from the present framework of regulation by introducing some form of kitemarking?

  • L&G IFA distribution channel grows 50%

    6 Jul 1998

    Legal & General is to increase its focus on the IFA market, with intermediary business outgrowing all other parts of its business.

  • L&G in apology to Virgin as ads compare wrong figures

    7 Jul 1998

    Legal & General has been forced to make a humiliating apology to Virgin Direct and change its advertising after admitting it got its figures wrong.

  • Law says ASU is not income

    6 Jul 1998

    The newspapers continue their ill-informed debate concerning ASU policies and state benefits.

  • LGIM bullish on property

    6 Jul 1998

    Investing in property will deliver strong returns in 1998, according to Legal & General Investment Management.

  • LGT asset management division is up for sale

    7 Jul 1998

    Liechtenstein Global Trust is putting its £63bn asset management division up for sale.

  • Liddell in warning to small firms on review

    6 Jul 1998

    Treasury economic secretary Helen Liddell has turned her wrath on smaller IFAs which fail to progress sufficiently with the pension review.

  • Life offices feel let down by ABI over Comps challenge

    6 Jul 1998

    Life offices have slammed the ABI for failing to challenge the Government's decision to slash rebates for contracted-out money-purchase pension schemes.

  • Lloyds-TSB backs Five Nations

    7 Jul 1998

    Lloyds-TSB is to sponsor the rugby union Five Nations Championship and 1999 Rugby World Cup in a £12m deal to boost its brand profile.

  • Look at Australia and fear for future of ISAs

    6 Jul 1998

    Britain is not unique in having initiated a national navel inspection over the future of welfare provision.

  • Lorna Bourke criticises without offering advice

    6 Jul 1998

    Lorna Bourke concludes from the PIA's third annual report on disclosure that investors are docile.

  • Love sick

    6 Jul 1998

    Valentine's Day usually throws up a melee of tacky gifts. For example, there's the usual ghastly silk boxer shorts with hearts liberally sprinkled all over the place.

  • Luxemburg offices fight Chancellor on confidentiality

    6 Jul 1998

    Luxemburg-based life offices claim that Chancellor Gordon Brown is asking them to break the law in his clampdown on offshore tax loopholes.

  • M & G Peps smooth transition to ISAs

    7 Jul 1998

    M&G is creating a range of Peps it claims will pave the way for the switch to Individual Savings Accounts next year.

  • M&S is looking at execution-only GPPs

    6 Jul 1998

    Marks & Spencer Financial Services is considering a move into the group personal pension market on an execution-only basis pledging to undercut rivals' charges.

  • Major reform of CGT

    6 Jul 1998

    Fundamental changes have been proposed to the structure of capital gains tax. The Chancellor aims to encourage long-term investment by reducing the rate of CGT on longer-held assets.

  • Male on Sunday

    7 Jul 1998

    Our page 25 fella is gorgeous pouting Jeff Prestridge, personal finance editor of the Mail on Sunday's Financial Mail.

  • Man from the Pru says sorry on TV

    7 Jul 1998

    Prudential chief executive Peter Davis has publicly apologised for the company's role in misselling thousands of personal pensions.

  • Manek progression

    6 Jul 1998

    After Jayesh Manek's success in the fantasy fund league, he has set up Manek Investment Management and is testing the water in the unit-trust market with the Manek growth fund.

  • Marketwatch

    6 Jul 1998

    Commercial Union and Guardian Royal Exchange saw their share prices dip after the worst UK floods in 50 years. CU's share price closed down by 15p to 1265p, with GRE's share price falling by7.75p to 432.25p on Tuesday. Estimates of the cost of the floods to the insurance industry range from £400m to £1.2bn.

  • Marketwatch

    6 Jul 1998

    Hong Kong's Hang Seng index, battered on Monday after stockmarket falls in the US and the collapse of leading investment bank Peregrine, regained some of its losses on Tuesday. The Hang Seng rose by 7.4 per cent to 8,720 points on Tuesday after it dropped by 8.7 per cent on Monday.

