Money Marketing
13 June 2001

  • 'Advisers are tarnished by commission'

    14 Jun 2001

    Consumers believe financial advisers charge too much commission and they are worried about hidden charges, claims a report from the Financial Services Consumer Panel. The Consumers in the Financial Market annual survey questioned over 1,100 con- sumers and says charges provoke greatest dissatisfaction. The report says this tarnishes an otherwise favourable impression of advisers. Most consumers considered charges and commission levied on products to have been ...

  • A&L offers flexible fixed rate

    13 Jun 2001

    Alliance & Leicester is offering a flexible fixed rate mortgage with a rate of 5.69 per cent fixed until September 2003.

  • Alan Rosengren

    14 Jun 2001

    Given that Allan Rosengren says work is his main hobby, it is not surprising the Falcon Group chief executive has ambitious plans for his company. As chief executive since the company became a non-listed PLC in 1985, Falcon recently made news with its joint venture with Stroud-based Inde-pendent Financial Services. Rosengren, who prides himself on his strategic vision, thinks link-ups such as this are part of an industrywide trend. He firmly believes businesses have to ...

  • Alliance Trust companies appoint lawyer to board

    18 Jun 2001

    International investment trust companies the Alliance Trust and the Second Alliance Trust are both appointing Lesley Knox as non-executive director.

  • Another fin mess by FSA?

    14 Jun 2001

    The FSA is considering forcing providers to use website addresses with .fin suffixes in a bid for consumer protection. The scheme would see all regulated firms using .fin addresses, with the aim of assuring users they were dealing with an FSA-regulated company. The plan is raised in a discussion paper this week which claims it would help it achieve three of four key objectives - consumer protection, fighting financial crime and maintaining market confidence. The FSA concedes ...

  • Anyone for tennis?

    14 Jun 2001

    Tennis fans will be aware that the British tennis season is about to begin. To mark the occasion, Britannic Asset Management is giving Money Marketing readers the chance to win centre court tickets to this year's ladies tournament at Eastbourne. The tournament, recently renamed the Britannic Asset Management International Championships, takes place from June 16-23 at Devonshire Park, Eastbourne. Seen as the ultimate warm-up for Wimbledon, top female players such as Anna Kournikova ...

  • Apcims throws down N2 gauntlet to FSA

    14 Jun 2001

    The Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers is challenging the FSA to meet the November 30 deadline for N2. At an FSA presentation on PIMS 2001 which focused on the regulator after N2, Apcims chief executive Angela Knight voiced serious doubts over whether the FSA would have all its powers by November 30. Knight said the chances of passing all secondary legislation needed to transfer authority before this date are very slim, given the impending ...

  • Assureweb's free mortgage deal attracts 1,000 brokers

    14 Jun 2001

    Assureweb says its free mortgage sourcing software has encouraged more than 1,000 mortgage brokers to use its online mortgage selector service, which started in April. The launch was supported by a marketing and ad campaign promoting what Assureweb claims are the benefits of the new service for intermediaries, including the ability to complete mortgages online. The service provides industrywide information on more than 2,500 products from 100 lenders. Intermediaries ...

  • Axa executives questioned over PanEuroLife

    14 Jun 2001

    Founder and supervisory board chairman of Axa insurance company Claude Bebear is being questioned in connection with money laundering allegedly carried out by former subsidiary PanEurolife.

  • Bank of Ireland lines up new chief executive

    14 Jun 2001

    Bank of Ireland is appointing Michael Soden as group chief executive when Maurice Keane retires from the post next February.Soden was formerly with National Australia Bank, and has had spells with Citicorp in Canada and was chief executive of Security Pacific Hoare Govett. He will join Bank of Ireland in September as chief executive designate. 

  • Boards decide'its' fate

    14 Jun 2001

    The AITC is set to decide the future of the "its" campaign this week after receiving the final proposals from its member boards last Friday. The majority of boards are expected to agree to the extra half basis point for IFA marketing and PR but several companies, including Jupiter, have already said their boards are unlikely to agree with the continuation of consumer advertising. The AITC is looking for a further basis point a year from each trust to continue the generic campaign. It ...

  • BT Cellnet offers portal in link-up with Misys

    14 Jun 2001

    BT Cellnet is moving into the financial services arena by linking up with Misys to launch a business-to-business portal. BT's Connected site will provide specialist inf-ormation and services for the financial services sector from this week, with Misys's IFA portal M-Link available on the site as an online trading platform for IFAs. It is also teaming up with the FSA to provide an information service from the regulator. Standard & Poor's fund services ...

  • Buy-to-let market thrives outside London

    14 Jun 2001

    Buy-to-let properties outside London and the South-east can provide double the rental returns seen in the capital, according to the Association of Residential Letting Agents. Although average rental returns across the country have fallen from 7.6 per cent to 7.3 per cent in the last six months, one in 10 Arla member is reporting returns of up to 15 per cent in areas other than the South-east. The average price of a buy-to-let property in the South-east is £168,800 ...

  • Canada Life unit trusts upgraded

    15 Jun 2001

    Three of Canada Life's unit trusts have been upgraded to 'A' rating by Standard & Poor's.The three trusts are the Balanced Unit Trust, Japanese Growth Unit Trust and High Income Unit Trust.Canada Life UK client fund manager Gavin Watson says: "Our fund management team is delighted with these ratings. It is especially gratifying that 20 per cent of all funds achieve a S&P rating, so we are extremely proud of our achievement."

  • CIS marks down FSA for Saltr sign ban

    14 Jun 2001

    CIS is slamming the FSA for not allowing the ABI Raising Standards quality mark on its comparative league tables. It is calling on the FSA to rethink its decision and allow companies with the quality mark to display the accreditation sign on the tables. The FSA says because the Raising Standards scheme is voluntary, accreditation should not be displayed. But CIS is angry that Catmarks, which are also voluntary, will be shown on the tables. It says the Raising ...

