Money Marketing
20 August 2003

  • ཇ% of equity investments are for school fees'

    21 Aug 2003

    Eleven per cent of people are investing in equities to save for child-related costs such as school fees. Research from Fidelity shows that the rising costs of university and private education are leading parents to save so their children do not leave university with a burden of debt. Fidelity says the average fees for a private boarding school are now £14,500 a year based on figures from the Independent Schools Council. Even if parents do not use private ...

  • 'Bondholders in the dark over pledges of no MVRs'

    21 Aug 2003

    Life offices are keeping quiet on guarantees of no market value reductions on with-profits bonds sold in the 1990s that could put reserves under pressure. A report on MVRs by Chartwell Investment Management claims Scottish Provident, Clerical Medical, AMP NPI, Britannic Assurance, CIS, Legal & General, Liverpool Victoria, MGM Assurance, Pearl, Royal & Sun Alliance, Scottish Equitable and Scottish Widows are among those that have all sold with-profits bonds that included a promise ...

  • 'Digital TV limited for pensions'

    21 Aug 2003

    Delays in uploading pages and general navigation problems mean consumers are less likely to use interactive digital television than the internet as a way of accessing information from the Pensions Service, according to a report this week. The report comes at the conclusion of the Department for Work and Pensions' pilot interactive TV operation which has operated since spring 2002 providing Pensions Service information to households across the UK. Face-to-face advice ...

  • 'Efficient admin systems could save life offices £1.5bn a year'

    21 Aug 2003

    Life offices could save up to £1.5bn each year if they adopted more efficient administration and back-office systems, says software provider Marlborough Stirling. An analysis by the company of the FSA's 2002 returns reveals that life offices are spending more than £30 a year to administer each individual policy on their books, up from£28 in 2001 and £25.50 in 2000. It says that companies should be aiming to cut costs to around half of this amount. Marl

  • 'IFAs could save £5m on phone bills'

    21 Aug 2003

    IFAs could slash over £5.4m off the £32m they spend each year making business-related phone calls, according to research from BT. A study looking at 1.7 million phone bills across the UK carried out for BT by Deloitte & Touche found that if firms switched to more competitive phone plans available on the open market, they could save over £5.4m each year.

  • 'ScotEq and ScotMut have most open WPs'

    21 Aug 2003

    Scottish Mutual and Scottish Equitable have the most open and understandable with-profits funds for consumers, according to the latest research from consulting actuaries AKG. Its latest assessment marks funds out of five by measuring transparency, degree of discretion retained by the provider on bonus rates and the quality of information. ScotMut's smoothed growth and income funds get five out of five, along with Scottish Equitable's new-generation with-profits ...

  • 'Staff are missing out on £350m in profit-share plans'

    21 Aug 2003

    UK workers are missing out on £350m in possible tax breaks on employee share plans, according to IFA Promotion. IFAP says this amount could be just the tip of the iceberg of what employees could save from tax breaks in profit-share schemes. It points out if all staff currently involved in such a scheme invested just half of the £3,000 tax-free investment which is allowed under the Government's share incentive plans then it would hit the £350m mark. But ...

  • 7% growth offered on PFM plan

    21 Aug 2003

    Premier Fund Managers has set up a structured plan offering 7 per cent growth a year even if the markets stays flat. Available from September 1, Premier limited edition no 11 is a six-year FTSE 100-based growth plan. However, it can mature early at the end of years one to five depending on the index performance, with 100 per cent redemption of capital plus 7 per cent of capital growth if the FTSE 100 index is at or above its start value on any of the plan's anniversary dates. If ...

  • A blank canvas for EIS investments

    21 Aug 2003

    Albert Goodwin is an enterprise investment scheme aiming to raise up to £4.95m to finance a London-based art dealing business. The business will be run in conjunction with an existing business, the Chris Beetles Gallery. Chris Beetles has been trading for 22 years and deals in a range of art from affordable illustrations and cartoons to Victorian and 20th Century oil paintings. According to Chris Beetles, there is a demand for art within the £5,000 to £100,000 ...

  • A profitable Alliance?

    21 Aug 2003

    Inter-Alliance's £15m cash injection from the City last week brings the total invested in the national IFA by institutions to just under £60m since the beginning of 2002. With the other listed IFA giants Berkeley Berry Birch and Millfield also recently raising institutional funds despite heavy losses across the IFA industry, many observers are unsure whether to pour more money into a loss-making business model in the hope that leaner, meaner money-making businesses ...

  • Abbey Nat urged to take fight to HBOs

    21 Aug 2003

    Leading mortgage brokers have thrown down the gauntlet to Abbey National, challenging it to get its act together, saying the lack of competition faced by market leader HBOS is unhealthy. Brokers have voiced their concerns over HBOS's market dominance, saying it is important for the industry that Abbey wins back their approval and market share to provide significant competition. Latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders show that HBOS has 26 per cent of the ...

  • Active v passive debate not helped by flawed research

    21 Aug 2003

    I was interested to read the articles which claimed, based on research by Hargreaves Lansdown, that actively managed funds beat passively managed ones. This was apparently based on measuring compounded returns over several cumulative periods of years ending at the present. The problem with this approach seems obvious but perhaps it will bear illustrating by a simple example. Fund A has returns of 0.5 per cent every single month for five years, after which it will have returned ...