  • Marks & Spencer to accept transfer business

    6 Jul 1998

    Marks & Spencer Financial Services is set to accept pension transfer business following interest from investors. Eligible products for transfer are personal pension plans, free-standing AVCs and retirement entry savings plans. There are no initial charges but investors will not be able to contract out of Serps. M&SFS is considering launching an advertising campaign in the new year to promote the transfer option.

  • Marshall replaces Ions at Aberdeen Prolific

    6 Jul 1998

    Gary Marshall has been named sales and marketing director at Aberdeen Prolific, replacing John Ions who has left to join Société Générale Asset Management.

  • Martyn confirmed in top role at IFAP

    6 Jul 1998

    IFA Promotion is stepping up its efforts to boost the IFA sector following the appointment of Ann-Marie Martyn as chief executive.

  • Meals on wheels pay off for Wesleyan

    6 Jul 1998

    Wesleyan Financial Services is using the meals-on-wheels service, doctors' surgeries and the Post Office to track down victims of personal pension misselling. The steps will enable the company to review almost all its 1,700 cases by its deadline of December 31. Wesleyan paid out almost £10.5m in compensation by the end of November, an average of £4,000-£5,000 per case.

  • Mercury Life planning professional pensions

    6 Jul 1998

    Mercury Life is planning a major expansion in the IFA market with a range of pension policies for professionals.

  • Micropal Top 10s

    7 Jul 1998

    Norwich Union's £53.5m Norwich American smaller companies trust is ninth out of 1,495 unit trusts over the last year, with growth of 27.88 per cent.

  • Midshires consults over rival takeover bids

    6 Jul 1998

    Birmingham Midshires Building Society is seeking permission from Royal Bank of Scotland to enter into talks with rival bidder Halifax over a possible acquisition. Midshires is also seeking advice from its banking and legal advisers about how to go ahead with its conversion, faced with the two rival bids. It is understood that the Building Societies Commission does not allow two rival offers to be put to its members at once.

  • Money Store plans £4.5m ad campaign

    6 Jul 1998

    US sub-prime lender The Money Store is spending £4.5m on advertising this year, including television, in a bid to establish itself in the UK market.

  • Mortgages plc bids for niches

    7 Jul 1998

    Mortgages plc is targeting specialist mortgage sectors, including the right-to-buy market, by launching a new range of loans.

  • Murray Johnstone sets up third VCT

    6 Jul 1998

    Glasgow-based fund manager Murray Johnstone is launching a new venture capital trust.

  • My network does not make me less independent

    6 Jul 1998

    I am prompted to write in defence of IFA networks. I have read that the popular network practice of employing provider panels is making network members "less than independent".

  • NAPF highlights pension erosion

    6 Jul 1998

    The National Association of Pension Funds has attacked the Government for "drilling holes" into the returns from occupational pension schemes.

  • National ad campaign for lead-generator

    6 Jul 1998

    Lead-generation firm Independent Mortgage Collection has appointed Camp Chipperfield Hill Murray to run its first advertising campaign.

  • NatWest's timely warning

    6 Jul 1998

    NatWest Life is to use a melting clock image to show that time is ticking away for people who have not yet made personal pension provision.

  • Neill Clerk focuses on film-finance project

    7 Jul 1998

    Neill Clerk Capital is launching Take One, the first public film-financing project since the July Budget. UK film-finance projects now qualify for a 100 per cent tax benefit. Take One will produce and acquire TV productions. The projected rate of return for the group is about 25 per cent a year. The offer is limited to £1.5m. Minimum investment is £10,000. The closing date is February 20 or earlier if fully subscribed.

  • Net was caught up in gross earnings

    6 Jul 1998

    While I appreciate the point that Phil Gammond was making in his letter (Money Marketing, December 4), he was overgilding the lily in his comparison of the actual cost to the customer of fees v commission.

  • Networks set for campaign to public

    6 Jul 1998

    The Large Networks Association is considering launching a public relations cam- paign explaining to consumers the benefits of receiving advice from a network member.

  • New managing director for MMB

    6 Jul 1998

    IFA MMB has appointed Sean Gilchrist as its new managing director. The appointment completes a major reorganisation.