  • Clerical adds external pension fund links

    14 Jun 2001

    Clerical Medical is teaming up with three leading fund managers to offer external funds links on its range of group and individual pension plans. The move will provide Clerical's policyholders access to 15 externally managed funds from Aberdeen, Newton and Schroders. The funds will only be available to stakeholder investors through the Employee Benefit Solutions package which is a non-commission product aimed at the employee benefit consultant sector. Clerical says ...

  • Clerical targets IFAs with portfolio guide

    14 Jun 2001

    Clerical Medical is offering a guide designed to help IFAs establish and review investment portfolios for new and existing clients. The Advisers Guide to Portfolio Construction offers step-by-step instructions through the process of establishing a client's investment requirements, constructing a portfolio and conducting a review. Clerical says portfolio construction is an essential part of the financial planning pro-cess, especially in the current climate of reduced ...

  • Collins Stewart goes for absolute return

    13 Jun 2001

    Mullin says: "Not a well known product provider. Offshore does not appeal to investors generally. It may appear overly complicated at first glance, and there is no history of performance and investment."

  • Collins Stewart goes for absolute return

    13 Jun 2001

    Collins Stewart - Absolute Return Fund

  • Confusion on stakeholder exemptions

    14 Jun 2001

    The DSS is sending mixed messages on the terms of stakeholder exemptions for group personal pensions, raising fears that some IFAs' corporate clients may not be compliant. Scottish Life had asked for a DSS exemption for potentially thousands of group personal pension schemes which included waiver of premium, sold over the past year, which it feared were not stakeholder-compliant. The move followed a last-minute clarification from the DSS which indicated that GPPs with ...

  • Critical claims climb as sales take a tumble

    14 Jun 2001

    Claims on critical-illness policies grew 23 per cent last year as more people became aware of the benefits of protecting themselves against dread diseases, according to estimates by GE Frankona Re. In its latest annual survey into trends in the critical-illness market, the reinsurer found that claims were on the increase despite a 4.3 per cent fall in overall sales. It says that in 2000 there were 785,734 new CI policies down from 820,000 the previous year. GE Frankona ...

  • Cut and trust

    14 Jun 2001

    Last week, I looked at some of the most important powers of trustees, including the power to select beneficiaries from the trust deed's list of potential beneficiaries in preference to the initial beneficiaries named or described by the settlor. I also noted the absence in almost all trust documents of the right of the settlor, or indeed of any other person, to remove a trustee who does not want to be removed unless that trustee has committed some sort of transgression such ...

  • D-day puts funds on a new track

    14 Jun 2001

    Tracker funds are poised for a "D-day" that could see weightings cut in media, technology tobacco and food as FTSE adopts new criteria for evaluating its indices. FTSE will adopt "free float" on Friday, which means it will only count share capital freely available for trading in assessing a company's value, no longer including shares not for sale. Passive fund managers will have to carry out huge levels of trading to replace stocks falling out of FTSE indices. Gartmore ...

  • Derbyshire Building Society axes most popular mortgages

    18 Jun 2001

  • Derbyshire Building Society withdraws mortgages

    18 Jun 2001

    Derbyshire Building Society has withdrawn several mortgages from its range because it could not cope with the number of applications they generated. Its three year and five year fixed rate loans have been replaced with mortgages with higher rates and its 4.99 per cent discount product has been pulled without replacement. The new three year fixed rate is 5.64 per cent, up from 5.49 per cent and the five year rate is 5.74 per cent, up from 5.59 per cent. 

  • Don't discount the discount brokers

    14 Jun 2001

    Autif's prediction that the days of the discount broker are numbered has been described as premature by some commentators. But the statement served well as a reminder that the future of much of the financial services industry is shrouded in uncertainty as the Treasury and FSA push ahead with regulatory reform. Nevertheless, from a pricing perspective, Autif's fore-cast on discount brokers is compelling. Autif is predicting that a combination of the FSA's ...

  • Drawdown level is IFAs' decision

    14 Jun 2001

    I was pleased to see that Nick Bamford (Money Marketing, May 31) has recognised the benefit of our new simple charging structure for drawdown contracts. However his suggestion that we set £250,000 as the minimum entry level is misleading. While in many cases it is advisable to have substantial sums in a drawdown contract, we do not have any minimum contribution levels. As our products are all sold via IFAs, the question of minimum entry levels is one for them to decide. This ...

  • Ethical standards will boost value

    14 Jun 2001

    Adopting the standards set by the new ethical indices FTSE4Good will improve a company's exposure to risk and preserve shareholder value, according to industry experts. The claim comes as FTSE4Good meets on Friday to finalise the qualification and exclusion criteria for its socially respon- sible investment indices ahead of their expected launch this summer. FTSE4Good intends to start with attainable tar-gets for acceptance to the indices but will evolve by tightening ...

  • Ethical VCT first

    14 Jun 2001

    I feel I must drop you a line to correct an inaccuracy in an article in the May 10 issue. It states: 'The launch of the first socially responsible VCT is one option which the fund manager is seriously considering." For the record, Downing Corporate Finance has beaten Friends because we launched the Pennine Downing ethical VCT in the autumn of 1999 as we realised this was an area of the market being overlooked by other venture capital houses. Indeed, we are considering raising ...

  • Exchange fills gap with contracting-out guides

    14 Jun 2001

    Exchange FS is offering IFAs a new contracting-out recommendation guide after the withdrawal of templates by life offices. It believes the guide will fill the gap left by providers which have withdrawn their model recommendations and will help IFAs steer clients through the marginal differences between Serps and contracting out. The guide works on a client-specific basis to assess whether they could benefit or would continue to benefit, from contracting out. The ...

  • Exclusive Connections launches fixed rate loan

    18 Jun 2001

    Mortgage packaging network Exclusive Connections is launching a 5.99 per cent fixed rate loan funded by Bank of Scotland subsidiary The Mortgage Business.

  • Exclusive Connections sets sights on self-cert market

    18 Jun 2001

    Exclusive Connections has introduced the semi exclusive fixed rate mortgage.