  • Advisers criticise DWP over new CETV rules

    21 Aug 2003

    Trustees will no longer need to provide details of why cash-equivalent transfer values have been reduced under new Department for Work and Pensions rules published this month. Advisers say the change means that individuals wanting to transfer their pension rights out of occupational schemes have no way of knowing whether CETVs have been calculated in a fair way. Under the old rules, trustees could reduce transfer values if there was a deficit at the last minimum funding ...

  • Aifa to lobby on protection regime

    21 Aug 2003

    Aifa director general Paul Smee is planning to lobby the FSA and the Treasury to ensure the regime being designed by the FSA for the protection market is proportionate. It has formed a protection working party of providers and intermediaries, which will be keeping a watching brief on the FSA as it prepares for the regulation of general insurance, including protection, from January 2005. Protection intermediaries say Smee has been trying to convince them to join Aifa by ...

  • Aifa's wider role Stage a protest

    21 Aug 2003

    I agree with David Hackett that all IFAs should stand together on the PI issue (Money Marketing, August 7). The FSA is set to launch a paper which will attempt to organise financial advice into different product and service areas or perhaps into advice based on different stages of life. Hello, what's going on? Madness personified. What jobsworth in the FSA dreamt that up? Indeed, when did they last see a customer? I have my doubts that they know what one is. I ...

  • All the world's a life stage

    21 Aug 2003

    I read in Money Marketing (yes, I read it as well) that there is a possibility that IFAs could be encouraged to specialise in particular areas of business. Apparently, the FSA has put forward the idea that advisers could choose to specialise in particular areas, leading consumers to identify certain advisers with stages in their lives. Much debate will no doubt take place on the rightness of any possible attempt to force advisers to specialise by reference to life stages. I am ...

  • Anglo Irish Bank Isle of Man - Capital Protected Bond II

    21 Aug 2003

    Type: Capital-protected bond Aim: Growth linked to the performance of the FTSE 100 index Minimum-maximum investment: £10,000 Term: Five years six months Place of registration: Isle of Man Guarantee: Original capital returned in full regardless of performance in index Return: 100% growth at end of term or 30% growth after three years if index rises by 30% or more at third anniversary Closing date: September 12, 2003 Commission: ...

  • Bagger questions values

    21 Aug 2003

    Standard Life carpetbagger David Stonebanks is taking the company to task over the way it used its institutional shareholder vote to reject Debenhams' recent share offer. Standard Life Investments head of UK equities David Cumming was recently reported as saying the 425p a share offer for Debenhams undervalued the company against the sector and the market and Standard would reject it. Stonebanks has written to Cumming saying that current with-profits policyholders ...

  • Baker to head pan-Euro fund at Threadneedle

    21 Aug 2003

    Dominic Baker will take over responsibility for Threadneedle's pan-European growth fund at the end of August, replacing Susie Roberts who is leaving to pursue a career in sailing. Roberts has been lead manager on the fund since August 2000. Baker has been a member of Threadneedle's European team since 2000 and is deputy manager of the select growth fund as well as managing other funds in the company's European equity portfolios. Joining Baker on the pan-European ...

  • Bristol & West offering two versions of Escalator bond

    21 Aug 2003

    Bristol & West is aiming an investment bond at savers wanting a regular income. It says the Escalator bond is ideal for investors looking to maximise income in retirement. The three-year bond pays a higher interest rate each year and is available in two forms. The monthly version has a rate starting at 3.64 per cent in year one, rising to 4.02 per cent in year two and 4.89 per cent in year three. Minimum investment for this version is £5,000. The ...

  • Brokers hit out at FSA ban on direct contact with referrals

    21 Aug 2003

    FSA plans to ban client-specific personal referrals under mortgage regulation have been criticised by the mortgage industry amid fears it will increase costs and consumer inertia. Intermediaries often currently receive possible business referrals to friends from clients after interviews. However, once mortgages become regulated next October, intermediaries will no longer be able to contact these referrals directly but will have to write to the referral, asking permission ...

  • Cautious outlook

    21 Aug 2003

    Sarasin's income portfolio is an Oeic that mirrors an existing Sarasin offshore fund. It invests in a mix of equities and bonds. Assessing its suitability to the market, Stewart says: "With a strong emphasis on fixed interest but with some equity exposure, it should fit well in the cautious managed sector." Dilke-Wing says: "The Oeic fits into the market well as it seems to provide investors with returns from a balanced portfolio that is slightly different from the ...

  • Challenge would benefit loan sector

    21 Aug 2003

    A market in which one player establishes what seems like an unassailable lead may not be healthy and some intermediaries are concerned this is happening in mainstream mortgages. One of the UK's best-established mortgage brokers Savills and lively recent arrival Hamptons hope that Abbey National's chief executive Luqman Arnold can back up his "back to basics" words with deeds. They believe Abbey has been an underperforming number two. Cheltenham & Gloucester and ...

  • Changing attitudes

    21 Aug 2003

    Some years ago, I went to my local MFI furniture store and bought louvre doors to complete a set of built-in wardrobes. Quite apart from the difficulty in transporting them on a roof rack, the real test was fitting them. A seemingly simple task proved close to an impossibility. Several weekends ago, I spotted an article which continued to peddle the myth that all the low-earners of this country need is a decision tree and a low-cost plan and they are on their way to financial ...

  • Clerical Medical - Trustee Buy-Out Solutions

    26 Aug 2003

    Type: S32 bulk buyout plan Minimum premium: £3,000 per scheme Minimum group size: Two Minimum-maximum ages: 16-74 Fund links: Clerical Medical funds: balanced managed, cautious managed, adventurous managed, non equity managed, international managed, UK equity, equity high income, ethical, UK equity tracker, global equity tracker, UK smaller companies, European, Japan, North America, Pacific, cash, gilt & fixed interest, index linked, property, ...