  • New marketing chief at Colonial Investments

    7 Jul 1998

    Colonial Investments has appointed Lindsay Firth-McGuckin as marketing director. Firth-McGuckin was previously marketing director at Henderson Investors and head of marketing at Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society.

  • New Thing comes to the UK.

    7 Jul 1998

    With the introduction of a new Thing from the USA the import company Things for you (TFY) expect a high level of investment. 'The arrival of the Thing is going to be the biggest event since the last bank holiday' predicted the man we stopped on the corner.

  • Newsline reports on companies' results

    6 Jul 1998

    Newsline reported 1997 results from Sedgwick and Willis Corroon. Press *News# for the latest industry news.

  • Newsline spotlights Bupa staff cuts

    7 Jul 1998

    Newsline reported Bupa cutting its commission-only private medical insurance salesforce by nearly half. Press *News# for the latest industry news.

  • No further move on Miras

    6 Jul 1998

    The Government decided to leave Miras alone, to most of the mortgage industry's relief. Miras is due to fall by 5 per cent to 10 per cent in April after last year's Budget changes. Many feared it would be scrapped altogether.

  • No turnips for the book

    6 Jul 1998

    Radical? I've seen turnips that look more radical. There were times when I had to pinch myself. Was this really a socialist chancellor I was hearing? No. It was a New Labour Treasury Boss.

  • Northern Rock cuts standard loan rate

    6 Jul 1998

    Northern Rock is reducing its standard mortgage base rate by 0.2 per cent to 8.5 per cent for new borrowers this month. It will come into effect for existing borrowers on April 1, provided that UK base rates are not increased next month.

  • Now, let the computer games begin

    6 Jul 1998

    As well as being an invaluable business tool, the modern PC can be fun as it makes a perfect platform for computer games.

  • NPI axes initial charges in bid to double Pep take

    6 Jul 1998

    NPI is scrapping initial charges on its Taxbeater Pep and launching a guaranteed Pep in a bid to double Pep new business this year.

  • NU opts for Consolidated

    6 Jul 1998

    Norwich Union has picked PR agency Consolidated Communications Financial to boost its media profile.

  • Offices get merger or closure warning

    6 Jul 1998

    Life offices face the prospect of merging or closing as the UK marketplace gets increasingly competitive, claims a new report.

  • Offices scratch heads over Govt earmarking data

    6 Jul 1998

    The Government appears to be confused over the number of pensions earmarked by the courts last year after life offices accused it of getting the numbers wrong.

  • Offices will pay out £100m to aid IFA review

    7 Jul 1998

    Life offices are to stump up £100m to bail out IFAs struggling with the pension misselling review in a deal brokered by the ABI.

  • OFT will probe advice to elderly and disabled

    6 Jul 1998

    The Office of Fair Trading is to investigate the role of IFAs in the misselling of financial services to vulnerable consumers.

  • Ohra raises PMI rates by up to 10%

    7 Jul 1998

    Private medical insurer Ohra UK is increasing PMI premiums by between 9 per cent and 10 per cent from January 1. Ohra is offering a free 24-hour claims helpline and 24-hour medical advice service.

  • On the move

    6 Jul 1998

    Teaser campaigns are commonplace in most above-the-line media, yet when we release one to journalists, we are told we are "creating utter confusion"! The pack about our move to Hammersmith has clearly achieved its objective of piquing people's interest, though, so thanks for the column inches, which we clearly wouldn't have got if we had simply sent you a change of address card. Lesley Mair WWAV Rapp Collins London London W2

  • One Stop Mortgage sets up UK arm

    6 Jul 1998

    US sub-prime lender One Stop Mortgage is launching a subsidiary in the UK, also called One Stop Mortgage. It opened for business to intermediaries last week. The US wholesale lender did $1.2bn in completions last year. One Stop Mortgage is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aames Financial Corporation.

  • Options admits it faces a big fine

    7 Jul 1998

    Financial Options has admitted for the first time that it is facing a six-figure fine from the PIA over the pension review.

  • Partners' cover adds to corporate menu

    6 Jul 1998

    Guardian Employee Benefits is rolling out cover for spouses and partners as part of its Corporate Protection Menu.