  • Financial candidates fail in bid for election

    14 Jun 2001

    All the general election candidates from the financial services industry met with dis- appointment. Rothschild corporate finance adviser Andrew Griffith put up the best fight as Tory candidate for Corby. Labour MP Phil Hope's majority was down by 6.1 per cent on 1997. Equitable Life pensions administrator Philip Cochrane took second place to Labour, as Tory candidate for Stafford. Another Tory candidate, Towers Perrin actuary Julian Leigh was second to Labour's ...

  • Flexible whole life continues to decline

    13 Jun 2001

    Hopes that sales of flexible whole life policies had turned the corner to recovery in 1999 have been dashed this year.

  • Friends Prov launches updated tax planning tool

    15 Jun 2001

    Friends Provident is launching an updated version of its Tax and Pension Planning Service financial planning tool.The new version includes updated carry forward/carry back data, a shortfall calculator for people with personal pensions and an extended help file.Friends Provident technical services manager Frank Dalley says: "This is a great tool for IFAs to help their clients make the most of their pension tax relief opportunities."

  • FSA looks at scrapping PI

    14 Jun 2001

    The FSA is considering scrapping mandatory professional indemnity insurance for IFAs as one option in its Integrated Prudential Sourcebook consultation paper. In the same paper, published this week, it unveils plans which could force intermediaries holding client money and fund managers to increase their reserves and regulatory responsibilities to the levels expected of international banks. Autif warns that the proposals would hit fund managers very hard. The FSA says ...

  • FSA publishes draft mortgage rule book

    15 Jun 2001

    The FSA is publishing the draft of a rulebook to protect consumers when taking out mortgages.

  • FSA reveals its regulation by risk regime

    14 Jun 2001

    The FSA confirmed at this year's PIMS conference that most IFA firms will be in the FSA's lowest-risk category following N2, meaning they will require less attention. After N2, the FSA will bring all IFAs under a new investment firms division and ranked A to D on a risk scale. Firms with a turnover of less than £1.25m or fewer than 20 RIs, which covers most IFAs, will be in the lowest-risk category D of around 7,900 firms. They will only receive regulatory attention ...

  • FSCP welcomes draft mortgage rules

    15 Jun 2001

    The Financial Services Consumer Panel has welcomed the publication of the FSA’s draft rules on mortgage regulation.

  • Gain is Revenue's loss

    14 Jun 2001

    Last week, I looked at the Enterprise Management Incentives scheme, the latest Government tax incentive which is aimed at encouraging wider share ownership. Now let us consider the following example of how the EMI could work. An employee is granted an EMI option over a total of 100,000 shares when the market value is £1 a share. The employee exercises the option two years later when the shares are worth £3 and enjoying a paper gain of £200,000. No income tax ...

  • Gartmore appoints equity finance specialist

    18 Jun 2001

    Gartmore is appointing Alan Hadley as equity finance specialist in its dealing and derivatives team.

  • GE Life hits the headlines

    15 Jun 2001

    GE LIFE HIGH INCOME & GROWTH PLAN VType: Closed ended investment company.Aim: Growth and income linked to the Eurostoxx 50 index.Minimum investment: £7,000.Place of registration: Dublin.Guarantee: Capital will be returned in full at end of term if the final level of the index is at or above the initial level, provided that the Eurostoxx 50 index has not fallen by more than 20 per cent at any point during the term.Yield: Either ...

  • Genesis launches self-cert fixed rate

    14 Jun 2001

    Genesis Home Loans is launching a self-certification mortgage with a rate fixed at 6.99 per cent, after which it reverts to the standard variable rate, currently 7.24 per cent.

  • GMAC builds team in bid to boost lending

    14 Jun 2001

    All-status mortgage lender GMAC RFC is overhauling its management and sales teams in a bid to strengthen its position in the lending and securitisation markets. Following its move earlier this year to boost its presence in the sub-prime sector by slashing rates across its product range, GMAC has made a series of appointments to new positions. Richard Swales joins as director of business planning from Barclays, where he was responsible for the integration of Woolwich into ...

  • Halifax and BoS on target for September merger

    14 Jun 2001

    Halifax and Bank of Scotland expect to merge on September 10 subject to shareholder approval. Bank of Scotland will hold an emergency meeting to consider ratification of the merger on July 24, with Halifax holding its EGM the next day. Shareholders will be sent voting packs next week.The new company will be called HBOS, and will be worth around £28bn.

  • Hargreaves Lansdown publishes Invesco Perpetual review

    14 Jun 2001

    Hargreaves Lansdown has released a review of the Invesco Perpetual fund range, giving guidance on buys and sells in the wake of the merger.Stephen Whittaker’s UK Growth and Rory Powe’s European Growth funds both received hold recommendations, while Trent May’s US Growth fund was given a sell rating.Neil Woodford and Graham Kitchen’s Income funds were the strong buy recommendations within the range.

  • Hedge funds to take central role in investment

    14 Jun 2001

    Hedge funds will become a mainstream force in UK investment and should be regarded as a fourth core asset class, according to Henderson head of marketing Sarah Speake. Speake says: "From the research we have seen, by 2005, hedge funds will represent 14 per cent of funds under management in the UK." The prediction comes as product providers look for ways of lowering the barriers to entry which prevent the common use of hedge funds in the retail market. Speake ...

  • Horlick condemns star fund manager culture

    14 Jun 2001

    SG Asset Management foun-der Nicola Horlick denounced the star fund manager culture this week, claiming a fund's performance can never be attributed to an individual. In an exclusive interview with Money Marketing, SGAM joint managing director Hor-lick said increasingly sophisticated markets make it impossible for one person to be responsible for a fund. She said all funds are now run on a team basis. Horlick, who was recently named the 40th most powerful woman in ...

  • How do we advise clients amid the economic gloom?

    14 Jun 2001

    Years of overvalued sterling and undervalued euros together with a systematic escalation of red tape and stealth taxes on industry have made Britain an unattractive place to make anything. We have a balance of trade and payments deficit and getting worse rapidly to being totally unsustainable. There seems to have been a conspiracy to ignore the implications. These factors and excessive interest rates have increased the demand for sterling holding up against the euro. ...