  • Clerical Medical buys in bulk

    26 Aug 2003

    Clerical Medical has brought out a S32 bulk buy-out plan to take advantage of opportunities within the pension transfer market as a result of the trend for the winding up of final salary schemes.Clerical Medical says final salary scheme wind-ups are being driven by factors such as restructuring within companies, mergers and takeovers, management buy-outs and insolvencies. It believes the long-term trend towards defined contribution schemes is unlikely to stop and has designed the ...

  • Confidence underpins property

    21 Aug 2003

    Consumer confidence in the housing market remains high, with £141.7bn worth of property set to change hands by December, according to research by Sainsbury's Bank. The research reveals that just 2 per cent of people are concerned that property prices could fall. There has been no change in the number of homeowners planning to move since the previous index was conducted in March, with 6 per cent of UK homeowners, totalling 1.03 million people, planning to move. Forty ...

  • Correspondent's week

    21 Aug 2003

    My week starts on Monday not only with a new job as a director but also setting up new offices for Hornbuckle Mitchell in London. We have taken serviced offices in Holborn. I turn up and they manage to provide me with my key but no one is available to show me up and explain where things are so this is a good start. Once inside, I switch on the computer and nothing happens. Do I phone our IT guy in Leicester? Decide to see if I can work out what is wrong. Even ...

  • Coventry moves into self-cert market

    21 Aug 2003

    Coventry Building Society is making its first foray into the self-certification mortgage market with three self-cert products. The first is a three-year discount of 1.06 per cent from Coventry's standard variable rate, currently 5.54 per cent, giving a rate of 4.48 per cent. A 4.49 per cent variable-rate mortgage is available, guaranteed to be no more than Coventry's SVR. The society is also offering a 4.95 per cent variable-rate mortgage guaranteed to be no more than 2 per cent ...

  • Critical cover payouts hit £200m for Zurich

    21 Aug 2003

    Zurich is claiming that its Allied Dunbar-branded critical-illness insurance plans have paid out £100m to policyholders in the last three years, doubling the previous eight years' payouts. It says there has now been more than £200m paid out to policyholders, an increase largely due to advances in medical technology and definitions. The firm says claims are increasing because medical advances are making it possible to detect diseases earlier so more claims ...

  • Don't sit on the ringfence

    21 Aug 2003

    Thank you for keeping me informed about the proposed changes concerning pensions. I am concerned that the timetable for the introduction will be tight. Is there anything I should be doing now to help my clients through these changes? You are right to be concerned about all the changes proposed as several are extremely complicated and wide-reaching. Thankfully, it appears that their introduction has been put back until April 2005. In the past, whenever pension ...

  • Double hit for Xmas as L&G fund charge to rise by 50%

    21 Aug 2003

    Legal & General is set to hit investors in its £1bn fixed-interest fund with a double whammy this December when it hikes its income-deducted annual management charge by 50 per cent. It is warning IFAs it is raising the charge to 0.75 per cent from 0.5 per cent in a bid to cover the cost of running the actively managed fund, which it says has been priced in line with an index tracker. As L&G takes charges from income rather than investors' underlying capital, it means ...

  • Double trouble

    21 Aug 2003

    A new UK/US double-taxation treaty came into force on March 31, replacing the previous 1975 treaty. The new treaty is long and complex and space prevents any detailed analysis so I am confining the contents of this article to the possible impact that the treaty might have on pension arrangements. In the past, one of the great difficulties of dealing with US citizens who are resident in the UK has been that such citizens have been taxed in the US on their worldwide income from ...

  • EFG Private Bank - Prudent Global Gold Fund

    21 Aug 2003

    Type: Hedge fund Aim: Growth by investing in gold stocks Investment split: 100% in gold stocks Place of registration: Jersey Charges: Initial up to 5%, annual 2% Commission: Subject to negotiation Tel: 020 7491 9111

  • EFG Private Bank shines light on high-net-worth market

    21 Aug 2003

    EFG Private Bank has teamed up with US fund manager David Tice & Associates to target high-net-worth investors with a hedge fund investing in gold stocks. The prudent gold fund is a Jersey-domiciled hedge fund that will take long and short positions on small and mid cap gold stocks. It will have a long-only bias with a maximum short position of 40 per cent. EFG Private Bank selected David Tice as the manager because of his experience in running hedge funds in bear markets. ...

  • Employees losing £1.6bn in pension contributions says Close

    22 Aug 2003

    The trend moving away from final salary occupational pension schemes towards defined contribution ones is costing employees up to £1.6bn a year in pension contributions according to Close Wealth Management.

  • Ex-Ashley Law IFAs' action group seeking £500,000 compensation

    21 Aug 2003

    Ten former Ashley Law IFAs have formed an action group seeking a minimum of £500,000 compensation from the national IFA firm for alleged breach of franchise agreements and loss of revenue through lack of advertising. The group shares legal costs and says another seven people are waiting to join. Chris Wilson is the first of the former franchisees to pursue a county court action against the national firm, alleging breach of franchise agreements. The group will back ...

  • F&C links up with comdirect

    22 Aug 2003

    F&C Management is linking its website to Europe's largest stockbroker comdirect to give investors an alternative to buying shares through its saving scheme, Pep or Isa wrappers.

