Money Marketing
19 February 2003

  • 'FSA failed to protect consumers'

    20 Feb 2003

    The FSA is criticised by the select committee for failing to protect consumers. The committee's report says if investment trusts had been regulated, it would have been easier for the FSA to identify potential problems. It says if the FSA's investigations into the crisis are is hampered because investment trusts are not regulated, then the Treasury should look into the matter. The report says: "The FSA has had a general responsibility for the proper ...

  • 'Mutual PI scheme would help smaller IFAs survive'

    20 Feb 2003

    Bristol IFA the Falcon Group believes a mutual professional indemnity insurance fund supported by providers is the only way that many smaller IFA firms will survive the current PI crisis. It believes that although such a scheme will inevitably cause product costs to rise and IFA commission to be reduced as providers meet the cost of PI, it is the only way for many smaller firms to continue trading. Falcon was granted a 12-month PI waiver in January by the ...

  • 'Positive impact' of mortgage code

    20 Feb 2003

    The majority of the public believe borrowers receive a fair deal when taking out a mortgage as a result of the mortgage code, according to new consumer research by the MCCB. But the board says levels of awareness about regulation among the public remain relatively low. Its research, carried out in November among 1,000 borrowers, found that 34 per cent are now aware of the code, up from 28 per cent in November 2001. However, of those who know about the ...

  • £200k headhunters to lead Solutions' recruiting drive

    20 Feb 2003

    National IFA Positive Solutions is hiring a team of 50 headhunters, who will be paid six-figure salaries to track down new recruits for the firm. Competition to recruit advisers is growing increasingly fierce as Positive Solutions vies with groups such as Inter-Alliance and Millfield to hire new IFAs. PS which claims to be the first to set up an in-house recruitment team is more than quadrupling its headhunters to 65 from 15. The recruiters will be ...

  • £750k fine for BoS fund admin failure

    20 Feb 2003

    Bank of Scotland has been hit with a fine of £750,000 by the FSA for failures in administering its Pep and Isa funds between November 1999 and August 2001. According to the FSA, BoS put 30,000 Pep and Isa fund customers at risk of losing money and increased its own exposure to potential fraud. The regulator says the bank's systems used to administer Peps and Isas meant it could not be sure how much money it was holding on behalf of individual ...

  • 1% cap can sap financial strength

    20 Feb 2003

    The main issue of company financial strength for consumer protection is clouded by spin. No profits, no reserves is particularly relevant today. IFAs should consider their positions when recommending companies offering 1 per cent capped products. The flawed pension review revealed that fairness, Government copout and retrospective rulings are very real. Companies offering 1 per cent a year capped products should carry serious financial health warnings ...

  • 54% opt for critical illness cover over income protection

    20 Feb 2003

    More than a half of all protection policies sold through IFAs include a critical-Illness element, according to research by Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society. Fifty-four per cent of IFA-distributed protection policies have some degree of CI but the research also shows that 23 per cent include income protection. Liverpool Victoria says it expects the balance to tip more towards critical-illness cover primarily for reasons of economics. As the two products ...

  • Abbey National - Safety Plus Growth (Issue 11) Five Year

    21 Feb 2003

    Friday, 21 February 2003Type: Guaranteed equity bond Aim: Growth linked to the performance of the FTSE 100 index Minimum-maximum investment: £3,000-£500,000, Isa £1,000-£7,000 Term: Five years Guarantee: Capital returned in full along with 17.5% growth at end of term regardless of performance in index Return: Up to 45.15% growth at end of termClosing date: May 10, 2003 Commission: None Tel: ...

  • Abbey National - Safety Plus Growth (Issue 11) Three Year

    20 Feb 2003

    Thursday, 20 February 2003Type: Guaranteed equity bond Aim: Growth linked to the performance of the FTSE 100 index Minimum-maximum investment: £3,000-£500,000, Isa £1,000-£7,000 Term: Three years Guarantee: Capital returned in full along with 7.5% growth at end of term regardless of performance in index Return: Up to 17.5% growth Closing date: May 10, 2003 Commission: None Tel: 0800 302030

  • Aberdeen hits back over 'misleading' marketing material

    20 Feb 2003

    MPs have accused the split-capital sector of failing to warn investors about levels of gearing. In its report into the split-cap crisis, the Treasury select committee condemns the sector for failing to draw attention to the widespread rise in bank borrowing which made zero shares far riskier than investors were led to believe in marketing material. It singles out Aberdeen Asset Management's promotional material for particular attention, describing it ...

  • Aberdeen tech fund is top dog in Bestinvest survey

    20 Feb 2003

    More than 140 funds representing over £15.6bn of investors' cash are consistently failing their benchmarks, according to the 2002 edition of IFA Bestinvest's Spot the Dog guide. Top dog in this year's survey is the Aberdeen European technology fund with a three-year return of -88 per cent, with Aberdeen fund of ITs, Framlington net net and Smith & Will-iamson global tech yapping at its heels on -87 per cent. The guide says 2002 has been ...

  • ABI says Sandler tax move will hit three million savers

    20 Feb 2003

    The Treasury is running the risk of penalising up to three million savers, many of whom are on modest incomes, if it implements tax proposals recommended in the Sandler report, according to the ABI. The trade body has written to Chancellor Gordon Brown arguing that the Sandler rep-ort's tax proposals would create further disincentive for people to save. In his report published last July, Ron Sandler calls for the scrapping of the 5 per cent tax-free ...

  • Aegon is poised to make final IFA deals as it scales back from

    20 Feb 2003

    Aegon UK is set to buy the last of its majority stakes in IFA firms in the next two weeks and then will close its search for new businesses. This will be the fifth purchase for Aegon UK Distribution company, which has scaled down its acquisition strategy from an original target of 10 majority stakes set last September. It owns full or majority stakes in Advisory & Brokerage, Momentum, Positive Solutions and Wentworth Rose. Aegon says its acquisition ...

  • AITC adds IFA finder to website

    20 Feb 2003

    The Association of Investment Trusts Companies is relaunching its website to provide consumers and IFAs with more information about its products and members. Additions to the site include a section on how to seek financial advice and find an IFA. As part of this service, the site is now linked to IFA Promotion's database to help clients look for an IFA online. Other new services on the site, which can be found at www. aitc.co.uk include more profiles ...