  • Pearl backs F1 team with £1m

    7 Jul 1998

    Pearl is to sponsor British Grand Prix team Jordan in a deal worth £1m. Pearl's name will be seen on drivers Damon Hill and Ralf Schumacher's cars next season. Its staff will be given free trips to Grand Prix races. Head of PR Ken McKay says: "We used to sponsor snooker in the days that we sent our salesmen out on bicycles. We give them BMWs now so we think this is a good incentive.

  • Penelope's Pantry to go Public

    6 Jul 1998

    Penelop's Pantry the popular Hitchin Cafe is about to become a public listed company. Penelop herself said that she would be releasing half the stock for the offer price of £1.75. City analysts have been quoted as saying 'Who!'.Staff have added an extra 10% surcharge to all customers over 6 feet tall as they have found that they do not eat all their chips.A new line

  • Pension opportunity knocks

    6 Jul 1998

    The de minimis rules are seen by many as an easy way to fund pension benefits for low earners without contributions being restrained by those low earnings.

  • Pension Story

    6 Jul 1998

  • Pensions' concern at NI moves

    7 Jul 1998

    The Government is increasing employers' National Insurance contributions to 12.2 per cent, prompting calls for IFAs to review their clients' pension arrangements urgently.

  • Pep Mortgage Puzzle

    6 Jul 1998

    I ended last week's article on the note that the reduction in ultimate fund value, say, of a Pep caused by the eventual inability to reclaim ACT credits could have a significantly important impact on those who are funding for a particular amount to be produced to repay an interest-only mortgage.

  • Permanent widens choice on critical illness

    7 Jul 1998

    Protection specialist Permanent Insurance has enhanced its critical-illness range with two whole-of-life plans, Critical Illness Lifetime and Critical Life Lifetime, which includes life cover.

  • Persistency is the best policy for the PIA

    7 Jul 1998

    The PIA's figures on life and pension policy persistency rates show that far too many are being sold inappropriately.

  • PI insurers in pledge on cover

    6 Jul 1998

    Leading professional indemnity insurers have acted to reassure IFAs that their bills will not rise following the introduction of the PIA Ombudsman Bureau's new £100,000 compensation limit.

  • PIA concerned over handling of complaints

    6 Jul 1998

    The PIA is demanding that IFAs tighten up lax complaints' procedures amid signs that many are failing to respond to consumers' concerns.

  • PIA fines London firm £10,000 over review

    6 Jul 1998

    The PIA has slapped a £10,000 fine on a London broker for not carrying out the pension misselling review properly. Jacobs Insurance Brokers, of Cavendish Road, Highams Park, which has four registered individuals, has also been ordered to pay the costs of a verification visit. The PIA has also rejected the membership application of M Gill Financial Services of Watling Street, Radlett, Hertfordshire for a series of compliance failures.

  • PIA fines two IFAs for compliance breaches

    6 Jul 1998

    A London broker has been hit with a total PIA disciplinary bill of nearly £37,000 after compliance failures over the recruitment of IFAs. Financial Strategy, of Paul Street, which has 13 IFAs, has been fined £25,000 and must pay £11,760 in costs. The PIA says the action was taken after "a number of rule breaches were identified". The PIA has slapped a £5,000 fine on West Midlands IFA Knowle Financial Services of Wychwood Avenue after finding its compliance ...

  • PIA may issue warning over FSAVC advice

    6 Jul 1998

    The PIA may issue a warning to IFAs and pension schemes about top-up pension plans, following fears that they are being missold.

  • PIA plans early swoop on drawdown brokers

    6 Jul 1998

    PIA monitoring hit squads could swoop on IFAs writing income-drawdown business as early as next month in a bid to clean up the market.

  • PIA ready to probe drawdown business

    6 Jul 1998

    The PIA is to crack down on income drawdown with a sweeping review early next year of the way the product is sold.

  • Pleas are spurned for guidelines on drawdown yield

    6 Jul 1998

    Pension experts' calls for guidelines on how to calculate the critical yield for income-drawdown products are being ignored by the PIA.

  • Police probe Lincoln tied-agent salesmen

    6 Jul 1998

    Lincoln is paying about £500,000 in compensation to clients of a tied agent.

