Money Marketing
13 May 2009

3A sticking with liquid strategy

14 May 2009

Fund of hedge funds manager 3A has invested 10 per cent of its Altin fund in new equity long/short and global macro positions.
3I writes down £47m on Bestinvest

14 May 2009

Private equity firm 3i has revealed a £47m writedown on its holding in Bestinvest.
85,000 Will need to swot to reach level-four target

14 May 2009

Around 85,000 people across financial services will need to undertake further study to reach the level-four requirements set under the RDR, says the IFP.
90% Of Sipp investors think they can beat fund managers

14 May 2009

Nine out of 10 Sipp investors believe they can outperform professional fund managers, according to research by Barclays Stockbrokers.
A sense of values

14 May 2009

Recession, continuing depression in the property market and deflation/inflation threats are all causing us to reconsider our attitude to money.
A simple Sipp choice from Ascentric

15 May 2009

AscentricAscentric Pension Account 
A solution on rentback

14 May 2009

I refer to the news story headed, Beaumont sets up sale and rentback firm (Money Marketing, May 7) and the observation made by Dean Mirfin that: "There is still great concern that people could be in a position where they have to decide about sale and rentback very quickly while in a very difficult situation."
A split verdict

18 May 2009

Industry experts say split-caps could return to the fore as high earners look to shield themselves from the high income tax sting unleashed in the Budget.
Aberdeen to acquire Credit Suisse’s multi-manager arm

15 May 2009

Aberdeen is to acquire Credit Suisse’s multi-manager business, Money Marketing can reveal.
Administration for Premier Network

14 May 2009

Premier Network Group is going into administration amid claims from appointed reps that it owes them renewal commission and proc fees. PNG closed to new business on February 16.
Adviser Fund Index: Recovery position

14 May 2009

Despite the equity rally which began in March, investors remain divided on the direction of the stockmarkets in 2009.
Advisers say consumers will not be better off under RDR

14 May 2009

Research from Pinsent Masons law firm has found that 65 per cent of senior executives who work in distribution do not believe that consumers will be better off when the Retail Distribution Review changes come in.
Aegon posts £18m Q1 loss across group

14 May 2009

Aegon has posted an £18m pre-tax loss across the group in the first quarter.
Aifa wants closer look at splitting regulation

14 May 2009

An atomised approach to regulation, with a number of industry regulators reporting to a college of supervisors, could prove beneficial, says the Association of Independent Financial Advisers.
Aifa wants to reward advisers who use law of agency principle

14 May 2009

The Association of Independent Financial Advisers is calling for the "law of agency" to apply under the retail distribution review, with regulatory dividends for advisers who act on behalf of their clients.
AIG Life in fund distribution

14 May 2009

AIG Life is paying out £100m, or just over 5 per cent, to investors in its protected recovery fund on June 6.
Analysis: Africa suffers 'grave' hit

15 May 2009
Analysis: Germans allow banks to go bad

14 May 2009
Annuity rates start to stabilise

14 May 2009

Advisers have expressed relief that annuity rates finally seem to be stabilising after months of cuts by providers.
Arc builds growth through bricks & mortar

15 May 2009

Arc Capital & Income has established a structured product which allows investors to make money if house prices rise or fall over the next six years.
ASA studying MoneySense ad campaign

14 May 2009

The Advertising Standards Authority has launched a formal investigation into NatWest's MoneySense adverts, focusing on its claims of "impartiality".
Avery to be non-exec at Openwork

14 May 2009

Openwork has appointed former Legal & General director Kate Avery as a non-executive director.
Aviva adding standalone Sipp

14 May 2009

Aviva is launching a standalone Sipp in the summer, coinciding with the relaunch of its wrap to new business.
Aviva aims to fill adviser gap

14 May 2009

Aviva claims it is not stepping on IFAs' toes by chasing 1.4 million "orphan" clients and building up an in-house distribution channel in anticipation of the RDR slashing adviser numbers.
Axa Distribution Services appoints head of financial planning

15 May 2009

Axa Distribution Services has announced the appointment of Mark Wilkinson as head of financial planning.
Axa offers family Sipp

14 May 2009

Axa has launched a pooled Sipp to allow families or business partners to invest together.
Bank of England laments its lack of power over bank rescues

19 May 2009

Bank of England governor Mervyn King and chairman Sir John Parker have used their annual report to raise concerns once again over the Bank’s lack of power to trigger the Special Resolution Regime.
Banks lead FTSE higher