  • AITC offers discounts until end of tax year

    25 Feb 2003

    The AITC has announced discounts on 124 of its member investment trusts until the end of the tax year.The deals, which will see discounts on over a third of the trade body's member funds varying in detail from trust to trust.Many fund managers such as Aberdeen, Baillie Gifford and First State are dropping their initial charges until April 5, while others such as Fidelity International are losing the upfront charges when investments are made through an Isa wrapper.AITC ...

  • Alternative to an Isa

    20 Feb 2003

    I am a 35-year-old bach-elor who has recently inherited just under £150,000. I am in a professional occupation and have recently started to achieve my full earnings potential, which means that I now have surplus monthly income. I have used the inheritance to repay my mortgage and upgrade my car. This has left me with just under £20,000 in a high-interest instant-access building society account. I have no other savings, investments or debts. I want ...

  • Bear necessities

    20 Feb 2003

    For IFAs and investors it seems that there is no end to this equity bear market which has been going on for over three years. In the short term, nobody should expect any sustained rally in global stockmarkets and I think we are set to see more swings up and down, albeit in a narrow range. Once any war with Iraq is out of the way, I think we will start to see solid progress in the major stockmarkets. In my view, many overvaluations have now corrected and bad news on the corporate earnings ...

  • Britannic targets PLS market

    21 Feb 2003

    BRITANNIC RETIREMENT SOLUTIONSPURCHASED LIFE ANNUITYType: Purchased life annuityMinimum investment: Lump sum £10,000 Minimum age: 50 Income frequency: Monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, annually Charges: Implicit Commission: Initial 2% Tel: 0845 3003321The panel: John Blunt, Senior manager, Advisory & Brokerage Services, Alex Benson, Associate, JM Taylor & Associates, Brian Pack, Principal, Brian Pack Financial ...

  • Canada Life welcomes offer from Great-West

    20 Feb 2003

    Canada Life is welcoming an offer from fellow Toronto insurer Great-West Lifeco which could see its UK shareholders netting an average of £4,600. The £3bn offer from its Canadian rival exceeds the previous hostile offer from Manulife by 15 per cent and would create the biggest insurer in Canada. Canada Life has 60,000 shareholders in the UK and Ireland who are set to benefit. Staff at Canada Life's recently scaled back UK operations have ...

  • Case for the defence

    20 Feb 2003

    Many clients have been asking us about endowment complaint letters received in the last month. To understand fully the stance being taken by the Consumers' Association, we have taken a long, hard look at its website at www.endowmentaction.co.uk . It is unprecedented that the retail financial services industry should face such an onslaught. The campaign lessens the value of financial advice and tars all advisers with the same brush. After the pension ...

  • Charge of light brigade

    20 Feb 2003

    The start of the 2003 Isa season has been much like the last one - a damp squib. With UK markets at seven-year lows and investor confidence in the gutter, investment houses have been desperately racking their brains to work out how to get new business through the door. A year ago, with the FTSE 100 sitting at around 5,000 points after two years of consecutive drops, the ever optimistic fund managers pointed out that the market had not fallen for three consecutive years for more than ...

  • Chelsea BS steps into line with rate cut

    24 Feb 2003

    Chelsea Building Society has announced it is reducing its Standard variable rate 0.10 per cent to 5.59 per cent from 5.69 per cent. The move comes in response to the surprise decision by the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee to cut its Base Rate to 3.75 per cent from 4 per cent earlier in the month and follows similar action from the majority of high street lenders. The CBS rate cut will apply to all of its products linked to its SVR.

  • Childcare Corporation 6 is born

    19 Feb 2003

    Teather & Greenwood Investment Management has introduced Childcare Corporation 6, an enterprise investment scheme that aims to raise up to £10 for the building and operation of around 10 purpose-built children's nurseries in the Midlands and the south of England. This EIS builds takes up the objectives of the previous five Childcare Corporation schemes by providing private day-care facilities for children aged between three months and five years. Each nursery is expected ...

  • Cinderella syndrome

    20 Feb 2003

    For many years, we have referred to income protection as the Cinderella product. Although the need that it meets is obvious, it has never really been very successful. It has often lost out to critical-illness cover, even though the two products are complementary. But Cinderella will not go to the ball unless we overcome some of the perceptions that some consumers, and indeed IFAs, have about income protection. We have been doing a great deal of consumer ...

  • Confusion in the Caribbean

    20 Feb 2003

    •"Today is officially the first day of sunbathing under natural conditions." - Mainland PR Kat Milne on cancelling her solarium subscription. Imagine how tough it is. There you are working on your tan and sipping cocktails in your Caribbean tropical island paradise. Then some pesky journalists call to ask you questions about your (ailing) business back home in windswept Blightie. Who can blame St James's Place chairman Sir Mark Weinberg for having ...

  • Could ceiling fall in on stake suite?

    20 Feb 2003

    The Treasury has finally laid out its specifications for Ron Sandler's stakeholder suite of products. Predictably, it has disappointed some and enraged others. Few in the industry seem pleased, to say the least. The principal problem is the recommendation that the unit trust and the underlying assets of the with-profits and pension stakeholder products should be subject to the same investment restrictions as a cautious managed fund. That means they ...

  • Credit where it's due

    20 Feb 2003

    Credit spreads have held up well amid the turmoil in equities. We see this as growing evidence of a decoupling of credit from equities - with credit outperforming. Many of the recent "winners" have been lower-quality, more distressed names such as telecom operators. Arguably, therefore, the decoupling has as much to do with fundamentals, namely, the process of corporate balance sheet repair, as it does to technicals. The environment of modest growth provides the perfect foundation ...

  • Debt crisis

    20 Feb 2003

    The warning is stark - the average person in the UK is £5,300 in debt (not including the mortgage) and we need to take debt seriously, according to a recent report from the FSA. It goes on to warn that the national personal debt mountain of more than £818bn has grown too fast and too high and suggests that as many as 6.1 million people are struggling to meet their monthly payments. Debt is becoming a big deal and brokers need to be aware of how ...