  • Firms seeking DB alternatives

    21 Aug 2003

    More than half of employers have carried out a major review of their final-salary pension schemes in the last year and many are keen to find alternatives rather than close them down, says Watson Wyatt. The actuarial consultancy, which advises more than 50 of the 100 biggest UK corporate pension schemes, found that 59 per cent of final-salary schemes were reviewed in the last year and 55 per cent made no major changes. But 32 per cent of the total schemes which were reviewed ...

  • Five million pensioners cut spending

    21 Aug 2003

    Half of the UK's 10 million pensioners have been forced to cut back on their spending in the last three months, according to research from Prudential. More than two million have gone back to work although the Pru concedes that in some cases this could be just to combat boredom while others could need the cash. The findings from the Pru's quarterly retirement index also show that 210,000 pensioners have broken the law or are considering doing so to boost their income

  • Framlington discount deal on lump sums

    21 Aug 2003

    Framlington is offering a 2 per cent discount on all lump-sum investments into its health and biotech funds. The funds, which have risen by 35.1 per cent and 39.1 per cent respectively over the past six months, both have initial charges of 3.5 per cent until September 30 instead of the normal 5.5 per cent. Commission is 3 per cent.The deal applies to Isa and Pep transfers and unit trust investments.

  • Friendlies could shut if Sandler plans get go-ahead

    21 Aug 2003

    Up to a third of friendly societies could be forced to close if a Government proposal to drop qualifying policies goes ahead under its Sandler proposals. Druids Sheffield Friendly Society chief executive Colin Paskell, who is also on the Association of Friendly Societies policy and public affairs committee, says around 20 out of 64 friendly societies are at risk of closing to new business if the plan goes ahead, as they could no longer sell their main product of tax-exempt savings ...

  • FSA investigating fund companies' promotional fees

    21 Aug 2003

    The FSA is demanding that a number of fund groups explain why they are levying promotional fees on top of normal charges when its rules ban the practice. It is concerned that some firms are seeking to recoup sub-register fees - the percentage of annual management fees paid to fund supermarkets - by charging investors directly from funds, creating higher total expense ratios. Although it clarified its position in a consultation paper issued in May, it fears that some groups are ...

  • FSA's prescription for advice is based on poor diagnosis

    21 Aug 2003

    I understand there is a phrase in journalism relating to the summer when there is little or no news - the silly season. This came to mind when I read that the FSA is seeking to redefine advice and make IFAs specialise in meeting the needs of one particular stage of a person's life (Money Marketing, August 7). In my experience, this already happens naturally. How many times have I been to a seminar with other IFAs and one of the first questions asked is: "What do you specialise ...

  • FTBs face daunting deposit

    21 Aug 2003

    The average deposit paid by first-time buyers has rocketed over the last five years, jumping 250 per cent to £22,547 from £9,019. Figures from market analyst Datamonitor provide evidence that FTBs are being priced out of the market and are finding it increasingly difficult to get on the housing ladder. People looking to buy in London have fared even worse, seeing a 265 per cent jump in deposit to £37,123 from £14,062 in 1998. Datamonitor ...

  • GE backs Women's IFA Group

    21 Aug 2003

    Retirement planning specialist GE Life has signed a sponsorship deal with the Women's IFA group. Wig was set up by Fiona Price three years ago and now has 650 members. It is established in eight locations across the UK and runs quarterly meetings. The GE sponsorship will mean the non-profit group will be able to expand and organise more events. GE Life CEO Scott Dolfi says: "GE Life recognises the valuable contribution that women make to the financial services sector ...

  • Goodfellows - IncomeInsurance

    20 Aug 2003

    Type: Accident, sickness and unemployment cover Maximum benefit: £1,000 or 50% of gross monthly income Benefit payment term: 12 months Deferred period: 30 days Premium: £3.50 per £100 for unemployment cover, £3.50 per £100 for disability cover, £5.50 per £100 for unemployment and disability cover Commission: Initial 20% Tel: 0870 2403946

  • Group 300 seeks £10m to buy network

    21 Aug 2003

    Cambridge-based IFA network and support services provider Group 300 is looking to raise £10m from private investors to buy a medium-sized network within the next six months. The group, formerly Advice Store, launched in January last year, is in negotiations with a commercial financier to secure the £10m from private equity investors. It is aiming to use the investment to buy a medium-sized network of between 100 and 200 RIs at the end of October. Group ...

  • Hamptons picks associate director

    21 Aug 2003

    Rob Winfield joins Hamptons International Mortgages as associate director (western region). Winfield joins from Chelsea Mortgage Management. Hamptons has 10 offices within a 40-mile radius of Bristol and Bath.

  • IFAP eyes Jersey and Isle of Man IFAs

    21 Aug 2003

    IFA Promotion has thrown open its doors to IFAs in Jersey and the Isle of Man, inviting them to join up. It expects to target advisers based in Guernsey soon. Chief executive David Elms says he has been in talks with various offshore regulators to make it easier for IFAs to join IFAP.

  • IFAs face added burden on money-laundering rules

    21 Aug 2003

    IFAs may be forced to collect significantly more information when establishing relationships with new clients under the latest set of FSA proposals aimed at combating money laundering. Discussion Paper 22, Reducing Money Laundering Risk - Know Your Customer and Anti-Money Laundering Monitoring, published by the FSA this week, proposes extending the information that must be collected by firms under the know your customer requirements. The obligations could be extended ...