  • IFA fined £15k in review

    14 Jun 2001

    Leicester IFA The Pearce Murphy Partnership has been fined £15,000 by the PIA for pension misselling. The fine follows an investigation by the pension review monitoring department between September 1999 and February 2000 which identified several failings in the company. Its report cited a failure to correctly exclude cases from the pension review and issue mailings to investors in a timely manner. The PIA also says Pearce Murphy did not have an adequate system for ...

  • IFAP campaign to alert firms on stakeholder

    14 Jun 2001

    IFA Promotion is running a stakeholder marketing campaign to alert directors of small businesses to the risk of an Opra fine for not offering an appropriate pension scheme. The campaign says directors must get advice on what constitutes a stakeholder-compliant scheme or risk a £50,000 Gov-ernment fine if they miss the October 8 deadline. The direct mailshot is being sent out this month to 100,000 directors in the UK. The main aim of the campaign is to raise awareness ...

  • IFP conference in Warwick

    14 Jun 2001

    The Institute of Financial Planning's 2001 conference is taking place at Warwick University on September 20-21 under the theme, Getting it Together. The conference is open to IFP members and non-members. This year's agenda is intended to help financial planners identify the opportunities on offer from working more closely with like-minded partners within the industry. Skandia is the conference's main sponsor and speakers will include regulators, stockbrokers and financial ...

  • IFS latest market maker to join Tep Exchange

    18 Jun 2001

    IFS is the latest market maker to join online trading platform TEP

  • Independent closes to new business

    14 Jun 2001

    General insurer Independent Insurance has stopped trading as its reinsurance provision and the scale of its liabilities has been put into question.

  • Independent View by Donna Bradshaw

    14 Jun 2001

    The jury is still out over the recent news of the launch of Advice First, Aifa and IFA Promotion's joint marketing initiative. Perhaps it is a case of "same old" but then again it may be a positive step forward, if somewhat overdue. However, a great deal rests on it coming up with a winning marketing strategy and then IFAP implementing it. I do not think there has ever been as great a need as now to get the message across to the consumer about the difference ...

  • Inside Edge by Jim Gaskin

    14 Jun 2001

    It appears to me that in the majority of cases there are two main issues affecting an IFA's use of technology - time and money. This view is borne out of many discussions I have had with IFAs over the years but more recently optimum use of technology has become the must-have for IFAs. A comment at one of our recent conferences from IFA Arthur Beverly of Arthur Beverly Financial Management sums it up particularly well. He said: "The bottom line is money. IFAs have to ...

  • Inter-Alliance in revamp of MyNetWorth

    14 Jun 2001

    National IFA Inter-Alliance is relaunching its MyNetWorth wealth management service as part of its continuing programme of improvements. The IFA says MyNetWorth, designed to give clients one central online point where they can access up-to-date information on all their personal finances, has been revamped to increase the speed and efficiency of the service. The first phase of ongoing improvements has been completed to offer improved functionality and faster download speeds. ...

  • Investment view

    14 Jun 2001

    It was hard work - but then it always was in the past. A two-year absence from the premier retail financial services conference had made me expectant and potentially critical on the likely out-turn of events. Expectant, because I had never before travelled on the Oriana. Potentially critical, because of the way in which more people to whom I talked in the financial services industry were questioning the value of conferences such as this. I returned to Southampton little wiser on the benefits ...

  • Ipswich BS nets fixed rate

    19 Jun 2001

    Ipswich Building Society has introduced a three-year fixed rate mortgage that is available for loans of up to 80 per cent of valuation. The mortgage has a fixed rate of 5.75 per cent until October 31, 2004. Borrowers who redeem the mortgage during the fixed rate period must pay 2.5 per cent of the original advance. Interest is calculated on a daily basis and there is an application fee of £295. Figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders show that borrowers are ...

  • Johnson moved to DTI

    13 Jun 2001

    Former Economic Secretary Melanie Johnson has been moved to the Department of Trade and Industry. As parliamentary secretary, Melanie Johnson will have responsibility for consumer affairs, although her full brief is yet to been announced.

  • Johnson's DTI role defined

    15 Jun 2001

    IFAs will continue to feel heat of Melanie Johnson’s stare after her move to the Department of Trade and Industry.

  • JPMorgan Fleming Asset Management - Investment Trust Personal Pension Account

    13 Jun 2001

    Wednesday, 13 June 2001.

  • JPMorgan Fleming puts trust in pension

    13 Jun 2001

    JPMORGAN FLEMING ASSET MANAGEMENTINVESTMENT TRUST PERSONAL PENSION ACCOUNTType: Individual personal pension.Minimum premium: Lump sum £1,000, monthly £100.Minimum-maximum ages: From birth-74.Fund links: Cash fund, Fleming managed growth, Fleming claverhouse and Fleming overseas.Charges: None.Allocation rates: 100 per cent.Minimum term: One month.Options: Income drawdown.Commission: Initial up ...

  • Julian Gibbs

    14 Jun 2001

    Most IFAs are frightened of Enterprise Investment Schemes and, in many cases, quite rightly. But there are some excellent asset-backed schemes in growth areas which all IFAs should consider as part of a portfolio for their bigger clients. They do have two major taxation advantages over venture capital trusts. Like VCTs, they have 20 per cent income tax relief, capital gains tax deferral and tax-free capital gains. But, unlike VCTs, if you lose money on your investment, you can ...

  • Lawyer warns network members over renewal commission clause

    14 Jun 2001

    IFA network Berkeley Wodehouse Associates is being accused of rendering its members' firms worthless by including clauses in their contracts giving the network ownership of renewal commission. ProAct legal partner Gareth Fatchett is writing to all 200 Berkeley Wodehouse network members, alerting them to clauses in their contracts which he argues ringfences commission to the network if a member decides to leave, close their business, retire or has their contract terminated. Fatchett ...