  • Emerging influences

    20 Feb 2003

    International political developments will play a major part in stockmarket trends. US domestic consumption trends will also continue to have a major impact on the economies of emerging, as well as developed, countries. The prospect of further debt defaults remains as many governments in emerging markets find fiscal discipline difficult. But there are some positive signs that global emerging markets will outperform, at least in relative terms. Prices of commodities, on which so ...

  • Equities V Bonds

    20 Feb 2003

    T he constant dripfeed of falling markets along with problems of endowments, pensions, splits, structural products and, of course, Equitable Life is translating into the worst business climate for retail financial services since 1988. In my view, 2003 and beyond actually looks far worse. It is all too easy to join with many private investors and stick our heads in the sand and hope it will go away - it won't. Never has it been more important to communicate with your clients with ...

  • Failure to see real-life consequences of depolarisation

    20 Feb 2003

    I am writing to clarify certain statements attributed to me in the article headlined, Angry CA attack on panel's "ivory tower" Brown (Money Marketing, February 6). To make it clear, any criticism was not aimed at Colin Brown personally for his views on depolarisation. I am unfamiliar with Colin Brown's opinion on the CA's polarisation policy so would not comment on his views. However, my criticisms and those phrases were definitely directed at what ...

  • Firmer foundations for structured plans

    20 Feb 2003

    With world stockmarkets still extremely fragile and the downturn having been far longer and more severe than many thought possible, no one seems keen to commit to when they think the upturn will begin. There are probably very few fund managers or IFAs who have ever worked at a time when markets have been so depressed. With the tax year end almost upon us, the lack of good news will no doubt make this another difficult time. This is not helped by George Bush ...

  • FSA to investigate IFAs' ability to advise on retail property funds

    20 Feb 2003

    The FSA is to investigate the quality of IFA advice on retail property funds and buy-to-let properties. Speaking to delegates at the Schroders Property Conference in London last week, outgoing FSA chairman Howard Davies said the regulator had a number of concerns about consumer and adviser understanding of property funds. He questioned whether IFAs' knowledge, understanding and sophistication has kept pace with the growing product complexity. He ...

  • FSA to visit insurance offices as it admits to concerns

    20 Feb 2003

    The FSA says it does not know enough about how insurance companies operate and plans to visit offices to carry out risk assessments by the end of March. It is aiming to complete a risk assessment of all sectors of the market by the end of the year under its new risk-based approach to regulation but is speeding up the assessment of insurers because of worries about the sector. Insiders say that the regulator's worry about life companies is an open secret. FSA ...

  • Fund firms bear brunt of criticism over splits

    20 Feb 2003

    IFAs escape with little criticism from the Treasury select committee's report into the split-cap investment crisis, published last week, which reserved its harshest comments for fund managers responsible for the products. The FSA has also been largely let off by the committee, which only states that the regulator had not been proactive enough in troubleshooting and that responsibility for split caps should be brought into its remit. However, the ...

  • GE Life adds options with FTSE100 plans

    20 Feb 2003

    GE Life is rolling out the second of its growth option plans offering a return of up to 200 per cent of the increase in the FTSE 100 index over six years. Available in two versions, both paying out on June 1, 2009, the first offers capital protection returning the higher of 100 per cent of the initial investment or the initial investment increased by 70 per cent of the percentage change in the FTSE 100 over the term. The second version offers no capital ...

  • GE Life maximises the options

    21 Feb 2003

    GE Life has established the income option plan 4, a guarantee equity bond that provides a choice of two annual income options, two monthly income options and two growth options. The plan is linked to the Dow Jones Eurostoxx index and is split into two main options, option 1 and option 2. Option 1 provides annual income of 9 per cent, monthly income of 0.71 per cent or growth of 30 per cent at the end of the three-year term. Option 2 provides annual income of 7 per cent, monthly ...

  • GHC goes crazy for stockpicking

    24 Feb 2003

    tockbroker Goy Harris Cartwright (GHC) has created the stockpicker fund, an Oeic that will be managed by former Christows manager Tony Craze. Craze has been a stockpicker and fund manager for almost 40 years and is also a financial commentator for the BBC and Sky News. He joined GHC in 2002. The GHC fund will have a concentrated portfolio of between 35 and 50 stocks and Craze will run it along the same lines as the individual portfolios he managed at Christows. Craze ...

  • Global warming

    20 Feb 2003

    International equities had another bad year in 2002, falling for the third year in a row and losing 23.8 per cent. This reflected weak profit growth, the continuing fallout from the bursting of the technology bubble and increased investor risk aversion, reflecting economic uncertainty, corporate scandals in the US and geopolitical risks. Unsurprisingly, global bonds had another good year, consistent with deflation fears, downward revisions to interest rate forecasts and a flight to safety ...

  • GMAC takes over sub-prime lender

    20 Feb 2003

    GMAC-RFC is buying sub-prime lender High Street Home Loans as part of its strategy to build its business through partnerships in the UK. HSHL was set up two years as a correspondent lender and has negotiated deals with a number of lenders including GMAC-RFC. It will move to being a lender in its own right selling a range of products through brokers, targeting non-conforming, self-cert and buy-to-let clients. It says having the backing of one of the world's ...

  • Goldfish to sell Gartmore funds

    20 Feb 2003

    Online and telephone bank Goldfish is to offer its customers the chance to invest in three Gartmore funds. The bank claims the move aims to build on the success of its savings account introduced last June - its first foray into the investment market. The three Gartmore funds are its cautious managed, monthly income and UK index. Each of the funds are Isa-able and will be available through Goldfish with immediate effect. Cautious managed, which is run ...

  • Goy Harris Cartwright - GHC Stockpicker Fund

    24 Feb 2003

    Monday, 24 February 2003 Type: OeicAim: Growth by investing in UK companiesMinimum investment: Lump sum £1,000, monthly £50Investment split: 100% in UK companiesIsa link: YesPep transfers: YesCharges: Initial 5%, annual 1.745%Commission: Initial 3%, renewal 0.5%Tel: 0845 6071914

  • Grand prize

    20 Feb 2003

    Test drive Winterthur Life's fund selection tool and pension option planner and you could win a trip for two to the British Grand Prix. IFAs will be entered into a draw by logging on to the online tool, at www.simplydrawdown.co.uk any now The winner and a guest will be flown by helicopter to Silverstone for a day in the Paddock Club at the Brit-ish Grand Prix on July 20.