  • Independent view

    21 Aug 2003

    In these litigious and spin-filled days, the public is increasingly suspicious, particularly of politicians. Trust and integrity have for so long quite naturally been taken for granted. This is no longer so and, sadly, in the financial services world, the end result is an increasingly sceptical consumer. Investors are more than ever wary of taking advice and in many cases no one can blame them. There is a perceived lack of regulatory teeth, no confidence in pensions, ...

  • Inside edge

    21 Aug 2003

    I am not sure that I agree with the commonly held view that the only alternative to final-salary or defined-benefit schemes is for employers to switch to groupings of personal pensions or stakeholder pensions instead. That is a step-change for many bigger employers that could be difficult for them to sell to their employees. That is not to say, by the way, that I go along with that other great media favourite, the demonising of defined-contribution schemes. It is just that I think ...

  • Insight offers two in one growth plan

    22 Aug 2003

    Insight Investment has established the Insight investment growth plan, a capital-protected bond that caters for two risk profiles within one product. The accelerated growth option is designed for investors who are prepared for less capital protection in exchange for higher returns than the capital protected option, which is aimed at more cautious investors. Under the accelerated growth option, investors receive 10 times the growth in the FTSE 100 index up to a maximum ...

  • Intelligent Finance is set to hit break-even

    21 Aug 2003

    Intelligent Finance says it is close to reaching its target of break-even after three years in business with net lending hitting £2bn in the first half of this year. Launched in November 2000, the tele-net bank saw losses of £38m in the first half of this year but this was an improvement on the £147m loss for the whole of 2002. Chief executive Grenville Turner says: "No other business has managed to achieve such scale so quickly. Bradford & Bingley's ...

  • Investment analysis

    21 Aug 2003

    After stalling and looking for a sense of direction the week earlier, global markets moved ahead strongly last week, albeit amid low volumes, with US retail sales figures providing some impetus. The FTSE World index gained 2 per cent as a number of indices touched multi-month highs. In the US, markets moved ahead strongly on Tuesday after Federal Reserve policymakers voted unanimously to leave short-term interest rates unchanged at 1 per cent and indicated they were in no rush ...

  • Investment view

    21 Aug 2003

    Faced with the choice between commenting in a vague fashion to take account of any delay between writing and publication, or sticking my neck out on what is happening in markets, I like to live dangerously. Are we about to achieve that much-needed upside breakout? The UK stockmarket has flirted with 4,200 before. Indeed, early last week, it nudged the magic number again, but was found wanting. Then, after girding its loins, it thrust through. So are we in a new, higher trading range or ...

  • Julian Gibbs

    21 Aug 2003

    Most of the investment managers who make money are the ones who invest in markets which are out of fashion. The zeros scandal has made many investors avoid the investment trust sector altogether. However, I believe the time is now right and, in fact, a recovery has already begun. The fund manager I most admire in this sector is Nick Greenwood, formerly of Christows. The funds managed by him were rated first, second and third in the FSA-recognised offshore equity global category. He ...

  • KRS says equity release criticism unjustified

    22 Aug 2003

    Key Retirement Solutions says the recent criticism of equity release schemes is unjustified and misses the many benefits it believes the market offers.KRS argues that critics have ignored how well equity release schemes have performed in preserving people’s wealth in an environment of double digit house price inflation. It says equity release has often improved homeowners’ standard of living while allowing them to remain in their properties. 

  • Latin lessons

    21 Aug 2003

    How considerate of Sir Howard Davies to start communicating to the public in Latin. This can only clarify even further the already simple, transparent and market-friendly utterances of the FSA over the recent past. My only misgiving is that maybe he has got it wrong. From my legal and insurance studies (albeit many years ago, when Latin was the language of the masses) caveat emptor was a long-established principle of common law relating to the sale of goods. Never, I think, was ...

  • Majedie Asset Management - UK Opportunities Fund

    26 Aug 2003

    Type: OeicAim: Income and growth by investing in UK companiesMinimum investment: £25,000Investment split: 100% in UK companiesIsa link: NoPep transfers: NoCharges: Initial 5%, annual 1.5%Commission: Subject to negotiationTel: 0131 5259670

  • Malcolm Murray

    21 Aug 2003

    Malcolm Murray has to follow one of the biggest acts in the fund management business, taking over from SG Asset Management founder Nicola Horlick who has let go of the reins of her funds to concentrate fully on the running of the business. Murray has been at SGAM for just 18 months as the company has built up the fund management team so that Horlick was able to concentrate on strategy. SGAM has become known for the flair and individuality of its fund managers and Murray ...

  • Mastek appoints Le Beau to board

    21 Aug 2003

    India-based IT services specialist Mastek UK is appointing Le Beau Visage founder Peter Le Beau to its advisory board. Le Beau was formerly head of marketing at Swiss Re before setting up the consultancy.

  • Move to go online gathers pace

    21 Aug 2003

    The move to get online is continuing to gather momentum in the financial services industry, with 92 per cent of Zurich's non-regulated business now being submitted electronically. Skandia has also processed 35 per cent of its Isa/Pep transfer business electronically within the last tax year.

  • NAB scraps life range to sell L&G products

    21 Aug 2003

    National Australia Bank will sell Legal & General's life insurance products through its UK banking subsidiaries and abandon its own range. The bancassurance agreement is the latest for L&G while for NAB it is a realisation that it might do better to sell an established player's products rather than try to manufacture its own. The move comes just 10 days after John Stewart, the former Barclays deputy chief executive who was instrumental in the deal with L&G in 2001, ...