19 May 2009

The FTSE 100 opened at 4,468 with equities pushing higher on the back of robust earnings announcements.
Barclays approached over possible BGI sale

15 May 2009
Barclays confirms bidders for BGI sale

15 May 2009

Barclays has confirmed it has received a number of expressions of interest from third parties over the sale of its asset management division Barclays Global Investors.
Barclays deal talks lift banks higher

15 May 2009

The FTSE 100 opened higher this morning at 4,385 and continued to fare well on the back of gains made in the banking sector.
Barings winds up multi-manager range

18 May 2009
Blame culture won’t help us, says Ami

13 May 2009

The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries has warned that a culture of blame will not help the mortgage industry.
Brimecome taking over from Treves

14 May 2009

Equitable Life chairman Vanni Treves will be retiring later this year after eight years in the role. He will be succeeded by non-executive director Ian Brimecome.
Britain 'set for weak recovery'

14 May 2009
Broker Talkback

14 May 2009

Do you think banks are capable of delivering impartial money guidance?No 88%Yes 12%
Buy-to-let continues to struggle, says CML

15 May 2009

The UK buy-to-let market continued to struggle in the first quarter of 2009 as funding restrictions and falling house prices took hold, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.
Buy-to-let RMBS arrears rocket

13 May 2009

UK buy-to-let delinquencies on mortgage backed securities increased significantly during Q1 2009, according to Moody's Investors Service.
Cavendish launches five equity funds

19 May 2009

Cavendish Asset Management is launching five new equity funds.
Cavendish to launch five funds

19 May 2009

Cavendish Asset Management has announced the launch of five equity funds.
China shows signs of recovery

14 May 2009
Clarkson Hill posts £669K loss

14 May 2009

IFA Clarkson Hill has posted a £669,000 pre-tax loss for the 17 months to December 31 2008 due to “extreme economic conditions.”
CML to revise ‘pessimistic’ 2009 repossession figures

15 May 2009

The Council of Mortgage Lenders says it will reconsider what it considers to now be a “pessimistic” figure of 75,000 repossessions in 2009.
Commodity comeback

14 May 2009

The commodity boom does not appear to be over and some believe that the falls in the autumn were simply a breather before entering round two of the bull run. Lately, the price of industrial metals has been creeping back up while recovery has been seen in numerous commodity-related stocks.
Conditional surrender

14 May 2009

I have got a with-profits endowment that has been performing poorly of late. Should I surrender it?
Cooperative doesn't live up to its name

14 May 2009

As an adviser in this age of great enlightenment of the RDR, transparency, CAR , TCF, it is a shock to be swiftly transported back to the 1970s when asking for an open market option from the Cooperative Insurance Company which just seems to want to hang on to the money to the bitter end.
Course for complaint

14 May 2009

Complaint handling features highly on the FSA's list of priorities under its treating customers fairly review. The FSA has made it clear it will focus supervisory efforts on identifying firms that have failed to establish appropriate complaint-handling standards.
Coventry Building Society - 3.99% Three-Year Fixed

15 May 2009

Coventry Building Society3.99% Three-Year Fixed
Coventry Building Society - 4.49% Five-Year Fixed

15 May 2009

Coventry Building Society4.49% Five-Year Fixed
Darling duds of may

14 May 2009

Will the Budget announcement of a 50 per cent tax rate for earnings over £150,000 see an increase in interest in offshore bonds?
Db-x to launch fixed-income ETFs in UK

15 May 2009
Deptford joins Smith & Williamson

18 May 2009
Dividend pension shock

14 May 2009

Companies which pay dividends face having to contribute to the firm's pension scheme under new rules set out by the Pensions Regulator last week.
Don't shake up governance overall just to rein in banks

14 May 2009

The FSA's calls for "a radical overhaul" of individuals conducting governance within financial companies should be restricted to the banking sector, says Beachcroft Regulatory Consulting managing director Richard Hobbs.
Downsizing is on the up

14 May 2009

Almost a quarter of adults would downsize or release equity from their property to fund their retirement, according to research from Friends Provident.
Educate, don't regulate

14 May 2009

Last time out, I suggested here that retail financial services regulation should be wound down and the money saved be spent educating consumers.
European funds see strong inflows