  • Guidance is golden

    20 Feb 2003

    The impact of the proposed changes in FSA discussion paper 19 could be profound. DP19 outlines the three proposed options for regulating the sale of the Sandler suite of stakeholder-type products. The Government would control product specifications and cap charges at 1 per cent. The specifications would include a requirement that the basic investments be lower risk. Sandler suggested a lighter regulation regime for these products. On charge-capping, DP19 ...

  • Hargreaves Lansdown will rebate proc fees

    20 Feb 2003

    Hargreaves Lansdown is to pay part of the procuration fee it gets from lenders to borrowers who go execution-only under its new mortgage service. As exclusively revealed in Money Marketing last September, Hargreaves Lansdown set up a discount mortgage brokerage arm to diversify from its core investment and pension business but until now the service has only been targeting its 400,000 client base. The service covering the whole market aims to rival major ...

  • If providers can't assess risk, how can investors?

    20 Feb 2003

    Lorna Bourke states: "If 15 warnings in the prospectus for the Lloyds TSB extra income and growth plan that you may not get your money back are not enough, what are the product providers to do?" (Money Marketing, January 30). Logically, if a timebomb is surrounded by 15 warnings, all should keep away, however harmless the bomb appears. The peril of such plans is that each represents poor value for the consumer when risk is taken into account. The product ...

  • IFA raises £5,000 for local charity

    20 Feb 2003

    North-East IFA Lowes Financial Management has raised more than £5,000 for the Amber Foundation charity, which helps unemployed people aged between 18 and 30. The charity aims to provide people with resources to get back into work through training and support. Lowes and its 13 RI s have been involved with the charity for several years. Before his retirement in December, group chairman Ken Lowe asked clients to consider giving to Amber because of the ...

  • IFAs hold the key

    20 Feb 2003

    Chancellor Gordon Brown's cash injection into the NHS was expected to restore confidence in the health system and potentially hit the private medical insurance industry hard. Instead, more people and businesses are signing up for PMI than ever before and the market is buoyant. The latest ABI figures show that over 6.5 million people have PMI either through their employer or an individual policy compared with 6.1 million five years ago. Together, they ...

  • Independent view

    20 Feb 2003

    Transfers. Opt-outs. Non-joiners. Three simple words that have caused immeasurable pain for so many advisers and clients alike - and the pain is still present for all to see. Industry commentators exclaim left, right and centre about the injustices of the new review culture after the "father of reviews" but nothing ever sticks. Nothing is ever followed through and none of the life offices seem to really care. After the precedent of the pensions review, ...

  • Inside Edge - Steve Bee

    20 Feb 2003

    Like most non-normal people, I have read and reread the Pension Green Paper and Inland Revenue consultation paper many times already this year. I need to get my head round them so I can do my job but I would be lying if I didn't say I find them really interesting too. The Revenue paper, especially. Some of it knocked me out when I first read it and some bits of it still surprise me as I keep going over the words in my mind. In particular, and to give ...

  • Intelligent Finance goes on the offset offensive

    20 Feb 2003

    Intelligent Finance has sparked a mortgage row by claiming that rival offset mortgage products are "poor imitations" of its own. IF's new chief executive Grenville Turner, who replaced founder Jim Spowart in January, claims the company's product is superior to other offsets because it is the only one which lets borrowers combine their mortgage, personal loan, credit card, current account and savings. He says other lenders offer watered-down versions with ...

  • Intelligent life

    20 Feb 2003

    This week's No S*!@ Sherlock award goes to Intelligent Finance. The company "released figures" showing that, all things being equal such as £6,219 in savings in an offset mortgage account, people in Scotland, where the average house price is £71,799, will pay off their mortgages on average 39 months early compared with people in Greater London paying an average £214,296, who finish 15 months earlier. IF chief executive Gren-ville Turner ...

  • Investment View

    20 Feb 2003

    I will do my best to see if I can complete a whole column without mentioning Iraq and the possible consequences of a Middle East war on the market. It will not be easy - the media seems full of speculation on when the tanks will start to roll - but fortunately the banking sector has come to my rescue. We are now deep in their reporting season. As the single, largest component of the UK equity market, what the banks report is significant for the performance ...

  • Julian Gibbs

    20 Feb 2003

    BMC Profiles of Shrewsbury has introduced what I believe to be much the best value financial planning service available.It enables IFAs to produce financial plan-ning reports that are appealing, easy to understand and graphically translate to the client his or her financial needs and, most important of all, motivate them to take action. Profiles is a version of what is now probably the world's most widely used financial planning software for advisers. ...

  • Keydata Investment Services - Dynamic Growth Plan 3 Issues 1 and 2

    19 Feb 2003

    Wednesday, 19 February 2003 Type: Capital protected bondAim: Growth linked to performance of FTSE 100 indexMinimum-maximum investment: £3,000-£1m, Isa £3,000-£7,000Term: Five yearsGuarantee: Capital returned in full provided index does not fall by more than 50% and fails to recover to at least its starting levelReturn: Up to 60% growth at end of term if index rises by at least 12%, otherwise five times the rise in the ...

  • L&G cuts rate on equity release mortgage

    25 Feb 2003

    Legal & General Mortgages has cut the fixed interest rate on its equity release product to 6.95 per cent from 7.19 per cent. The rate is fixed for the life of the mortgage. Borrowers must be 60 years old or over and have a home worth at least £40,000 to qualify for the mortgage. Customers make no monthly payments, instead interest is compounded monthly and added to the outstanding loan to be repaid when the whole mortgage is repaid.

  • L&G move to speed up admin on DB to DC

    20 Feb 2003

    Legal & General has set up a bulk data transfer service that helps pension scheme trustees and their advisers cut the time it takes to wind up a finalsalary pension scheme. L&G says the service is designed for winding up and switching final-salary pensions to money-purchase schemes. It says the service halves the admin time by capturing data from an existing staff database, cutting out the risk of errors on data transfer. The disk is designed ...