  • PPP offers assurance on LTC

    6 Jul 1998

    PPP lifetime care is pledging to switch customers buying its Lifetime Care plan to the "most appropriate" LTC policy if current products are affected by future legislation. The Government last week unveiled its Royal Commission on LTC, which is set to report in a year.

  • Private Label 5-year loan set at 6.55%

    6 Jul 1998

    Private Label Mortgage Services is offering a five-year fixed-rate mortgage at 6.55 per cent for up to 75 per cent loan to value.

  • Prize draw for ISA holders scrapped

    6 Jul 1998

    The Government has revealed further changes to its proposals for the Individual Savings Account. These include ditching the idea of a monthly prize draw and banning demutualisation shares.

  • Profits increase by 9.5% at Perpetual

    7 Jul 1998

    Perpetual posted a 9.5 per cent rise in profits in the year to the end of September despite the fund manager reporting "a more difficult sales environment". Profits increased to £59.6m from £54.4m but turnover fell by 13 per cent to £1.28bn from £1.46bn in 1996. But funds under management rose by 33 per cent to £8.8bn from £6.6bn.

  • Prophylactic acid

    6 Jul 1998

    Renegade Labour MP for Newport Paul Flynn is earning himself quite a reputation. Only three months ago, the bearded former DJ was heralding the death of IFAs.

  • Proposals for flexible retirement under fire

    6 Jul 1998

    Government proposals to allow flexible retirement for millions of people in occupational pension schemes have come under fierce criticism from life offices.

  • Pru ensures high transfer value on ScotAm pension

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Amicable is rolling out its first pension product to be backed by the Prudential following last year's £2.8bn acquisition.

  • PSO puts pinch on loanback advisers

    7 Jul 1998

    The Pension Schemes Office is to clamp down on IFAs operating in the insured loanback market after accusing them of abusing the facility.

  • Public warming to phone sales

    6 Jul 1998

    Investors are more interested in buying life and investment products direct than they were three years ago.

  • Radical rethink over NIC

    6 Jul 1998

    Gordon Brown announced radical reform of National Insurance to encourage job creation and cut down on red tape.

  • Redress rehearsal

    7 Jul 1998

    The Financial Services Authority and PIA last week issued a consultation paper on the next phase of the pension review and redress programme launched in 1994.

  • Revenue quashes hopes of revised £50,000 ISA limit

    7 Jul 1998

    Confusion is reigning over the exact shape of the Individual Savings Account, with wildly conflicting signals over what is up for consultation.

  • Review likely to cost independents £1.1bn

    6 Jul 1998

    IFAs are likely to pick up a £1.1bn tab for the pension review, according to research by actuary Bacon & Woodrow. Life offices, policyholders and shareholders will pick up the remaining £9.9bn of the £11bn total bill.

  • Review load is doubled at Burns Anderson

    6 Jul 1998

    Burns Anderson has been forced by the PIA to double the number of pension misselling cases it must review after it was found that the network had left out 509 non-priority cases.

  • Revolution or has Widows peaked?

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Widows believes it is shaping up as the model life office for the new millennium.

  • Richard Brown

    6 Jul 1998

    Whatever happened to Thatcher's children? They left the 1980s' Porsche behind and tried to run a building society instead.

  • Royal & Sun Alliance single premiums fall

    7 Jul 1998

    Royal & Sun Alliance new single-premium life and pension business dipped last year by 5 per cent against the market trend of rising single premiums.

  • Royal & Sun faces £98m bill for 2000 bug

    6 Jul 1998

    Royal & Sun Alliance will be stung with a £98m bill for making its computer systems Year 2000 compliant.

  • Royal Skandia adds 27 more funds

    6 Jul 1998

    Royal Skandia has added 27 funds to its range following an extensive review. The new range gives access to five new fund managers, including Jupiter and Templeton.

  • RSPCA scratches financial surface

    6 Jul 1998

    The RSPCA is set to become the latest player in the financial services industry with the launch of savings and loan products next month.

  • Rush of registrations in bid to beat PIA deadline

    6 Jul 1998

    The PIA expects most member firms to beat the March 27 deadline for submitting individual registration forms.