13 May 2009
European recovery to be gradual, says IMF

15 May 2009
Evaluate Technologies snaps up Network Data sourcing business

13 May 2009

Evaluate Technologies has acquired mortgageLinked, Network Data’s mortgage sourcing business.
F&C proposes Oeic rationalisations

19 May 2009
F&C unveils fund rationalisation plans

19 May 2009

F&C has unveiled proposals to merge eight of its funds into other portfolios run by the asset manager.
Fees or bust

14 May 2009

The news that Marks & Spencer has dropped its differential pricing on bigger bras got me thinking, after all, the idea of prices based on the item and not its contents (build contents that is) takes me to the most important part of the move to fees.
Fidelity redesigns platform website

14 May 2009

Fidelity FundsNetwork has revamped the platform's website and launched a range of new fund tools.
Fidelity’s Shah expects to see market correction

13 May 2009

Fidelity UK special situations manager Sanjeev Shah believes that the market is likely to see a correction in the next few weeks.
First impressions

14 May 2009

First State hardly fits the usual boutique template as the fund management arm of the huge Commonwealth Bank of Australia but it meets many of the criteria for its UK operation, even slimming down a comprehensive fund range in 2003 to focus on its Asia and emerging market expertise.
First State Investments - Global Emerging Markets Sustainability Fund

15 May 2009

First State InvestmentsGlobal Emerging Markets Sustainability Fund
First State Investments - Latin America Fund

15 May 2009

First State InvestmentsLatin America Fund
Former Arc CEO Rowe retires

14 May 2009

Former chief executive of Arc group Christopher Rowe has retired.
Former New Star CIO Alan Miller launches new firm

18 May 2009

Former New Star chief investment officer Alan Miller has unveiled his new business venture that he says will look to revolutionize the private client wealth management industry.
Friends' Matthews attacks Aviva's grim IFA forecast

14 May 2009

Friends Provident chief executive Trevor Matthews believes Aviva’s claim that IFA numbers will halve as a result of the retail distribution review is “far too exaggerated”.
Friends' Matthews lambasts "insatiable" life sector

14 May 2009

Friends Provident chief executive Trevor Matthews has hit out at the life sector for its “insatiable” appetite for new business in recent years.
Friends restructures £322m of debt in bond swap

18 May 2009

Friends Provident has managed to restructure £322m worth of debt to strengthen the quality of its capital.
FSA bans second mortgage broker in one week for fraud

14 May 2009
FSA fines Morgan Stanley £1.4m

13 May 2009

The FSA has fined Morgan Stanley £1.4 million for trader mismarking which led the firm to make a $120m negative adjustment in June 2008.
FSA gives Resolution go-ahead after probe

14 May 2009

The FSA has closed its investigation into Clive Cowdery and several other Resolution directors and will not be taking disciplinary action.
FSA looks at plan to assess advisers at work

14 May 2009

The FSA is considering introducing on-site assessments of advisers' competence as an alternative to exams under the retail distribution review, according to the Institute of Financial Planning.
FSA shuts department after swine flu fears

14 May 2009

The FSA has closed a department and sent 10 staff home after a probable case of swine flu at its Canary Wharf offices in London.
FSA still undecided on mortgage regime

14 May 2009

FSA chairman Lord Adair Turner says the regulator is yet to decide whether it will restrict loan to value and loan to income limits as part of its regulation of mortgage products.
FSA switch action looming

14 May 2009

Four adviser firms have been referred to the FSA's enforcement division over pension switching advice.
FTSE continues to slide

14 May 2009

The FTSE opened at 4,326 today, with many of the UK banks and miners extending losses extending from the previous session.
FTSE down as banks weaken

13 May 2009

The FTSE 100 opened at 4,431 today but slipped in morning trades with banks falling hard.
Global crunch has killed off passive model

14 May 2009

Diversification with judgment is the key to building multi-asset portfolios that work, according to Octopus Investments.
Global executives call for tighter regulation

15 May 2009
Government proposes landlord register

13 May 2009

The Government has proposed a register of private English landlords as part of its review of the private rented sector.
Governor predicts recovery some time

14 May 2009
Hargreaves adds Wintle to Wealth 150

19 May 2009
Hargreaves Lansdown adds Neptune US opps to Wealth 150

19 May 2009

Hargreaves Lansdown has added the Neptune US opportunities fund to its Wealth 150 range.
Has Hartford anything else to say?