  • L&G offering fixed rates and discounts on new BTL range

    20 Feb 2003

    Legal & General Mortgages is launching four buy-to-let flexible mortgages offering borrowers discount and fixed-rate options. There are three fixedrate loans. The first is fixed for two years at 5.35 per cent, the second is a fiveyear fix at 5.59 per cent and the third is fixed at 5.74 per cent for 10 years. Early repayment char-ges are 2 per cent of the amount borrowed during the fixed period on full redemption. On the discount side, the stepped buy-to-let ...

  • Leader of the PAC

    20 Feb 2003

    When representatives from a life company come to my office and say they are getting 96 per cent of their business in an important product area electronically, they have definitely got my attention. This was exactly the statement made by Legal &General when it showed me its protection choices software recently. L&G says two-thirds of this business originates from its appointed representative network. Even if this network is submitting 100 per cent ...

  • Leeds & Holbeck Building Society - Secure Growth Account

    21 Feb 2003

    Friday, 21 February 2003 Type: Guaranteed equity bondAim: Growth linked to performance of FTSE 100 indexMinimum-maximum investment: £3,000-£9,000Term: Six yearsGuarantee: Capital returned in full along with 10% growth regardless of the performance of the indexReturn: Up to 60% at end of termClosing date: Until further noticeCommission: NoneTel: 0845 0505071

  • Life offices don't want Revenue's drawdown cash

    20 Feb 2003

    Income-drawdown providers are objecting to Inland Revenue proposals that will give them cash windfalls if clients die before 75. The Revenue's pension simplification proposals, published in December, limit death benefits on drawdown to the value of the retirement savings paid in, less income taken out. Funds over this through investment growth, would be paid to the drawdown provider. Providers and advisers say drawdown would suffer the bad press that annuities ...

  • Location effect on offset

    20 Feb 2003

    Where a borrower lives can make a big difference to how early they can pay off an offset mortgage, according to telenet bank Intelligent Finance. IF says if money were no option, most people would choose to pay off their mortgage early. Its figures show that in terms of early repayment Scotland tops the league. In Scotland, where the average house price is £71,779, someone with average savings of £6,219 taking out a 25-year standard repayment ...

  • London BTL loan size slides

    20 Feb 2003

    The average size of buy-to-let loans in central London fell by 25 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year while BTL loans in Scotland and Northern Ireland rocketed, says the Association of Residential Letting Agents. Its survey of BTL trends carried out for its panel of lenders, including Birmingham Midshires, GMAC-RFC, NatWest, Paragon and Standard Life Bank, reveals stark regional differences. It found that the average loan in central London fell ...

  • LTC regime is set for 2004 but general start delayed

    20 Feb 2003

    The start date for mortgage and long-term care insurance regulation will be October 31, 2004 but general insurance regulation has been delayed until January 14, 2005. The LTC decision means it will have been four and a half years to implement the LTC royal commission's recommendation in March 1999 that the Government should introduce regulation. After a consultation in March 2001 about what type of regulatory approach to take, the Treasury announced ...

  • Man Investment Products - Man Multi-Strategy Series 5

    24 Feb 2003

    Monday, 24 February 2003 Type: Multi-manager hedge fund portfolioAim: Income or growth by investing in hedge fundsMinimum investment: Lump sum $ 50,000, euros 50,000Place of registration: BermudaInvestment split: 100% in hedge fundsGuarantee: 120% of capital returned regardless of performance of underlying investmentsCharges: Annual 3%Commission: Subject to negotiationTel: 020 7285 2000

  • Mandatory adoption plan could see orphans rehomed

    20 Feb 2003

    The FSA has put forward proposals which would modernise with-profits and could force some of the biggest life companies into drastic restructuring. In Discussion Paper 20, Issues for With-Profits Aris-ing from the Sandler Review, the regulator proposes the mandatory adoption of a new model for all future with-profits business. This would cause the disappearance of the traditional 90/10 model of with-profits, where policyholders and shareholders both have ...

  • Martin Currie - Martin Currie European Private Equity Fund

    19 Feb 2003

    Wednesday, 19 February 2003Aim: Growth by investing in a portfolio of European private equity funds and European direct equitiesMinimum investment: Lump sum £100,000Maximum investment: £2mInvestment split: European private equity funds 85%, European equities 15%Types of shares: OrdinaryIsa link: NoPep transfers: NoRedemption date: July 1, 2013Charges: Annual 0.7%Commission: Initial 0.25%, renewal ...

  • Migs are an'unnecessary evil'

    20 Feb 2003

    National mortgage broker Savills Private Finance is calling for lenders to abolish mortgage indemnity guarantees, saying they are no longer needed with arrears and repossessions at an all-time low. It says the latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders published last month support this view that Migs, a premium paid by a borrower to provide the lender with insurance should they default on their payments, is an "unnecessary evil". The payment protects ...

  • Misys tells IFAs to stand by Standard business

    20 Feb 2003

    Misys, the UK's biggest IFA network, is telling its 7,000 advisers there is no reason to stop placing business with Standard Life despite the rough ride that the life company has had as a result of bonus cuts and fall-ing stockmarkets. A Misys research note on the life office's position says although it has recently been downgraded by Standard & Poor's and has "nailed its colours to equities," it is still in a stronger position than most of ...

  • Morley combines its strengths

    20 Feb 2003

    Morley Fund Management has created the Morley high income property unit trust, which aims to produce a gross yield of 6 per cent a year by investing in a mix of property, property-related corporate bonds and UK gilts. Around 75 per cent of the portfolio will be invested directly in property, with 20 per cent going into bonds and the remainder in cash. Geraldine Davies, who currently manages the Norwich property trust, will act as lead fund manager. She will be assisted by Morley's ...

  • Morley offers property fund

    20 Feb 2003

    Aviva subsidiary Morley Fund Management is offering a highincome property fund. The Morley high-income property unit trust will be available from March and minimum investment is £10,000. The fund will invest in a mix of direct commercial property and propertyrelated corporate bonds. Morley says it is taking a medium-term view of the commercial property market and adopting a diversified investment portfolio which it expects to yield 7-8 per cent a ...

  • Mortgage protection

    20 Feb 2003

    Over 90 per cent of borrowers questioned in Legal & General's most recent 'Moving Intentions' survey said that they had arranged life assurance cover purely to protect their mortgage. So it could be claimed that consumers are taking a responsible attitude towards life assurance protection when arranging loans to buy a home. However, while this is welcome and very good news, it's not the full story. There is still some way to go as far as ...