  • New Star Investment Funds - Global Financials Fund

    22 Aug 2003

    Aim: Growth by investing in financial services companiesMinimum investment: Lump sum £1,000, monthly £100Investment split: Large caps 26.81%, mid caps 42.98%, small caps 30.21%Isa link: YesPep transfers: Yes:Charges: Initial 5.25%, annual 1.5%Commission: Initial 3%, renewa; 0.5%Tel: 0845 6088702

  • Norwich Union increases equity release market share

    22 Aug 2003

    Norwich Union's share in the equity release has increased to almost 45 per cent at the half year according to Safe Home Income Plans' latest figures. The figures show that Norwich Union's equity release sales for the first half of 2003 totalled £252m, equating to almost £10m a week of equity being released.

  • Opra offers update on wind-ups

    21 Aug 2003

    Opra has published a new update on winding up pension schemes aimed at advisers, trustees and insolvency practitioners. The update is available at www.opra.gov.uk/ and sets out Opra's views on the main issues that can cause delay to schemes that are winding up, including investment issues, minimum funding valuations and cash-equivalent transfers.

  • Out of context

    21 Aug 2003

    •"The erotic gherkin has disappeared." - Financial Ombudsman Service spokesman David Cresswell on the London smog. •"I wonder if there is an age limit on that?" - Hargreaves Lansdown's Tom McPhail contemplates a poster for World Breastfeeding Week. •"I spent all morning long saying goo goo, gaa gaa." - Scottish Widows PR Paula Sutherland on babysitting. •"We all had gardening gear on and were wielding tools." - Aegon PR Leslie McPherson ...

  • Outside edge

    21 Aug 2003

    For many years, the defined-benefit scheme has been recognised as the Rolls-Royce of pension plans. Sadly, that is no longer the case. Earlier this year, I took part in a TV programme which examined the state of the pension crisis in the UK. During one of the lengthy breaks between filming, I had the pleasure of listening to the story of one of the other participants. Pleasure may actually be the wrong word because the story he had to tell was quite the opposite. John ...

  • Pioneer takes pure and simple approach

    20 Aug 2003

    PIONEER FRIENDLY SOCIETYPURE PROTECTIONType: Income protection Minimum benefit/minimum premium: £78/£1.53 a month Minimum-maximum ages: 16-59 Deferred periods: 1 day, 1, 4, 8, 13, 26, 52 weeks Charges: None Definition of disability: Own occupation Commission: Initial 130% of Lautro, annual 2.5% Tel: 01225 752140The panel: Kevin Carr, Senior technical adviser, LifeSearch, Neil Franklin, Partner, ...

  • Plan Invest buys up IFA firm's client base

    21 Aug 2003

    Plan Invest is buying the client bank of Llandudno IFA David Chamings in the first of a potential series of acquisitions aimed at boosting its sales and ongoing commission. Cheshire-based Plan Invest will inherit around 150 investment clients from the business, which has been run on a non-discretionary basis by a husband and wife team for 21 years. Both RIs are set to retire. Plan Invest, which has about £100m under management, will concentrate on cross-selling ...

  • Portman takeover means £65m payout

    21 Aug 2003

    Staffordshire Building Society's takeover by Portman will result in payouts of £65m to its members. Borrowers will get bonuses of £200 while savers will get a minimum of £100 and a maximum of £2,500 depending on their account balances. The Staffordshire has around 287,000 members but only 187,000 will qualify for the payout.

  • Product matters

    21 Aug 2003

    The bulk buyout market is attracting the attention of most big players in the pensions market and, fuelled by Opra's assessment that there are up to 30,000 occupational schemes currently in wind-up, Clerical Medical is no exception. Arguably, there are three keys to success in this market which are: charges, fund links and the ability to accept/ process data. Clerical Medical appears to have addressed these with a single annual management charge, an extended range ...

  • Proteau appointed to Standard Life board

    20 Aug 2003

    Standard Life has appointed Jocelyn Proteau as a non-executive director, effective from August 26.

  • Pru loses track of pension client's age

    21 Aug 2003

    An Edinburgh-based IFA is demanding answers from the Prudential after it lost the details of a client and failed to inform them of the need to purchase an annuity when they turned 75 earlier this year. Alan Steel Asset Management managing director Alan Steel, who is one of Scotland's best-known IFAs, is angry that a female client was not contacted by the Pru about her M&G pension when she turned 75 four months ago. She contacted Steel's firm, having a vague idea ...

  • Quality mark

    21 Aug 2003

    Concerning Broker Talkback in the August 14 edition of Money Marketing, I would like to correct an apparent misunderstanding regarding the use of risk assessment specialists and take the opportunity to explain our underwriting philosophy. Magian Underwriting seeks specialist risk assessment reports on a small proportion of the firms which are proposed to us and, generally, those are risks that on the basis of a proposal form only are teetering on a declinature. While our proposal ...

  • Rentals falling as prices rise for BTL buyers

    21 Aug 2003

    Paragon Mortgages monthly buy-to-let index says house prices continue to rise in line with renewed activity in the market but rental incomes are falling. The index shows a 1.43 per cent rise in landlord property values in July following a 5.54 per cent increase in June. The average property now costs landlords £119,587 compared with £117,902 in June and is over £10,000 or 9.3 per cent more than three months ago when the average was £109,393. But ...

  • Revenue blocks way for DB victims

    21 Aug 2003

    The Inland Revenue is using the partial concurrency rule to stop people whose final-salary schemes have closed from making alternative retirement provision. The Revenue has ruled that members of final-salary schemes closed to future accruals fall under partial concurrency regulations because their benefits grow as their salary increases. The Revenue says members will be treated as accruing benefits in an occupational scheme where the final salary against which their entitlement ...