  • Sausmarez made MD of Colonial Investments

    6 Jul 1998

    Colonial Investments, the London fund management arm of Colonial Investment Management, has appointed James de Sausmarez as managing director. Sausmarez was previously retail managing director at Henderson Investors. He will report directly to CIM managing director Peter Polson.

  • Schroder profits edge up

    7 Jul 1998

    Merchant bank Schroder boosted profits last year, largely due to strong performance from its asset management arm.

  • Schroder switches emphasis to small firms

    6 Jul 1998

    Schroder is one of the first companies off the starting blocks in the 1998 Pep campaign, with the launch of its Global Smaller Companies Pep.

  • Schwab sets up B&B system for brokers

    6 Jul 1998

    Charles Schwab has set up a system for intermediaries to carry out bed-and-breakfast deals on behalf of clients. Bed and breakfasting - selling shares and buying them back the following day - is a common way for investors to realise their annual capital gains tax allowance, currently £6,500. Schwab is offering intermediaries a flat fee of £5 for repurchase of equities.

  • ScotEq Intl business rises 118% to £197m

    7 Jul 1998

    Scottish Equitable International's new business soared by 118 per cent last year.

  • ScotLife boosts national accounts business

    7 Jul 1998

    Scottish Life has recorded a 50 per cent rise in its national accounts business this year after restructuring its sales management team. Former Axa Equity & Law pensions product market ing manager John Carrick is joining as a national accounts manager in Reading. He is being joined by fellow national accounts manager Trevor Broadbent, previously ScotLife's area sales manager in Reading.

  • ScotLife hikes loanback fee

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Life is more than doubling its charge for pension loanbacks to £250 after the Inland Revenue's decision to clamp down on abuses in the market.

  • ScotMut adds new bond issue

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Mutual has launched a new issue of its Triple Bonus Bond.

  • ScotProv Intl warns of life tax changes

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Provident International is revamping its literature on trusts in a bid to warn IFAs about possible future changes to life insurance policyholder taxation.

  • Scottish Provident to close four branches

    6 Jul 1998

    Scottish Provident is axing four branch offices in its latest bid to focus its marketing strategy but insists that service to IFAs will not be hit.

  • Scottish Widows International bond

    7 Jul 1998

    Scottish Widows International is launching a Jersey-based international investment bond and not an international investment fund, as was published in last week's edition of Money Marketing.

  • Second venture capital trust from Quester

    6 Jul 1998

    Venture capital firm Quester is launching the Venture Capital Trust II in January following the success of its first VCT, which holds more than £30m in funds. Director John Spooner says it has decided to offer another trust because the investment track record of the existing VCT has attracted so much interest.

  • Servicing of existing business causing dismay

    7 Jul 1998

    Is it me or have the standards of service provided by companies which have been the subject of recent takeovers and mergers plummeted? Either

  • Shelters from the CGT storm

    7 Jul 1998

    Schemes set up before November 25 should be safe as truly retrospective legislation is extremely rare. The major area for IFAs to consider is capital gains tax reinvestment relief.

  • Sipp mates

    6 Jul 1998

    Eagle Star's Flexible Drawdown Plan, in conjunction with James Hay Pension Trustees, aims to offer a flexible charging structure to meet the needs both of commission and fee-based IFAs.

  • Smaller companies funds from Guinness Flight

    7 Jul 1998

    Guinness Flight Hambro is launching two smaller companies funds after predicting the end of the bull run for blue chips. The global smaller companies fund and European smaller companies fund will be launched on December 1. Minimum investment is £2,000.

  • Smith and Jones push PPP service

    7 Jul 1998

    PPP healthcare has called in TV comics Mel Smith and Griff Rhys-Jones to promote its Employee Support service.

  • Societies moving to deter carpetbaggers

    7 Jul 1998

    Britannia and Yorkshire building societies are slashing minimum balances for new sav ings accounts to below pre-carpetbagger levels.

  • Sole trader demands redress as NU erro leaks client data

    7 Jul 1998

    IFA Brian Lentz is demanding compensation from Norwich Union after an admin blunder led to one of his client's details being leaked to a rival broker.