  • Mortgage Support Network launches for brokers and IFAs

    24 Feb 2003

    A new mortgage and insurance support network for brokers and IFAs, Mortgage Support Network, is being launched this month. The Midlands-based firm says it spent 2002 working with the UK's mortgage lenders and insurance providers on an offering to appeal to mortgage advisers.It will now offer a range of services to mortgage intermediaries including compliance, training and offer competitive proc fees, life commissions and general insurance commission.

  • MPs tell split-cap firms to act now on compensation

    20 Feb 2003

    The Treasury select committee has told split-capital investment trust companies to act now and compensate small investors rather than wait to be told to do so by the FSA, ombudsman or law courts. The Parliamentary committee published its report into the split-cap crisis last week and called for redress for many small investors who have seen their investments disappear as a result of collapsing trusts. But it hesitates from recommending compensation for ...

  • Network in attack on rivals over 'dodgy' commission figures

    20 Feb 2003

    Protection network Premier Connections is attacking rival networks, claiming they are "using dodgy mathematics" to make IFA commission rates look better than they are to attract new members. It says networks are disingenuously advertising the level of commission they pay in a manner which makes it appear to be higher than it is so that advisers are tempted to join. Director Darren Ferneyhough says there are a number of ways that commission rates can be ...

  • New image for Portman

    20 Feb 2003

    Portman Building Society is revamping its image in a bid to set itself apart from competitors and to have wider appeal to consumers. Initially the rebrand will focus on redesigning poster displays in its 110 branches, on promotional material and on the society's website home page. These will bec-ome brighter, using bolder colours. The designs are the first steps in the wider ongoing creative review that will see the society experimenting with different creative ...

  • Newton links protected plan to high-income fund

    20 Feb 2003

    Newton is aiming to raise £50m with a capital-protected structured product linked to the performance of its £750m higher-income fund. The Newton protected higher-income plan is designed to return at least 100 per cent of investors' capital by decreasing exposure to the fund in falling markets and increasing exposure in rising markets. For every rise or fall, inv-estors' exposure to cash will change. If the fund plummets, investors could ...

  • NU shuts online supermart after a year

    20 Feb 2003

    Norwich Union is closing its online fund supermarket and wealth management service a year after their launch because of poor uptake. The company says just 250 customers signed up to its Norwich Union Isa through the supermarket, which gave investors access to 70 internal and external funds. The supermarket and online wealth management service were launched at a cost of £230m. NU says the technology has been integrated across its online offering and ...

  • Oliver Wyman to merge with rival consultancy

    24 Feb 2003

    Oliver Wyman & Company, the consultancy best known for identifying the £27bn savings gap, and the financial services arm of Mercer have announced they are merging. The new consultancy, Mercer Oliver Wyman, will have more than 600 employees with offices in Europe, Asia and North America. OW&C chairman John Drzik will assume the title of president of the new entity.

  • Out of context

    20 Feb 2003

    " •Oh to be a Welshman." - Bankhall's Tony Murrell on the abysmal performance of the English football team against Australia. •"I'm busy avoiding Australians at the moment" - Murrell again. •"You are the most normal person I've had a conversation with today." - Direct Life & Pensions sales and marketing director Richard Verdin to an MM reporter after a trip to the US. •"I'm going into a black hole soon." - Mortgage Brain ...

  • Outside Edge - Nick Bamford

    20 Feb 2003

    Simplicity is seen as the solution to the crisis in confidence which has settled on pension savings in the UK. Whether or not simplification is the solution, only time will tell, but action is needed now, not in the future. The Pension Green Paper was launched with the twin aims of providing solutions to the need for all of us to save more and work longer. The Government wishes to encourage this. Bearing these goals in mind, some of the changes suggested ...

  • Packaging protection

    20 Feb 2003

    For months, it has been well nigh impossible to have a conversation with anyone about group income protection without the subject of pensions and ill health early retirement rearing its head. The basic storyline is convincing enough. In the good old days of the 20th Century, when stockmarkets used to rise, most defined-benefit pensionschemes enjoyed the luxury of boasting investment surpluses. Employers could, with the permission of their scheme trustees, often ...

  • Panel criticises FSA in Annual Report

    25 Feb 2003

    The Financial Services Practitioner Panel has criticised the FSA for failing to take into account the principle that consumers must be responsible for their own financial decisions. In its Annual Report published this week, the panel of industry players whose role it is to shadow the FSA said it hoped the regulator would take this principle more into account in 2003. The report also criticised the number of initiatives coming from the FSA saying it was adding unreasonable ...

  • Park Row takes mix and match approach to advice

    20 Feb 2003

    National IFA Park Row is aiming to expand its business through a team of multi-tied advisers selling Sandler-type products following publication of the FSA depolarisation proposals in CP166. The group says it wants to divide its 230 Park Row Associates IFAs, segmenting them into a multi-tied team, a fee-based division of advisers targeting higher-net-worth clients and IFAs working on a commission basis. It believes its mix and match approach will allow ...

  • Pass masters

    20 Feb 2003

    Reading Ian Thomson's article about Pass (Money Marketing, January 23) revealed what this industry can do if it has a united mind to do so. What a crying shame it would be if all the cooperation, pension expertise, experience and record of success, etc, were allowed to go to waste if Pass is wound up. As a relatively small IFA,I have had direct contact and significant benefit from Pass and would like to place my thanks on record to all concerned, from ...

  • Pension doyen Bamford fails to get PI cover

    20 Feb 2003

    The PI crisis could prevent one of the UK's most high-profile and respected IFAs from continuing in business independently, with Sofa chairman and Informed Choice managing director Nick Bamford admitting this week that he has failed to get cover. Bamford says he may have to merge with a bigger firm, despite there having been no claims made against his firm in its eight years of trading. He is the most high-profile small IFA to fail to get cover in a ...

  • Pensions worth more than 1%

    20 Feb 2003

    Reading Peter Jordan's Sandler Forum article (Monday Marketing, February 13) makes me realise just how far head office people are away from the real world of dealing with the public on pension matters. Peter Jordan naively comments that all IFAs need to do is make sure the products they recommend and the advice they provide really do add value relative to stakeholder products. The whole point is that clients have no idea as to the value of the advice ...