14 May 2009

Readers may recall the exchange last autumn between Harry Katz and Hartford Life's Michael Rudge on the subject of those high-commission-paying variable annuities that had already earned themselves a bad name in the US.
Heights of sophistication

14 May 2009

I am trying not to take this personally but here am I trying to stimulate a debate about whether or not we have of late been enjoying a bear market rally - one that will run out of steam and hit new lows - or the start of a new bull market and apparently there is no debate to be had at all.
Henderson rebrands UK retail business

18 May 2009
Henderson rebrands UK retail business

18 May 2009
Hewitt’s head of flex joins Staffcare

18 May 2009

Graham Jarvis has left his role as head of flex and benefits administration at Hewitt to become managing director of Staffcare. Jarvis is assuming full day-to-day management for the business, working alongside founder and chief executive, Phil Hollingdale, who will concentrate on business development.
Hexam tries to dispel ‘emerging market myth’

14 May 2009
HGI re-brands retail arm as Henderson New Star

18 May 2009
'Hypocritical' CML in attack on brokers

14 May 2009

Leading mortgage brokers have slammed the Council of Mortgage Lenders' "hypocritical" attack on intermediaries as the FSA suggests that proc fees may be scrapped in favour of adviser charging.
IFAP rejects tarnish claim

14 May 2009

IFA Promotion has hit out at Capital Asset Management's claims that the IFA label is "tarnished" and says that this does not reflect consumer views.
IMA backs short selling

14 May 2009
IMA calls for changes to bond market

14 May 2009
IMA warns market structure impeding retail corporate bond take-up

14 May 2009

The Investment Management Association says the current market structure is preventing direct retail participation in the corporate bond market.
Index pointers

14 May 2009

Lost amid the furore over the tax on higher-earners' pensions is the news that pensioners of all wealth groups will actually see their income fall as Britain slips into deflation.
Inflation tumbles further

19 May 2009
Intelligence to be merged with Next network

14 May 2009

European Financial Solutions has bought Mortgage Intelligence and plans to merge the firm with its existing network, Mortgage Next.
Intrinsic posts £3.6m pre-tax loss for 2008

13 May 2009

Intrinsic Financial Services has posted a £3.6m pre-tax loss for 2008, but grew adviser numbers by 22 per cent and acquired Mint network for £1.9m in February last year.
It's a kind of magic

14 May 2009

Many years ago, while still in short trousers, the job I wanted most in the world was to be a magician. It was a fairly short-lived career ambition, sitting somewhere between cowboy and astronaut in terms of my rapidly changing vocational aspirations at the time.
Jupiter team to increase small caps

18 May 2009
Jupiter’s Chatfeild-Roberts raises exposure to Latin America and Asia

15 May 2009

Jupiter’s multi-manager head John Chatfeild-Roberts has ventured further into Asia and the emerging markets space in a bid to take advantage of what he believes will be a sustained market rally.
Kearney and Duce to join Aberdeen in multi-manager deal

15 May 2009
Largemortgageloans.com offers first £1m mortgages on Trigold Crystal

13 May 2009

Largemortgageloans.com is now offering the first private bank products of £1m or more via Trigold Crystal.
Lehman product marketing under FSA investigation

14 May 2009

The FSA is to investigate how Lehman-backed structured products were marketed to consumers under the "wider implications" process.
Lehman queries Barclays deal

19 May 2009

Lehman Brothers is seeking court permission to look into whether it was adequately compensated by Barclays for its brokerage unit, according to Reuters.
Lifesearch adds cover website for consumers

14 May 2009

Lifesearch has set up a consumer-facing website designed to help consumers understand their protection needs without full advice.
Light relief

14 May 2009

Last week, I considered proposals for a 50 per cent income tax rate, the restriction of higher-rate tax relief on pension contributions for those with a taxable income of over £150,000 and the removal of personal allowances for those with an income exceeding £100,000.
Littlewood fund makes Wealth 150

13 May 2009
Lloyds axes another 625 jobs

19 May 2009

Lloyds Banking Group is axing another 625 jobs in an overhaul of its wholesale banking division.
Lloyds chairman Sir Victor Blank will step down

18 May 2009

Lloyds Banking Group chairman Sir Victor Blank is stepping down from his post.
Lloyds gains boost FTSE

18 May 2009

The FTSE 100 opened at 4,332 this morning with miners and commodities holding back strong gains.
Lloyds set to raise £4bn