  • Leonard Cheshire selects healthcare cash plan provider

    18 Jun 2001

    The Hospital Saturday Fund has been chosen as health cash plan provider to voluntary sector service provider Leonard Cheshire. Leonard Cheshire has 7,500 staff in 140 locations across the UK. Leonard Cheshire contributes towards the plan which includes opticians’ fees, dental treatment, cash for time spent in hospital and towards alternative treatments. Employees are able to top up benefits through additional contributions. 

  • Less than special delivery

    14 Jun 2001

    Skandia's decision to introduce a higher commission level for IFAs who choose to submit Isa business electronically to its Multi-Fund Shop is a positive and entirely appropriate step in the advancement of electronic trading. It is widely known that the initiatives in the life and pension arena that are proving most successful are those that recognise the need to contribute towards the very real investment IFAs are having to make in technology or in providing something extra ...

  • LIA critical of ABI in response to Euro Saltr probe

    14 Jun 2001

    The European Commission is investigating the ABI's Raising Standards initiative to ensure it does not violate its competition rules. The Commission Directorate General for Competition is writing to a number of trade associations to ask a range of questions focusing on how much they have been included in the ABI's consultation process. The letter asks the trade bodies what share of the UK retail savings and protection market their members make up and when it was ...

  • Link-up gives IFAs online access to Healthcare 4 Life

    14 Jun 2001

    Private medical insurer Healthcare 4 Life is to begin actively marketing its group and individual private medical insurance products to IFAs through the Mediquote quotation portal. The move will allow IFAs to access its product range online for the first time. The healthcare provider, which launched last August, offers a range of group and individual PMI plans which feature non-age-related premiums. Policyholders will only see their premiums increase due to medical inflation ...

  • Lore of averages

    14 Jun 2001

    Could you give me some advice over the level of pension saving I should be making and what life cover I should take out? "Mr Average" client sometimes asks what is the average pension contribution and level of life cover they should put in place. The usual answer we give is that there is no such thing as an average and they should tailor plans to their own circumstances and requirements. What they are really looking for is reassurance that they are among the majority ...

  • Milk the system for every penny

    14 Jun 2001

    It comes as no surprise to read that life companies have thrown in the towel as far as providing any sort of mean-ingful guidance on contracting out is concerned. The combination of assump-tions about what the future may hold is such a dog's breakfast (thanks to the Government's usual incessant tinkering) that they all came up with different answers anyway. Even the PIA does not have a clue as to how they might structure a review of past advice to contract out (thank ...

  • Minor problem with hot potato of Pet plan

    14 Jun 2001

    So, stakeholder pensions are now with us. No doubt there will be many teething problems, even in the simple situation of someone wanting to effect a stakeholder pension scheme for their own benefit. What of the well publicised situation of effecting a stakeholder pension scheme on behalf of someone else, specifically a minor? We have heard of estimated pension funds at age 50 (the earliest age at which benefits can normally be drawn under a stakeholder pension scheme) ...

  • Misys buys DBS in £75m deal

    19 Jun 2001

    The largest IFA network Misys has reached an agreement to buy rival network DBS Management valued at £75m with the acceptance of DBS directors.

  • Moore's code

    14 Jun 2001

    Looking at the Government's record, like it or not, historians are likely to see Gordon Brown as one of this country's greatest chancellors in terms of economic stewardship. But the stable, low interest rate environment he and Bank of England governor Eddie George have created comes at a price, as those who save as opposed to borrow are learning. This means that if people's savings are to get anywhere close to where they need to be, the 1 per cent charging world ...

  • Morley appoints new SRI team member

    13 Jun 2001

    Morley Fund Management is appointing Julian Murray to its socially responsible investment team to take responibility for the management of the Norwich Union Sustainable Future Global Growth Fund.

  • Mortgage firms aghast as FSA goes ahead with red tape plan

    14 Jun 2001

    The FSA is set to stun the mortgage industry this week by pressing ahead with proposals which force lenders to monitor the product information given to borrowers. Despite industry warnings that the move could be an admin nightmare which may eventually push brokers out of the mortgage market, the FSA has confirmed that lenders will be forced to ensure borrowers get the correct product documentation. The industry had expected the FSA's proposals to be overhauled radically ...

  • Mortgage Next adds to growing buy-to-let market

    15 Jun 2001

    Mortgage Next has joined forces with Mortgage Express to introduce the buy-to-let five-year fixed mortgage.

  • Mortgage Next brings out new fixed rate

    18 Jun 2001

    Mortgage Next has teamed up with Bristol & West to introduce the fixed rate fee saver mortgage.

  • Myners backing the IFAs' battle

    14 Jun 2001

    Gartmore chairman Paul Myners came out fighting for IFAs and against depolarisation this week following an adviser's protest over his comments about the with-profits market in the Myners report. The adviser's comments, which accused Myners of insinuating that IFAs select with-profits products on the back of commission bias, were put to Myners in a letter to the panel at the Skandia Pathfinder conference in London on Monday. It read: "Paul Myners has insulted and ...

  • Networks offer deals to lure Pru sales staff

    14 Jun 2001

    At least two IFA networks are offering ex-Prudential sales staff special deals in a bid to woo them away from national IFA Inter-Alliance. Letters obtained by Money Marketing reveal that Bankhall and Positive Solutions have negotiated reduced network rates for Pru employees who were made redundant last month following the company's decision to close its direct-sales arm. The networks' packages are designed to give salespeople alternatives to joining Inter-Alliance ...

  • New Members for Pensions Management Institute Council

    19 Jun 2001

    The Pensions Management Institute is appointing four new members to its council.The new PMI council members are Pinset Curtis Biddle partner Susan Andrews, Escher Group UK marketing director Stephen Delo, Kier Group director of group services Annette Sale and Law Debenture Pension Trust Corporation director Robert Thompson.The new members will take up their appointments at the PMI's annual general meeting on July 12.

  • New offshore brokerage launched by Internaxx

    19 Jun 2001

    TD Waterhouse and Banque Generale du Luxembourg are launching a share dealing service for international affluent and offshore investors.