  • Revenue refuses to pay up for blunder

    21 Aug 2003

    Personal and occupational pension schemes are facing losses of £82m after an Inland Revenue move to recover cash it had paid out in error as contracting out of Serps' rebates. It has led to many schemes facing big shortfalls as falling investment markets mean the present value of the rebated funds is less than the amount recovered by the Inland Revenue. Product providers say the Revenue is guilty of double standards because it is refusing to offer any compensation ...

  • Rightmove sets sights on float

    21 Aug 2003

    Property website Rightmove.co.uk has signalled that it is taking the first steps towards flotation with plans in place to increase revenues by 50 per cent to £4.8m. Rightmove, which charges estate agents to list their properties on its website and accounts for about 35 per cent of all properties online, saw bottom-line profits increase to £80,000 in the first half of 2003 from a loss of £492,000 in the first half of last year. The company plans to increase ...

  • Ritchie runs rule over schemes

    21 Aug 2003

    New scheme wind-up rules mean that there is technically no difference between employers and life offices offering final-salary schemes, yet they are subject to radically different accounting systems, says Scottish Equitable pensions development director Stewart Ritchie. Ritchie argues that the introduction of rules requiring solvent employers which wind up schemes to buy out benefits in full means that occupational schemes are tech-nically the same as life offices offering single-premium ...

  • Roadmap shows way on standards

    21 Aug 2003

    The Financial Services Skills Council is holding a special event to launch its national standards framework for financial services. The free event will take place from 10am to noon on September 10 at Mansion House, London, and will include announcements on CP157, conclusions on stage one of the examination review and the launch of stage two. The presentation will set out how the new roadmap fits in with the wider map of qualifications across all sectors of the financial ...

  • Savills is seeking teams of mortgage brokers

    21 Aug 2003

    Savills Private Finance is on the acquisition trail and is looking for teams of mortgage brokers to boost its adviser numbers. Launched in May 1997, Savills has 75 consultants, with 65 on the mortgage side and 10 split between debt planners and specialist IFAs. It is aiming to increase this figure to at least 100 by the end of next year in line with a 50 per cent increase in mortgages arranged to £3bn from current levels of £2bn. FPD Savills, as a group, currently ...

  • Second issue of Keydata growth plan

    21 Aug 2003

    Keydata is launching the second issue of its growth-builder plan offering 100 per cent participation in any growth in the FTSE 100 over six years. The plan, which locks in each 20 per cent rise in the index, will return capital in full unless the FTSE falls by more than 50 per cent during the term and fails to recover to is starting value. Minimum investment is £3,000, with no maximum. Commission is 3 per cent.

  • Single minded

    21 Aug 2003

    The adoption of electronic new business in the life and pension market can at best be described as erratic but there are increasing signs that online submission is becoming the norm in the mortgage market. It is not difficult to identify the reason for this. On the whole, mortgages are far more time-driven than most investment transactions. With the possible exception of single-premium business, if you are investing for five years plus, then investing money today in a ...

  • Single retireds face cost crunch

    21 Aug 2003

    Single retired people are being hit hardest by increases in the cost of living and need to grow their income to keep pace, says Britannic Asset Management. The company's retired income monitor shows that over the last year the single retired sector has seen its cost of living in terms of RPI increase by 3.3 per cent, above the rise for the average working family, at 2.8 per cent, and for retired couples at 2.7 per cent. Britannic says the main factor for the increase ...

  • SLI replaces EFM to run small companies fund

    21 Aug 2003

    Edinburgh Fund Managers has been sacked as manager of the Edinburgh small companies trust following a lengthy spell of underperformance. In yet another blow to EFM, the £62m trust has been taken over by Standard Life Investments. EFM was removed as manager of the £1bn Edinburgh investment trust last August. The small companies trust - ranked last in its peer group over three years - will undergo a realignment led by SLI head of smaller companies equities Harry ...

  • Standard will not close WP funds

    21 Aug 2003

    Standard Life has released a formal statement declaring it has no intention of closing its with-profits funds and saying it is considering launching a new range next year. The statement is in response to reports saying it planned to close current with-profits funds. Standard says it is fully committed to with-profits and that in response to changing customer needs and industry developments such as Sandler-style products, it is considering launching a range of new with-profits products ...

  • Status symbol

    21 Aug 2003

    The article headlined, CII believes chartered status could boost IFAs (Money Marketing, August 7), is a typical symptom of the problems caused when Sir Mark Weinberg started calling his life insurance and pension salesmen "financial advisers" many years ago. I am sure that the CII did not actually say that, as Sofa is not restricted to IFAs alone. Chartered status for Sofa would add further to the confusion that already reigns as a result of the term financial adviser ...

  • Swiss Life quitting UK after deal with Unum

    21 Aug 2003

    Swiss Life has turned its back on the UK market by selling its group income protection book and renewal rights for its group life and critical-illness cover business to Unum Provident. The deal, which sees Unum Provident become the biggest player in the UK group protection market, comes just weeks after Swiss Life said it was closing its individual book to new business and would do the same with its group business unless it could find a buyer by the end of August. Financial ...