18 May 2009

Lloyds Banking Group is set to offer shareholders up to £4bn in preference shares in a deal underwritten by the Government.
Long sighted

14 May 2009

We are in the midst of the most severe recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. This follows a long period of excess, where companies and individual consumers became increasingly leveraged. Of particular concern are the mortgage loans made to people who do not have sufficient income to repay these loans (the "sub-prime" loans).
LV= launches equity release toolkit

18 May 2009

LV= has launched a new marketing toolkit to help IFAs advise clients on equity release.
M&G Investments unveils record first quarter sales

14 May 2009

M&G Investments has taken in a record £2.5bn in total net inflows for the first quarter of 2009.
Make a difference

14 May 2009

Given the economic downturn and the difficulties facing the mortgage market I have been particularly focused on strategic development.
Manager focus: Alan Gibbs

14 May 2009
Manager focus: Paul Read

19 May 2009
Manager focus: Peter G᤬

18 May 2009
Manager focus: Richard Wiseman

13 May 2009
Mary Stewart

14 May 2009

Training to be a vet is not the most conventional route into financial services but Hornbuckle Mitchell's marketing director Mary Stewart began her working life caring for animals. After four years as a vet, she decided to try her hand at sales and marketing as she had always been interested in business so she joined Mars to promote a range of prescription foods for cats and dogs to vets.
Matthews says personal accounts should provide automatic life cover

13 May 2009

Friends Provident chief executive Trevor Matthews says the introduction of personal accounts offers a good opportunity to provide automatic life cover for savers.
McCarron on the defensive

14 May 2009

Fidelity European fund manager Tim McCarron is looking to switch his fund to a more defensive stance despite the upturn in markets.
MCEV principles delayed until 2011

19 May 2009

UK life assurers will not have to adopt the new market consistent embedded value accounting standard until 2011.
Midas announces capital restructure plan

18 May 2009
Midas announces capital restructure plan

18 May 2009
Miller plans private client 'revolution'

18 May 2009
Mortgage broker is fined £100,000

14 May 2009

The FSA has banned and fined an Essex mortgage broker £101,279 for submitting a fraudulent application. 1st Point director Gabriel Aramide has also been censured for concealing a fraud conviction when applying to the FSA for approval as a director.
Mortgage Intelligence launches utility proposition

18 May 2009

Mortgage Intelligence has become an authorised distributor utility services through the Utility Warehouse Discount Club.
Mortgages at lowest costs since 2004

14 May 2009

The servicing cost of UK mortgages is now at its lowest levels since 2004, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.
Mott goes against consensus

13 May 2009
MP attacks HBOS Network Data sale block

13 May 2009

An MP has accused HBOS of risking 500 broker jobs after it blocked the sale of Network Data to the Lighthouse Group last week.
MP claimed for paid mortgage, say reports

14 May 2009

The MP expense row has stepped up after the Daily Telegraph reported that a Labour MP claimed 18 months of mortgage repayments for a paid loan.
MPs press for rethink over pension relief

14 May 2009

The Treasury select committee has called on the Government to monitor the effect of the removal of tax relief on pension contributions for high-earners and consider an alternative if it has a negative impact on pension savings.
MPs say FSA is not taking bankers’ remuneration seriously

15 May 2009

MPs say that the banking crisis has exposed serious flaws in remuneration practices in the banking sector and have criticised the FSA for not taking the tackling of this issue seriously enough.
NDFA - Defined Income Plan April 09

15 May 2009

NDFADefined Income Plan April 09
New business up at L&G

14 May 2009
Newcastle structured deposits target Sipps

13 May 2009

Newcastle Intermediary Services is targeting pension cash through the Sipp market as it seeks to make greater inroads in the IFA market.
Niche quarter for ethical funds

14 May 2009

Ethical funds saw a strong rise in the first quarter of this year with net sales of 45.2m, a significant rise from the previous year's 26.6m, although down from the previous quarter's 54.8mThe latest statistics from the Investment Management Association show that net sales of funds of funds were 378.4m, up by 65 per cent on the previous quarter but significantly lower than the 647.1m seen a year earlier.
Nobody expected Lehman collapse

14 May 2009

The Treasury says the UK's insolvency and regulatory regimes were not fully adapted to deal with the collapse of Lehman Brothers because such an event had not been anticipated by any country. A discussion paper set out the Government's ideas on how to strengthen the UK's ability to deal with the failure of an investment bank in the future.
Novia launches structured products on platform