  • Price expectations are finely balanced

    20 Feb 2003

    More than a third of Britons believe house prices will continue to rise over the next three months, according to research by The Mortgage Lender. Its property pulse index shows that 37 per cent of people expect prices to go up, 29 per cent anticipate them to stay the same, 23 per cent expect a fall and 11 per cent do not know. Scots are most confident about house prices, with 54 per cent predicting a rise while just 14 per cent expect the market to tumble. ...

  • Private pensions have widened rich-poor gap

    20 Feb 2003

    Private pension provision has boosted the income of the wealthiest fifth of UK pensioners to more than three times that of the poorest 20 per cent, a new survey reveals. Research from the Pensions Policy Institute reveals that the richest 20 per cent of UK pensioners now have an average pension income of £19,000 a year - 87 per cent of national earnings - with the poorest fifth on £4,600 - 21 per cent of average national earnings. But the ...

  • Property stands Strong

    20 Feb 2003

    The new millennium has been a good time for commercial property. While stockmarkets have been battered by the worst bear market in almost 30 years, property has emerged triumphantly as the best-performing asset class in 2000, 2001 and 2002. However, with recent news focusing on falling rents and decreasing tenant demand, can property continue to shine amidst the gloom? There is certainly evidence to suggest the next 18 to 24 months may be more difficult for the property market. While ...

  • Questions of clarity

    20 Feb 2003

    As a product of the comprehensive education system, I feel well placed to comment on any initiative where people of mixed ability are pushed together. The reality of this educational method is that, with the exception of the first year, there is little in the way of mixed-ability classes. This is not rebellion on the part of the schools, it simply reflects that, as matters become more complex, innate ability either comes to the fore or it does not. As ...

  • Rates of change

    20 Feb 2003

    Recent increases in guaranteed critical-illness premiums have brought providers' product development plans in this area sharply into focus. We have seen most CI providers make significant increases to guaranteed rates. We need to understand why this is happening and what the outlook is for the market. The reasons behind rising premiums could not be more positive. Advances in medical science mean that diseases which 20 years ago were regarded as critical ...

  • Resistance growing to extending the Sandler model to with-profits

    20 Feb 2003

    Financial services group Cater Barnard is teaming up with entertainment financier Comerica Entertainment Group to launch the Monument Film Fund, a new vehicle to fund UK films. The fund hopes to raise £50m, with minimum initial investments of £50,000 and increments of £10,000. Investors can get 100 per cent tax relief on their investment. The fund will only invest in films which are deemed commercially viable by an advisory panel of industry ...

  • Richard Craven

    20 Feb 2003

    B ellowing down the telephone from Jamaica, Richard Craven manages the difficult trick of being loud and deeply opinionated without being offensive. In the Caribbean to secure funding for Money Portal, the acquisitive distribution company of which he is managing director, Craven is waxing lyrical about his love of music and his passion for fishing - the other reason he is in Jamaica. Hoping to catch a marlin or wahoo of "roughly equivalent weight to my ...

  • Seaside

    20 Feb 2003

    You might imagine that as the Perfect Storm of Q1 2003 continues to rip through the investment industry with devastating force, few players would put on their waterproofs and go out into the sodden landscape with Isa consumer campaigns. You would be right up to a point. Quite a few players are conspicuous by their absence. But there are rumours that some of them will give it a go as the deadline gets a bit nearer. And quite a few players are out there, at least to some extent, already. In ...

  • Selestia - Self Invested Personal Pension

    20 Feb 2003

    Thursday, 20 February 2003 Type: Full SippMinimum investment: Lump sum £2,500Investment choice: All Inland Revenue permitted investmentsAdministrator: Hornbuckle MitchellCharges: Initial £210, annual £390Commission: Initial 3%, renewal 0.5%Tel: 08456 410410

  • Shield yield or go for growth in UK

    20 Feb 2003

    After many years of successful Isa seasons with investors committing money to the UK market, investor psychology is a major factor for 2003. Despite the dramatic falls in markets and the perception that many UK stocks are at very attractive levels, investors are still unwilling to commit money to the UK market. If people were to invest now, what are the prospects? The list of possible negatives has been well documented - the threat of war, solvency levels for life insurance companies ...

  • SIM picks Goldman Sachs to run Euro equity fund

    20 Feb 2003

    Skandia Investment Management is appointing institutional specialist Goldman Sachs Asset Management to run its single strategy retail European equity fund. Subject to FSA approval, the continental European fund - a sub-fund of the Oeic which SIM is launching in April - will be managed by a team of 24 investment managers and analysts led by David Dick, co-head of GSAM's European equities desk. Due to roll out on May 1, the fund, the first of two that ...

  • Smooth move would be rough

    20 Feb 2003

    The regulator may be growing overly fond of revolutionary change cheered on by the Treasury. It may be planning to turn the way that insurers do business upside down by applying the Sandler with-profits model to conventional with-profits. Discussion paper 20 could see various restrictions applied to with-profits - particularly on investment - and, as a result, all insurers would move to a smooth managed model. And what of the orphan assets? This ...

  • Standard Life Investments beefs up its team

    24 Feb 2003

    Standard Life Investments has beefed up its team by recruiting Alasdair MacLean to its fixed interest team as a European credit analyst and Reg Watson as investment director for its global equities team.Maclean worked previously for CIBC and Watson for Threadneedle Investment Managers.

  • Standard seeking solvency waiver

    20 Feb 2003

    Standard Life is to ask the FSA for a solvency waiver but says this is in line with other companies and not because it is close to breaching solvency margins. The company has already been granted a waiver from the regulator to use future profits in its accounts, due to be published in March. Standard is still firefighting following widespread negative coverage of its bonus cuts at the beginning of the month. This has been compounded by the revelation that ...

  • Striking resemblance

    20 Feb 2003

    Is that M2 managing director Mark Howard or the evil property developer trying to get his filthy hands on Warbury Warriors' stadium to turn it into a supermarket? The Diary hopes Howard's business methods don't have much in common with the character in The Sun's Striker cartoon strip.We have never seen them both in the same room. o Help the aged, Gordon, one day you will be just like them. This is just one of the cards that the Chancellor will be ...