  • Taking the gamble out of spread betting

    21 Aug 2003

    One of the fastest-growing areas of investment in the UK is spread betting, with some estimates putting total annual industry sales at £150m and rising. Compared with the billions of pounds being pumped into collective investment schemes each year, this represents a tiny drop in a very deep ocean. But those making the investments are not all City slickers - many are ordinary people using the internet to play the markets themselves without advice or a fund manager ...

  • Talkback

    21 Aug 2003

    Do you agree with Alan Pickering that Isas are better than pensions for people who think that they may receive meanstested benefits in retirement ? "Yes, because of their flexibility and higher income potential." Nigel Sanders, Choice Investment Services "Yes. When the stockmarket picks up, Isas could be preferable." Alan Downs, Collingwood Financial Consultants "Yes, because of the taxation position." John Collier, Mr J S Collier "Yes, because ...

  • Temple founder gets £0.5m in deal

    21 Aug 2003

    RJ Temple founder Richard Temple has received a £506,000 fixed payment as part of the £1m Lighthouse rescue package. Money Marketing has learned that the repayment of the sum was part of the deal for the collapsed IFA. The settlement was made for the goodwill and assets of RJT before the rest of the business was put into liquidation. In a statement to liquidator KPMG, the former RJT directors attribute this sum to new money advanced by Alexander Richard ...

  • Thanks to the Tring IFA

    21 Aug 2003

    Thanks to the Tring IFA who sent in this week's submission for the Diary's No S*!t Sherlock award, which goes to Liverpool Victoria. We all know that IFAs can occasionally be a bit lax when it comes to filling in application forms but the friendly reminder on Liverpool Vic's life protection form goes a bit far. It reads: "WARNING. Please be aware that if you do not provide the name and date of birth of your applicant, we may not be able to process the application." ...

  • The future of protection

    21 Aug 2003

    IFAs advising on protection products are facing a critical time. Many industry commentators feel the market is about to grow substantially and the need to inform clients of the products and services available has never been more important. At the Money Marketing Live show at Manchester's G-Mex on 23 September, ABI critical-illness working party chairman Nick Kirwan will present new research findings into consumer attitudes to protection products. Kirwan will focus ...

  • The real meal ticket

    21 Aug 2003

    The defined-payment system proposed in CP121 is gone and its replacement, the menu option, will soon take its place. As IFAs wait to find out exactly what is on the menu in the coming months, some are recognising that it is really just the start of the end for the traditional IFA practice as we know it. At first glance, the revised menu option proposals, recommended by Aifa and adopted by the FSA at the end of 2002, seemed very much like good news and, for a while at ...

  • Third-party boom sees US giant end Isa sales

    21 Aug 2003

    US giant Franklin Templeton is to stop offering Isas and Peps due to rocketing third-party business in a move it believes will spark a host of further withdrawals. Franklin says its decision has been prompted by the burgeoning amount of business from life companies, fund supermarkets and wrappers. It is negotiating with Fidelity's supermarket FundsNetwork over a possible deal to allow investors with Templeton tax-free wrappers to transfer to the platform. The ...

  • Two appointed to National Savings board

    21 Aug 2003

    Chancellor Gordon Brown has appointed two non-executive directors to the National Savings & Investments board. Paul Spencer joins the board after spending six years on Royal & Sun Alliance's board as well as three years on the ABI's board. Also joining on September 1 is Michael Medicott, recently retired from Nomura International.

  • Us turning away from long-term fixed loans

    21 Aug 2003

    Chancellor Gordon Brown's plans to base the UK mortgage market on the US long-term fixed-rate model could be in for a setback with even in long-term fixes starting to lose their appeal even in the US. US borrowers have traditionally taken out 30-year fixed-rate mortgages. Brown praised the American system in the House of Commons in June, saying it could be the solution to volatility in the British housing market. But US giant General Motors' subsidiary GMAC-RFC ...

  • Verity's view

    21 Aug 2003

    Poor Anna Diamontopoulou. The Greek social affairs commissioner for the European Union could never have known what was about to hit her with the reactions to her draft sex equality directive which is still being discussed by the commissioners. It proposes the elimination of all sex discrimination outside the workplace. One clause makes clear that this includes sex equality in the provision of "all goods and services". It did not even mention insurance, let alone unisex annuities. Sex ...

  • Whips and Spurs

    21 Aug 2003

    Everybody in the advertising and marketing industry knows that brand loyalty is all about giving the customer value for money, delivery of promises, a high standard of service and convenience. Sadly for advertising mogul Lucian Camp, these are qualities that his favourite brand lacks. The CCHM chairman is, of course, talking about his love for Tottenham Hotspur. Musing in his firm's newsletter over how a man's relationship with his football team is often his only ...

  • Widdecombe fayre

    21 Aug 2003

    Described by enemies as a right-wing schoolmistress and friends as Satan with a handbag, Conservative MP for Maidstone and the Weald Ann Widdecombe is the Women IFA Group's latest motivational speaker. Following Widdecombe's dramatic weight loss as part of TV's Celebrity Fat Club, The Diary hopes this date in her calendar is not a sign that she has fallen off the low-fat wagon. The meeting, booked for October, is to be held at Le Petit Blanc restaurant in Manchester.

  • Young suffer phobia to pension planning

    21 Aug 2003

    A nasty epidemic called gerontophobia has Britain firmly in its grasp and is robbing young people of their ability to plan for old age, according to research commissioned by CIS. The research looked into attitudes towards pensions and why more people do not plan for old age sooner. It reveals that 33 per cent of people aged 18 to 25 say the word pension makes them think of old age and the stereotypical images that go with it. Of those, 17 per cent say these thoughts dissuade ...

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