  • Northern Rock makes connections

    13 Jun 2001

    Northern Rock has introduced together connections 90 per cent, a flexible mortgage that tracks the Bank of England base rate for four years.

  • Opportunity amid the upheaval

    14 Jun 2001

    The shadow of stakeholder's charging cap is being cast far and wide over financial advice. What was once bread and butter business before stakehol-der is thought to be heading for a crash commission diet. But the outlook for IFAs is by no means all doom and gloom. The corporate pensions market is clearly set for take-off with employers scrambling to review their pension arrangement before the October 8 deadline. Even if the employer is simply seeking reassurance that ...

  • Outside Edge by Robert Reid

    14 Jun 2001

    The significance of the FSA review into with-profits cannot be overstated. In the past, disparities associated with the way that with-profits funds are managed have been masked by high rates of return. But in the current lower-return environment, the flaws have become apparent. The review is considering four specific areas where the existing framework is weak and has invited abuse: l The amount of discretion managers have on the overall management of the fund ...

  • Overwhelming vote for Friends to demutualise

    14 Jun 2001

    Friends Provident has become the latest mutual to get the go-ahead to demutualise after members voted massively in favour of its flotation proposal. The life office is set to float on the Stock Exchange on July 9. Each member will be given at least 200 shares which could be worth between £470 and £540 on float. It is expecting only a small proportion to cash in their shares immediately. The life office is looking for a big share of the stakeholder market but ...

  • Owners review Willis Nat

    14 Jun 2001

    Abbey National and Willis Group are believed to be reviewing their shareholdings in national IFA Willis National which has around 120 registered individuals in 20 offices. It is understood that Abbey Nat, which owns 49 per cent of Willis National, is considering selling to focus on developing its Inscape wealth management service and subsidiary Cater Allen private bank. Willis Group, the international risk management, insurance and financial consultancy which floated ...

  • Paymentshield - FreeFirst

    13 Jun 2001

    Wednesday, 13 June 2001. Type: Cafeteria style protection product covering accident, sickness and unemployment cover, life cover, critical illness cover and buildings and contents insurance. ASU MORTGAGE PROTECTION PLANS Maximum benefit: £1,500 or 65 per cent of salary whichever is less. Benefit payment term: 12 months. Deferred period: 30 or 60 days. Premium: 30 day deferred period - £3.95 per £100 of cover, ...

  • Paymentshield frees up protection menu

    13 Jun 2001

    Paymentshield has introduced FreeFirst, a menu-style protection plan that has three parts — accident, sickness and unemployment (ASU) cover, life & critical illness cover and buildings & contents insurance.

  • PFSM helps to gift a stakeholder

    13 Jun 2001

    Punter Southall Financial Management (PSFM) is entering the pensions market for the first time with the introduction of the gift a stakeholder pension.

  • Pink Home Loans - Exclusive Self Cert 5.98 Per Cent Fixed

    18 Jun 2001

    Monday, 18 June 2001.

  • Platform focuses on increasing adverse credit market

    19 Jun 2001

    Specialist adverse credit lender Platform Home Loans has brought in a new fixed rate mortgage for this sector of the market.

  • Portfolio Fund Management appoints sales manager

    13 Jun 2001

    Portfolio Fund Management has appointed Ashley Busby as its new sales manager for the south of England.Busby joins from Perpetual where he was an account manager. In his new position, he will be responsible for expanding the company’s IFA links in the South.

  • Pricing and discounting

    14 Jun 2001

    At this year's PIMS conference, Autif chaired a session called, The Polarisation Debate. As the title suggests, the aim was to find out the range and type of views held on the likely implications of depolarisation. There are many ifs, largely because none of us yet knows the extent to which the market will be depolarised. It is not an issue that can be considered in isolation as, for example, disclosure is another hot topic that is inextricably related to it. The article ...

  • Product Matters

    14 Jun 2001

    Yorkshire Building Society is considering making a radical change to the way in which it pays procuration fees to mortgage introducers. Instead of the fee being paid in full on completion, Yorkshire proposes to reduce that amount and then pay smaller payments for each year the borrower remains with Yorkshire. The move is obviously designed to assist the lender in the retention of existing borrowers and to try to reduce the number of borrowers who switch every couple of ...

  • Proximity is no guarantee

    14 Jun 2001

    Julian Stevens complains about his Friends Provident "broker consultant" being 160 miles away in Manchester but that is close compared with most of mine. They include Scottish Widows (Edinburgh), Scottish Provident (Reading), Prudential (Reading), Clerical Medical (Bristol), Legal & General (Cardiff), Norwich Union (Sheffield), NPI (Cardiff) and Axa Sun Life (Heaven knows). Proximity per se is no guar-antee of service as my Friends' broker consultant would not travel ...

  • Quarter of brokers may miss deadline

    14 Jun 2001

    The Mortgage Board is warning that more than a quarter of mortgage brokers are in danger of missing the deadline to get qualifications which allow them to continue advising. The warning comes as IFAs say the Chartered Insurance Institute is being "grossly unfair" in giving its own mortgage advice qualification priority over the Chartered Institute of Bankers' certificate in mortgage advice and practice. The MCCB says time is running out for the 10,000 brokers yet to ...

  • R&SA Investments Luxembourg appoints Iberian sales director

    13 Jun 2001

    Royal & Sun Alliance Investments Luxembourg is appointing Victoria Huerta as sales director, retail and institutional funds for Spain.

  • Rapid rise in demand for advice

    14 Jun 2001

    Demand for financial advice is growing rapidly, with a quarter of people saying they are more in need of it now than a year ago, according to research by the Henley Centre. The findings of the res-earch among 1,000 people, revealed at the Skandia Path-finder Forum this week, also show that 27 per cent of those asked were more likely to pay for professional advice than a year ago, with a particular increase among younger women from lower socio-economic groups. Henley Centre ...