19 May 2009

Novia has made available a raft of structured products from Barclays, Arc and Morgan Stanley on its platform.
OBSR launches international ratings service

14 May 2009
OBSR suspends Threadneedle LatAm rating

15 May 2009

Old Broad Street Research (OBRS) has suspended the A rating of Threadneedle's Latin America fund following the announcement that Katy Dobson, the fund manager, has left the group.
Odey raises 25m in first retail launch

18 May 2009
Omo campaign is not a priority for Widows

14 May 2009

Scottish Widows admits that implementing the Association of British Insurers' open market option initiative is not a priority for the firm.
On guard

14 May 2009

Let's consider the global economic problem in a few statements - low interest rates, lax regulatory control and a proliferation of financial engineering (once referred to as innovation) in the banking industry. Add these together and they have all allowed people and governments to borrow beyond their capacity and for the financial sector to be overvalued relative to loan exposures.
Online research panel will voice IFA opinions

14 May 2009

Opinium Research, IFA Promotion and Money Marketing are recruiting IFAs to join a new online research panel called Independent Voice.
Online to advice

14 May 2009

Protection advice faces many hurdles over the coming years. Leaving aside the recession, three main issues stand out as challenges which, untackled, will see Swiss Re's often quoted protection gap figure of £2.3 trillion continue to grow with little chance of being reversed.
Openwork deal for Network Data reps

14 May 2009

Network Data chief executive Alex Cotton and head of sales David Blackmore are recruiting appointed representatives to Openwork through their new company, First Affinity.
Orphan payouts halved

14 May 2009

Aviva and policyholder advocate Clare Spottiswoode have renegotiated a reattribution deal for the firm's inherited estate which will see payments to policyholders slashed in half.
Osmond could lose £200m on Pearl as Cowdery circles assets

18 May 2009

Hugh Osmond is set to lose up to £200m of his paper fortune as a result of the restructuring of his Pearl Group empire, according to The Sunday Times.
Our research backs IFAs as top for trust

14 May 2009

Nic Cicutti's recent article in Money Marketing seemed to question the authority of an Aifa publication and the accuracy of the University of Nottingham trust index on IFAs.
Pada shortlists four teams

14 May 2009

The Personal Accounts Delivery Authority has drawn up a short list of four suppliers to administer personal accounts.
Pada shortlists four to run personal accounts

13 May 2009

The Personal Accounts Delivery Authority has drawn up a shortlist of four suppliers to administer personal accounts.
Paragon posts £15m profit

19 May 2009

Paragon has revealed that it has made a profit of more than £15m in the six months ending in March.
Pay as you go Sipps to ensure fairness

14 May 2009

Platform providers should opt for a pay-as-you-go charging structure on Sipps to ensure that clients are only charged for the functionality they require, says Scottish Life sales director Jim Smith.
Pension blow could have been worse

14 May 2009

Government pension spokesman Lord McKenzie has refused to rule out reducing the £150,000 threshold at which higher-rate tax relief begins to erode.
Personal accounts set to fail

14 May 2009

Punter Southall Financial Management claims personal accounts are likely to fail.
Polar Capital rebases Japan fund currency

18 May 2009
Polar Capital rebases Japan fund currency

18 May 2009
PPF selects Punter Southall as outsourced scheme caseworker

19 May 2009

The Pension Protection Fund has selected Punter Southall as the preferred outsourced caseworker for annuitised schemes that are applying for compensation from the Financial Assistance Scheme.
Providers clash over predicted future adviser numbers

14 May 2009

Friends Provident chief executive Trevor Matthews has poured scorn on Aviva's controversial suggestion that adviser numbers will halve by 2013.
Prudential group-wide sales drop 5 per cent in Q1

14 May 2009

Prudential's group-wide new business sales fell by 5 per cent in the first quarter to £697m while sales in the UK fell 6 per cent to £180m.
Question of cashflow

14 May 2009

Alistair Darling's admission to the Treasury select committee that there was "no science" employed in arriving at the new top rate of tax for salaries over £150,000 seems incredulous.
Rally round

14 May 2009

Equity markets have rallied hard from extreme pessimism and oversold levels in early March and there has been some recovery in the credit markets, with prices hardening and spreads narrowing as liquidity returns. The turn-round has been remarkable but have investors cast aside their pessimism too quickly?
Reckless lending caused house crash