  • Swift solution for Selestia

    20 Feb 2003

    Technology provider Sirius Financial Systems and fund supermarket Selestia are teaming up to offer IFAs end-to-end processing capabilities when using the software provider's Swift system. IFAs using Swift will be able to access Selestia's suite of online tools to create bespoke investment portfolios for their clients from the 336 investment funds Selestia offers. The deal also means Swift users will be able to pass data to the Selestia service and ...

  • Table toppers

    20 Feb 2003

    Scottish Life is the exclusive sponsor of Sky's pay-per-view Premiership football channel Premiership Plus. To celebrate this partnership, last year Scottish Life teamed up with Money Marketing to offer IFAs the chance to take part in the Scottish Life Fantasy League. The top prize is a pair of 2003/4 season tickets for the Premiership team of choice and a top of the range home entertainment system including a 36-inch widescreen TV, DVD and video. Over ...

  • Talkback

    20 Feb 2003

    "Yes, I would agree with that because of the care and attention you get from a personal adviser instead of the bulk service in a bank." Brian Donn, North East Independent Financial Advice "Yes, I think so, because we will maintain our independence and build up personal relationships with our clients." Christopher Knox, Beacon House Investments "I would say yes. Banks give a very bad service traditionally, so IFAs are more in tune with what investors ...

  • Taxing times

    20 Feb 2003

    We all know that the Isa season has started and managers' discounts are starting to appear in the press. But with the stockmarkets at such low levels and only one more year of being able to reclaim the 10 per cent tax credit that attaches to dividend payments from UK equities, the question regarding tax incentives and whether they are really worth it must be asked. After my conversation with the Inland Revenue there seems to be no plan to relent on the five-year incentive from the ...

  • TD Waterhouse gets structured

    25 Feb 2003

    TD Waterhouse has entered the market for structured products with the introduction of its protected investment plan (Pip). This guaranteed equity bond is linked to the FTSE 100 index over a term of five-years and one month through a Guernsey-based investment company that is listed on the Irish stock exchange. Investors in the Pip will get their original capital back whatever happens to the FTSE 100 index, plus potential growth of up to 75 per cent of the growth in the ...

  • Terminal Care

    20 Feb 2003

    Sorry to go on but I must finish off the theme of what is and what isn't a redundancy payment. This is important to establish if you want to claim tax exemptions. Some key points on the question of taxability under section 148 or the general provisions of Schedule E are: •Genuine redundancy payments and payments such as those considered in the Mairs • Haughey case will be taxable under section 148. •Payments made to compensate ...

  • The Miles File

    20 Feb 2003

    The debacle in the split-cap-ital investment trust market is a headache that most IFAs could do without and our representatives in the House of Commons only added to the pain last week by chipping in with their ha'penny-worth on the scandal. Advisers escaped the real heat of the MPs' scorn, which is strange, given that the honourable members are wont to sound off about almost anything or anybody, regardless of whether or not they have any knowledge ...

  • TrustNet sees 40% increase in web hits

    20 Feb 2003

    UK investment fund information provider TrustNet says the number of people logging on to its website has increased by more than 40 per cent since last year. The number of monthly user sessions has gone up to 190,000 in 2002 from 120,000 in 2001. It calculates this figure by looking at the number of page impressions that users make. The top five sections visited by users are: the unit trust and Oeic database, the specialist fund news service, the education ...

  • US on route to recovery

    20 Feb 2003

    For the objective observer, who wants to take a step back from the war drums and the cries for peace over Iraq (not to mention North Korea), what can one expect from US equities for the coming year? Although recent events always tend to influence the supposed dispassionate analysis of strategists (just look at how many more have turned more pessimistic after three negative years in equity returns compared to after two years), it could be argued that a base is forming for recovery. Although ...

  • Virgin says trackers are better in a bear market

    20 Feb 2003

    Virgin Money is slamming UK fund managers, saying their performance is worse than the stockmarket and inv-estors are better off in a tracker fund during a bear market. It bases the criticism on its annual report from research consultancy WM Company which analyses monthly unit price returns in the UK all companies sector from 1982 to 2002 using the FTSE All-Share index as its benchmark. The research shows that 60 per cent of active funds managers failed ...

  • Website seeks views on pensions

    20 Feb 2003

    Pension consultant Watson Wyatt is setting up a website to collect the views of employers and pension schemes on the Government's Pensions Green Paper proposals. The website at www.watson wyatt.com/gpq is structured as a questionnaire that allows people to post their reactions to the Department for Work and Pensions Green Paper and the Inland Revenue's tax simplification proposals. Watson Wyatt will use the answers it gathers in its official response ...

  • Well done Axa Equity & Law

    20 Feb 2003

    Unfortunately, we are an industry in turmoil and we seem to lurch from one disaster to another. One of the most annoying things, among many, is the decline in standards of administration by the various life offices, some, of course, being far worse than others. Most of us are quick to complain but usually slow to praise. I would just like to take this opportunity through your column to readdress the balance slightly and offer my praise to Axa Equity & ...

  • Widows boosted by 25% increase in IFA business

    20 Feb 2003

    Booming IFA business through Scottish Widows helped relieve the gloom of downbeat annual results from LloydsTSB. Widows' sales last year via IFAs jumped by 25 per cent to £348.5m from £279.8m in 2001 on an equivalent premium income basis. The results mean Widows has increased its share of the IFA market from to 4.5 per cent from 3.8 per cent and IFA business now makes up around 45 per cent of Widows' business. The results also show that ...

  • Wig sets up site to help women become advisers

    20 Feb 2003

    The Women's IFA Group is building a trainee database of women who want to become financial advisers. Wig is launching the facility on its website which will allow women who want to train as advisers to store their details online. Employers from any firm can access the database, which will include CV details and the type of job sought. The women joining the site are looking to move from admin to become advisers and some have FPC qualifications. The ...

  • Yorkshire BS launches new range of fixed rate

    25 Feb 2003

    Yorkshire Building Society has launched a new range of four fixed rate flexible mortgages all available with loans to value of up to 95 per cent. The range includes a two year fixed with a rate of 3.79 per cent., a three year fixed at 3.99 per cent, a five year fixed at 4.49 per cent and a 10 year fixed at 4.99 per cent.

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