  • Revenue tax switch gives boost to offshore bonds

    14 Jun 2001

    The Inland Revenue's decision to change the way offshore bonds are taxed makes them more attractive than onshore bonds, says Scottish Life International. The claim follows the Revenue's disagreement with Eurolife's interpretation of tax rules, requiring tax on high-income bonds be levied on an income tax basis rather than a capital gains tax basis. Taxing on an income basis means investors will miss out on two CGT advantages - use of indexation relief and the ...

  • RLAM boosts overseas team

    14 Jun 2001

    The first product covers critical-illness plans, the second covers death and terminal illness, the third is for death, terminal illness and total permanent disability and the fourth product is for death, terminal illness and criticalillness cover.

  • Ruth Kelly takes over financial services role

    14 Jun 2001

    The DSS has been replaced by the Department of Work and Pensions as part of a shake-up of the Government by Tony Blair following his second landslide victory. As tipped by Money Marketing, Ruth Kelly has been appointed Treasury economic secretary, the position responsible for financial services. Former incumbent Melanie Johnson has been moved to Parliamentary Secretary at the DTI with responsibility for consumer issues. Kelly is a former Bank of England official and Guardian ...

  • Schroders recruits Ide from MLIM for Euro role

    14 Jun 2001

    Schroders has recruited Merrill Lynch Investment Managers managing director Julian Ide to head its European retail operations. Ide, who is set to take up his new position in August, was managing director and head of distributor sales and wholesaling at MLIM, where he has worked for nine years. In his new position as managing director of business development for European retail, he will be res-ponsible for sales of Schroders' Luxemburg-based Sicav products out of its ...

  • Scot Prov members say yes to Abbey

    15 Jun 2001

    Scottish Provident members voted yes to plans to demutualise and transfer business to Abbey National at yesterday's extraordinary general meeting.

  • ScotProv in Abbey takeover vote

    14 Jun 2001

    Scottish Provident members will be asked to vote at an extraordinary general meeting today to decide whether to accept Abbey National's £2.1bn takeover bid.

  • SFO to look into Independent

    19 Jun 2001

    The FSA has asked the Serious Fraud Office to look at the events leading up to the closure of general insurer Independent Insurance, after it went into liquidation yesterday.

  • Skandia leads defence of performance

    14 Jun 2001

    Skandia plans to lead a coun-ter-attack on the FSA's position that past performance is no guide to the future after a sca-thing attack on the regulator. Speaking at the Skandia Pathfinder conference, director of investments Jim Roberts said the life office would be writing to the FSA with evidence to prove past performance is a guide. He attacked the FSA for changing its position on past performance last summer, accusing it of misinterpreting its own research. In ...

  • Skipton follows the base rate route

    14 Jun 2001

    Skipton Building Society has brought in the base rate tracker mortgage.

  • SLCAM gives green light for Oeic conversion

    19 Jun 2001

    SLC Asset Management subsidiary Sun Life of Canada Unit Managers has gained overwhelming approval for the conversion of 10 of its unit trusts into Oeic sub-funds.

  • SLI global chief Hay is joining Aegon as CIO

    14 Jun 2001

    Aegon Asset Management UK has appointed Wendy Hay as chief investment officer in charge of fund management and research. Hay, 39, who is joining from Standard Life Investments, will be based at Aegon's head office in Edinburgh. She will lead a team of 70 investment professionals reporting to managing director Russell Hogan. Hogan continues as CIO until Hay joins later this year. Aegon says Hay will be expected to play a key part in expanding Aegon Asset Management's ...

  • Smithson Mason Financial Services appoints account executives

    19 Jun 2001

    Smithson Mason Financial Services is appointing two new account executives, Phil Dixon and Carol Clift, who will both specialise in investment advice and retirement seminars.Dixon spent 14 years with Prudential rising to the position of senior financial consultant. Clift has 14 years experience in financial services and joins from Royal Bank of Scotland where she was a financial consultant. 

  • SocGen looks across the Atlantic

    14 Jun 2001

    SocGen Asset Management is going stateside with the SocGen American growth fund.

  • Societe Generale - SocGen American Growth Unit Trust

    13 Jun 2001

    Wednesday, 13 June 2001. Type: Unit trust. Aim: Growth by investing in quoted US companies. Minimum investment: Lump sum £1,000, monthly £50. Investment split: US 88 per cent, Canada 2 per cent, futures 7 per cent, cash 3 per cent. Isa link: Yes. Pep transfers: Yes. Charges: Initial 5.25 per cent, annual 1.5 per cent. Commission: Initial 3 per cent, Isas and Pep transfers renewal 0.5 per cent. Tel: 0808 ...

  • Son of Myners inquiry head announced

    18 Jun 2001

    The Treasury has announced Ron Sandler will be the man to head the "son of Myners" inquiry looking at the long term savings industry.

  • Standard all-clear for 98% on endowments

    14 Jun 2001

    Standard Life has issued alm-ost 98 per cent of its mortgage endowment customers with green "all-clear" letters amid increasing numbers of life offices admitting shortfalls. The latest Money Marketing Focus survey reveals what percentage of policyholders have received green and red endowment shortfall letters. Life offices issuing mainly green letters include NPI (99.14 per cent), NFU Mutual (94.7 per cent), CIS (92 per cent) and Britannic (81 per cent). Those sending ...

  • Superstars' IFA buys rival

    15 Jun 2001

    Sports star specialist IFA Kingsbridge Holdings has bought local rival Benson McGarvey in a deal worth £13.5m in cash and shares.Kingsbridge has now purchased five firms since it was launched on Aim last July. Kingsbridge includes football stars Andy Cole, David O'Leary and David Ginola as well as golfer Lee Westwood as clients. 

  • Surge in protection plan complaints

    14 Jun 2001

    Rocketing numbers of borrowers are complaining to the Financial Ombudsman Service over being sold inappropriate loan payment protection policies by direct agents of product providers. The FOS is concerned that direct-sales staff of banks and building societies have "little or no knowledge" of the insurance policies they are selling to borrowers after seeing a 20 per cent increase in complaints since last year. It says borrowers may be under the false impression that they ...