14 May 2009

The Institute for Public Policy Research says the collapse of the housing market was largely caused by reckless lending behaviour of mortgage lenders and calls for a strict adherence to lending guidelines in the future.
Red tape register

14 May 2009

Speculation is mounting that the Government will adopt proposals for private landlords to be licensed when it responds to the Rugg review in the next fortnight.
Rob Clifford quits Virgin Money

14 May 2009

Virgin Money's UK managing director Rob Clifford has left the business due to the burden on his family life of travelling between the firm's nationwide offices.
Royal Liver ponders Park Row options

14 May 2009

Royal Liver is considering strategic options which could include the sale of its loss-making distribution arm Park Row.
Saatchi slams inflation myth

14 May 2009

Targeting inflation alone has been the biggest policy failure of a generation, advertising guru Maurice Saatchi has claimed.
Sants: Separation of prudential and conduct supervision a “big mistake”

15 May 2009

FSA chief executive Hector Sants has rejected any calls to separate prudential and conduct supervision by claiming it would be a “big mistake”.
Scott is back at F&C in strategy role

14 May 2009

Ted Scott has returned to F&C but will no longer be managing money for the firm.
Scottish Life investment proposition gets validation from AKG consulting

18 May 2009

Scottish Life has received independent validation of the processes underlying the governed range of its new investment proposition, launched in January.
Seeking protection from around the world

19 May 2009

A recent tour around Australia, South Africa, Singapore and Malaysia has flagged up strengths and weaknesses in the UK protection market, according to the Association of British Insurers and Friends Provident.
Senior execs say consumers will not be better off under RDR

14 May 2009

Research from Pinsent Masons law firm has found that 65 per cent of senior executives who work in distribution do not believe that consumers will be better off when the Retail Distribution Review changes come in.
Sesame launches online Woolwich tranche tie-up

18 May 2009

Mortgage advisers can now reserve funds online from Woolwich using Sesame’s mortgage tranche management system.
Sesame offers training to sell GI

14 May 2009

Sesame is setting up a training programme to help adviser firms diversify their income stream by enabling support staff to write general insurance business.
Sesame reports £2.9m profit for 2008

14 May 2009

Sesame's profit before tax fell to £2.85m for 2008, compared to £7.1m in the last seven months of 2007.
Shaken not stirred

14 May 2009

Who would want to be the Chancellor? It has always been one of the most thankless jobs in politics but Alistair Darling has taken things to the extreme with his latest Budget.
Single issue is still unanswered by Barclays

14 May 2009

As more and more cases of potential misselling surface at Barclays, the bank appears unwilling to address the central concerns raised.
Skandia launches tax financial planning tool

18 May 2009

Skandia has launched a new financial planning tool enabling advisers to demonstrate how to maximise tax efficient withdrawals from collective investments and investment bonds.
Skandia wrap sales up 62%

14 May 2009

Skandia saw a 62 per cent increase in sales of its wrap in the first quarter of this year but single-premium sales in the UK and international business plunged by 40 per cent.
Skills council pledges to try harder

14 May 2009

The Financial Services Skills Council has admitted its performance has not been up to scratch but says it is committed to improving to gain a new operating licence.
Smith & Williamson appoints Charles Deptford

18 May 2009

Smith & Williamson Investment Management has announced the appointment of former New Star fund manager Charles Deptford.
Special sits leads spring rally with 63% rise in two months

14 May 2009

Emerging markets and smaller companies funds have made the biggest gains in the recent surge in markets, according to research from Financial Express.
Spinning their hopes on £1m for charities

14 May 2009

Chief executives and senior managers from the financial services industry have joined forces to launch the Moneyspinners fund-raising initiative, with the first event to be a Land's End to John O'Groats bike ride.
Split caps set to get boost from Budget tax attack

14 May 2009

Split-capital trusts could become more popular as wealthy investors seek to reduce exposure to Budget income tax changes, says JP Morgan vice-president of product development for investment trusts Richard Plaskett.
Spot the bull competition

14 May 2009

Fund guru Anthony Bolton's call on a bull market has been greeted with scepticism by other managers and IFAs.
SSAS surge as small firms use loanback

14 May 2009

Transfers from Sipps into small self-administered schemes have risen due to credit drying up from banks, according to Hornbuckle Mitchell.
Standard Life pension error sees fund values drop