  • Sound foundation for the property market

    6 Jul 1998

    It was all going so well. According to Nationwide, house prices rose by over 12 per cent last year, with transactions up by 17 per cent to 1.44 million from 1.24 million in 1996.

  • Southern Pacific reaches £100m lending

    6 Jul 1998

    Sub-prime lender Southern Pacific Mortgages has written £100m in completions since it started last June. It is writing £12m-£15m worth of mortgages a month. It is also planning a £60m securitisation through Greenwich NatWest.

  • Sporting chance

    6 Jul 1998

    The Ultimate Day in Sport, aka Save & Prosper's fabulous competition A Game of Two Halves, reaches week five this week.

  • Standard ads aim to be Calvin Klein of pensions

    6 Jul 1998

    Standard Life is looking to become the Calvin Klein of the finance industry with a sexy advertising campaign targeted at young consumers.

  • Standard banks on summer loan attack

    6 Jul 1998

    Standard Life Bank is to launch a major assault on the mortgage market in August, offering IFAs commission and undercutting rivals' interest rates by up to 1 per cent.

  • Standard spending £30m on TV push

    7 Jul 1998

    Standard Life is splashing out £30m on its biggest-ever TV advertising campaign which will be launched in May.

  • Statistically speaking

    6 Jul 1998

    I recently read in the press some of the statistics published in the Office of National Statistics' annual report. There was much contained in the report of direct and indirect relevance to those marketing and advising on financial services products.

  • Sting in the retirement tail

    6 Jul 1998

    Having reached my 50th birthday, I was looking forward to winding down my business activities and starting to draw my pension. I had no intention of retiring completely and, in fact, my financial adviser tells me that my pension scheme is not sufficiently funded for me to retire completely. I understand that I cannot, under present legislation, do this but help may be on the way. How will things change and, more important, what changes are in store?

  • Stop the cash going down the drain

    6 Jul 1998

    The Treasury may be looking to plug the gaps in the tax code but, this year alone, Britons will give the Government a £6.9bn present. That is the figure that IFA Promotion estimates over 36 million people will pay in unnecessary tax in 1998.

  • Sun Life will sponsor IFAP

    7 Jul 1998

    Sun Life is aiming to boost its IFA strategy further by becoming the fourth-biggest sponsor of IFA Promotion. The life office says it is keen to see some of IFAP's plans come to fruition.

  • Take an objective view of the discounters

    6 Jul 1998

    The recent article on "discounters" was long on sensationalism but short on facts.

  • Templeton investors give Oeics go-ahead

    6 Jul 1998

    Parts of Eagle Star could be sold of as part of a major strategic review by BAT.

  • Testing Time

    7 Jul 1998

    1. Which is true in connection with the payment of benefits from an appropriate personal pension scheme?

  • The cutting hedge

    6 Jul 1998

    Should hedge funds be the sole preserve of global financiers such as George Soros? IFAs traditionally use conventional unit or investment trusts but a few are starting to experiment with low-risk hedge funds.

  • The Government must take that kite and learn to fly it

    6 Jul 1998

    I read with interest David Dunn's comments on kitemarking (Money Marketing, February 19) and his concerns about some people buying stakeholder pensions which are unsuitable for their needs.

  • The issue over the closure of Fimbra

    7 Jul 1998

    A news article noted the Fimbra AGM and that Brian Cochrane and others had called for a poll (Money Marketing, December 18) but without giving any indication of the issues at stake. As such, I feel that you did most IFAs a disservice.

  • The PIC of the bunch?

    6 Jul 1998

    One of the greatest challenges facing the UK as the millennium approaches is support for its ageing population. It is already becoming clear that ensuring that individuals are self-sufficient in retirement is high on the Government's agenda.

  • This time, it really must be prime time for PHI

    6 Jul 1998

    Rereading annual surveys of the PHI market, it is sad to see how past optimism has not borne fruit.

  • Tilney changes name to focus on investment

    6 Jul 1998

    Tilney & Co is changing its name to reflect its change of focus from stockbroking to fund management.