  • Swimming with the multi-tied

    14 Jun 2001

    Survival will require a hard-headed acceptance of the world as it is rather than wishing for the world of polarisation that is shortly to be swept away by a new tidal wave of legislation. The concept of polarisation came about as a result of the new system of regulation introduced by the original Financial Services Bill in the late 1980s. It meant that companies and the people employed by them to sell and advise on insurance and investment products had to represent either one ...

  • The commission mission is to show the low points

    14 Jun 2001

    Consumers think commission is too high, according to the Financial Services Consumer Panel, while many IFAs argue commission on some products is too low. These views are not irreconcilable. To deal with consumers first. In stark monetary terms, commission can take a sizeable chunk out of a product. In advisers' defence, distribution is a necessary cost, not an optional extra.IFAs suffer partly because this cost is more visible than in other industries. As ...

  • The Daley Update

    14 Jun 2001

    M&G UK Retail has appointed Gary Shaughnessy as chief executive and Phil Wagstaff as managing director. Shaughnessy steps up from retail director of marketing while Wagstaff is promoted from deputy managing director.u The British Venture Capital Association has appointed Duke Street Capital chief executive Edmund Truell as chairman. He takes over from Friends Ivory & Sime Private Equity chief executive David Thorp. Truell was previously BVCA investor relations committee chairman. Rothschild ...

  • The ins and outs of contracting

    14 Jun 2001

    Contracting out is a risky business these days. So too is contracting in and remaining in Serps or its replacement, the state second pension. But there are things we can do that will help customers to understand the risks they face. Re-educating them will be an important first step, particularly if they have been contracted out before. If this is the case, the chances are that the advice they were given was along the lines of "provided you are below the pivotal age, most experts ...

  • The mane event

    14 Jun 2001

    If one of your colleagues came in to work on Thurs-day growling like a lion, chances are they were at this year's PIMS event. If your colleague came in to work with bags under their eyes, raging hangovers and a vague recollection of making a business deal at 3am in the ship's disco, they were definitely among the 500 delegates on board. The closing address of the conference was delivered by South African management guru Ian Thomas, a former game ranger who spent ...

  • The name of the game

    14 Jun 2001

    Chase Fleming recently changed its name to JP Morgan Fleming and decided to ditch its Save & Prosper brand. Do you believe what has been its second rebranding in less than a year will be detrimental to the group? Attree: Undoubtedly, in the short term, it will have a detrimental effect as investors will have no recognition of the new name. The Save & Prosper brand was well respected by IFAs and their clients. But we believe this will only be a short-term effect as the ...

  • The New Advisers

    14 Jun 2001

    This new section has one intention - to advise IFAs on how they can establish some control over the destiny of their own businesses. As the regulator, Government and even providers rewrite the rules of the game, it will try and help advisers learn how to play by them and hopefully make some money in the process. As the son of Surviving Stakeholder, it will try to move beyond the threat from one quarter and perhaps strike a more optimistic note. IFAs should be in no doubt ...

  • The Toisa and the share

    14 Jun 2001

    An estimated £21bn will come on to the market this year from maturing Tessas. At least 2.3 million investors could potentially transfer into a Tessa-only Isa. This is a huge market, yet many advisers are missing out on the opportunity. IFA clients who have Tessas should be made aware that they are not necessarily getting the best follow-on product from their current provider. IFAs can add value to the investment process even in the Tessa market by providing quality advice. Tessas ...

  • The Toisa and the share

    14 Jun 2001

    An estimated £21bn will come on to the market this year from maturing Tessas. At least 2.3 million investors could potentially transfer into a Tessa-only Isa. This is a huge market, yet many advisers are missing out on the opportunity. IFA clients who have Tessas should be made aware that they are not necessarily getting the best follow-on product from their current provider. IFAs can add value to the investment process even in the Tessa market by providing qual-ity advice. Tessas ...

  • The trend is nigh

    14 Jun 2001

    This is a tricky time for investors. Returns from equities have been disappointing over the past year despite the fact that markets have bounced from their March 2001 lows. Equally, cautious investors who have retained their funds in cash have seen returns eroded by significant falls in interest rates. Unless you have been nimble enough to spot the rise in the gold price, it has been very difficult to make money from the markets. Even property is now showing signs of peaking, ...

  • Townends in Scottish Amicable Life tie up

    19 Jun 2001

    Townends Group estate agents is entering into a partnership with Scottish Amicable Life that will see its Dot Financial Services arm offering Scottish Amicable products.

  • Towry Law launches extranet website for employers

    15 Jun 2001

    Towry Law is launching an interactive website which will allow employers to offer employees a full support service of information, financial advisory services and transactions through an extranet link.

  • Towry Law launches new website for employers

    18 Jun 2001

    Towry Law is launching a new interactive website for employers to give staff financial information, advisory services and buy products on-line.

  • Two year discounted rate from Standard Life Bank

    13 Jun 2001

    Standard Life Bank is launching a version of its Freestyle mortgage, offering a discount rate of 4.9 per cent for the first two years, after which it reverts to the product's variable rate, currently 6.9 per cent.

  • Wearing of the green

    14 Jun 2001

    JB writes: I have an increasingly difficult relationship with one of my work colleagues and it is getting to the point where I dread meeting him in the office. We both started at the same time and used to be friendly. When I had a really good month recently, he made my life very awkward. What can I do? At a practical level, I suggest you speak to him and find out what the issue is although he may not have conscious access to it. From what you have said, it could be as simple as ...

  • Will lenders follow lead of trailblazer Yorkshire?

    14 Jun 2001

    Yorkshire Building Society's pledge to introduce trail commission has reignited industry debate about how IFAs should be paid for selling mortgages. The society is the first lender to stick its neck out and make a concrete promise to introduce renewal fees in a bid to retain mortgage business. The obvious question for IFAs is what other lenders intend to do. Not for the first time, a herd mentality has taken hold and the industry is seeing a raft of responses from ...

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