19 May 2009

More than 4,000 Standard Life unit-linked pension policyholders have seen the value of their pension funds drop, some by as much as £30,000, after a pricing error occurred seven years ago.
Standard won't pay blunder bill

14 May 2009

Standard Life has refused to compensate advisers for extra work as a result of the firm's pension sterling fund revaluation.
Switched-on thinking

14 May 2009

The end of April brought a close to the FSA's programme of pension-switching roadshows. The programme was established with the aim of helping support and educate firms about our expectations for this business area and how best they might meet them following our review that found significant instances of unsuitable advice.
Taken on trust

14 May 2009

According to HM Revenue & Customs, around 198,000 trusts filed self-assessment returns in 2006/07. The assets held in trusts are substantial, with 5,500 reporting income in excess of 100,000.
Tenon links up with SEI Investments

14 May 2009

Tenon Financial Services has teamed up with SEI Investments Company on a new wealth management platform.
The Blame Game

15 May 2009

In the wake of this week's FSA Mortgage Sector Conference, the industry seemed to be playing the Blame Game for the current turmoil and trouble in the UK mortgage industry. The FSA blamed the advisers, the lenders blamed the advisers and the advisers were left reeling.
The Hartford and Lincoln set for US Govt cash injection

19 May 2009

Variable annuity players including the Hartford and Lincoln Financial Services look set for a US Government bail-out.
The long road

14 May 2009

With all the hype over the last 18 months about people not investing any longer and retail investment funds seeing more than their fair share of outflows, it is time to take a long-term view.
The pace race

14 May 2009

I have been reading some interesting statistics on investment management, courtesy of the Securities & Investment Institute. The latest edition of the SII's Investment Management Review shows the total amount of money in financial assets worldwide at the end of 2006 (the latest figures available) was $167trn - a staggering figure. This statistic comes from McKinsey & Co but the SII trawls data from a range of sources.
The price is right?

13 May 2009

Is adviser charging the way to go in order to stamp product bias out of the mortgage industry? Should proc fees be scrapped altogether?
The role of structured products in re-entering markets

19 May 2009

Picking the right moment to re-enter equity markets is never easy, especially now when markets are so volatile. Call it too early, and you risk making losses. However, call it too late, and the opportunity is missed.
This year worse than last for active managers, says report

18 May 2009
True Potential offers adviser buyout scheme

14 May 2009

True Potential has set up a buyout scheme to help advisers wanting to leave the industry or release value from their firms.
Twitter can spread the word for IFAs

14 May 2009

IFAs should be harnessing the referral power of social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, according to FinQS.
UBS plans US market-neutral fund

14 May 2009

UBS Global Asset Management is looking to to launch a US market-neutral fund.
UKFI courting sovereign wealth funds to buy bank stakes, say reports

19 May 2009

UK Financial Investments is reportedly already talking to sovereign wealth funds and other potential investors about selling its stakes in the part-nationalised banks.
Unemployment continues to soar

13 May 2009
Voyage of the Beagles

14 May 2009

The past eight weeks have seen an incredibly strong rally in global stock markets. For example, since the Standard Life UK equity recovery fund - which I featured in these pages - launched in early March, it has risen by 50 per cent. That is an astonishing move in such a short space of time but should we all now jump on the bandwagon?
Wages fall for first time since 1930s

18 May 2009
Watch out for Budget bill

14 May 2009

I hope Julian Stevens will now read the small print in the Budget. He seems to think that for someone earning £150,000 or more, the answer is for the company to make a pension contribution instead.
Watchdog dismay at response on EqLife

14 May 2009

Parliamentary ombudsman Ann Abraham has branded the Government's response to her report into the Equitable Life collapse as "deeply disappointing", saying it offers insufficient support for the rejection of her findings.
West Brom takes steps to reassure savers

18 May 2009

West Bromwich Building Society has rubbished reports that it is on teetering on the brink of collapse by claiming it is “well capitalised” and “able” to meet all financial obligations.
Zurich Financial Services - Protected Capital Account

15 May 2009
Zurich group risk debut in line with leaders

15 May 2009

Zurich Corporate RiskGroup Income Protection
Zurich may build platform for the middle market

14 May 2009

Zurich is considering launching its own platform.

Money Marketing13 May 2009

Money Marketing
13 May 2009