  • Towry Law names Black as chief exec

    6 Jul 1998

    Towry Law announced at its annual general meeting last week that Douglas Black is to become permanent chief executive. Black was brought in on a rolling 40-day contract when former boss Alan Wesley stood down in September after 23 years with the company.

  • Trading standards want financial watchdog role

    6 Jul 1998

    The Institute of Trading Standards The Institute of Trading Standards The Institute of Trading Standards The Institute of Trading Standards The Institute of Trading Standards The Institute of Trading Standards The Institute of Trading Standards

  • Triple choice from Bristol & West

    6 Jul 1998

    Bristol & West has introduced three new guaranteed equity- linked accounts to the market. These are designed to provide the choice of capital growth or a combination of income plus capital growth with no risk to the original capital.

  • Two Oeics for Johnstone

    6 Jul 1998

    Murray Johnstone is launching its first two onshore Oeics, including a portfolio and fixed-interest fund.

  • Two questions you must ask on technology

    6 Jul 1998

    Travelling the country talking at IFA seminars can provide an interesting insight into the average IFA's attitude to technology, and sometimes that of the people advising them.

  • Two-thirds of offices aim to boost marketing

    6 Jul 1998

    Nearly two-thirds of life offices are worried about the level of demand for their products in the coming year, with a record proportion looking to boost marketing spend. According to a quarterly poll carried out by the CBI and Coopers & Lybrand at the end of last year, 63 per cent of insurers are concerned that demand is likely to limit their business prospects this year.

  • Uneasy bedfellows

    7 Jul 1998

    The esteemed Mark Wood, Sun Life & Provincial chief executive, seems to have been on one too many management courses.

  • Virgin can teach AMP new tricks

    6 Jul 1998

    One of the AMP's most ambitious strategies as part of its effort to become a truly global player is its big investment in Richard Branson's Virgin brand.

  • We wish you a compliant Xmas

    7 Jul 1998

    Our industry has a large number of different awards ceremonies, with a range of different awards categories.

  • What's in store for ISAs

    6 Jul 1998

    The ISA regime is scheduled to start on April 5, 1999. After that date, no new Tessas or Peps can be sold. Here are the current proposals:

  • When will Tesco disclose all its profit margins?

    7 Jul 1998

    I write in response to Ivor Harper and his observations about Lorna Bourke's comments on commission.

  • Which direction should your training be taking?

    6 Jul 1998

    So you've been on all the compulsory courses, you've reached competent status and you're now involved in continuing professional development (CPD). But how much more new business have you gained as a result?

  • Why charges must be transparent

    7 Jul 1998

    In view of the sales induction methods used by the insurance industry for years, I should not be too surprised by the views expressed by Kevin Moss and Philip Thomas (Money Marketing, February 26).

  • Widows' PHI plan guarantees premiums for first six years

    6 Jul 1998

    In the belief that there is a growing demand for PHI due to changes in state benefit legislation, Scottish Widows has taken its first steps into this market. It aims to be a top five provider within the next three years.

  • Will it be war with robot IFAs?

    7 Jul 1998

    Last month, two of Britain's biggest insurers, Commercial Union and General Accident, announced plans to merge. Wonderment at the size of the merged companies was tinged with concern over how many jobs would be lost due to economies of scale.

  • Win Champagne

    7 Jul 1998

    Is the mortgage market crazy? Are borrowers being hit with unfair deals? Private Label executive chairman Stephen Knight certainly thinks so.

  • Winfax going beyond basics

    7 Jul 1998

    In the past 15 years, the fax machine has become an essential part of almost every office although email has the potential to replace the fax.

  • Woolwich may sell via brokers

    6 Jul 1998

    Woolwich is considering launching its life and investment products into the IFA market for the first time.

  • Yorkshire offers Mig-free option

    6 Jul 1998

    Yorkshire Building Society is offering two Mig-free products up to 95 per cent loan to value.

  • You're fired - have a nice day

    7 Jul 1998

    Your company is in financial turmoil, doom and gloom reigns and meltdown is just around the corner. So what do you do? If you are British, you probably get depressed and moan. But if you are South Korean and your economy appears about to collapse, you do something very different.

Poll

Should the MPC have increased QE this week?

Current Issue

Advanced search