Money Marketing
22 August 2007

  • ABI appealing for more flood defences

    23 Aug 2007

    ABI director general Stephen Hadrill has written to environmental secretary Hilary Benn calling on the Government to increase spending on flood defences and drop plans to build new houses on flood plains.

  • Bank makes £314m emergency loan

    23 Aug 2007

    The Bank of England says it has made an emergency loan of £314m to an unnamed financial institution through its standing lending facility. The facility, allows banks to borrow sums at a penalty rate of 6.75 per cent. It is the first time it has been used in the current credit crunch.

  • L&G appoints Ben Thompson as mortgages director

    24 Aug 2007

    Legal & General has appointed Ben Thompson as mortgages director.

  • 11 Firms fail to reveal annuity deals

    23 Aug 2007

    Eleven annuity providers that are still open to new personal pension or stakeholder business do not publish their annuity rates, according to Standard Life head of pensions policy John Lawson.

  • 12Live makes debut

    23 Aug 2007

    LINCOLN RETIREMENT INCOMEi2Live Retirement Plan

  • 90% Are happy with IFA service

    23 Aug 2007

    Almost 90 per cent of consumers are satisfied with the service they have got from IFAs.

  • A meteor over the rainbow

    23 Aug 2007

    Meteor Asset Management has brought out a guaranteed equity bond linked to a range of asset classes through six stockmarket indices over a term of five years and two weeks.

  • A professional plan

    23 Aug 2007

    Will consumers find the three new categories of adviser suggested in the retail distribution review three steps to clarity or three steps to confusion?

  • A reely different route into films

    23 Aug 2007

    The Route Group and Footprint Films have teamed up to develop a new type of film fund in the light of recent changes to the way British films are financed.

  • A Shaw thing

    23 Aug 2007

    Sam Shaw is a reporter on Money MarketingWhile my industry counterparts were up at the Edinburgh Fringe courtesy of Aegon, I was sitting my final media law exams. I did, however, take a night out of my revision to attend the Spitbank Fort in the middle of the Solent as a guest of Webline.

  • Abbey - Abbey UK Equity Guaranteed Capital and Return Bond

    23 Aug 2007

    AbbeyAbbey UK Equity Guaranteed Capital and Return Bond

  • Abbey - Abbey US Equity Bond

    23 Aug 2007

    AbbeyAbbey US Equity Bond

  • Aberdeen acquires Glasgow Investment Managers

    22 Aug 2007

    Aberdeen Asset Management has acquired Glasgow Investment Managers for £8.95m with the investment team led by Iain Lynn joining the Aberdeen Group.

  • ABI figures show life and pensions sales up 10.7 per cent

    23 Aug 2007

    The Association of British Insurer's announced today life and pensions new business increased 10.7 per cent in the second quarter of 2007 compared to the Q2 2006 to £4.503bn.

  • ABI ready to clarify disability definition

    23 Aug 2007

    The Association of British Insurers has received the go-ahead from the Office of Fair Trading to clarify its definition of total permanent disability.

  • All aboad GAM US equity fund

    23 Aug 2007

    The GAM Star US All Cap equity fund has been added to GAM’s range of US equity funds.

  • AMI gives Competition Commission evidence on MPPI

    24 Aug 2007

    The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries has provided the Competition Commission with evidence to aid its inquiry into Payment Protection Insurance.

  • Amit Mehta joins Atlantis

    23 Aug 2007

    Specialist Asian equity asset manager Atlantis has appointed Amit Mehta as an analyst and fund maanger on its Atlantis Asian ex-Japan team.

  • An American tale

    23 Aug 2007

    US investors are on the sidelines but a reverse in the weakening dollar leaves plenty of room for upside

  • Animal Friends gives up LV= commission for veggie discounts

    23 Aug 2007

    Animal Friends Insurance is sacrificing 75 per cent of the commission it gets from its underwriter LV= to finance the life insurance discounts it is offering vegetarians.

  • 'Apathy' is killing off middle tier

    23 Aug 2007

    Advisers have only themselves to blame if the proposals outlined in the retail distribution review discussion paper are brought in, says Pi Financial Dixon Sutcliffe chief executive Tim Sutcliffe.

  • Arctic role

    23 Aug 2007

    The Arctic Systems judgment has helped clarify the position for many similar cases left hanging in the balance

  • Are buyers on a direct route?

    23 Aug 2007

    Sam Smith reports on Scottish Life's hard-hitting claims that some life offices are buying advice firms to turn them into quasi DFSs

  • Ashby to head UK equity income at Credit Suisse

    23 Aug 2007

    Fund manager hopes to reignite chemistry as former DWS team are reunited on its UK desk

  • Atkins leaves Premier Mortgage Service

    24 Aug 2007

    Premier Mortgage Service has announced that PMS head Steve Atkins is resigning from the company.

  • Axa adds reserve fund

    23 Aug 2007

    AXA FRAMLINGTONMulti-Manager Reserve Fund

  • Axa Framlington - Equity Income Fund

    23 Aug 2007

    Axa FramlingtonEquity Income Fund

  • B-A talks to the public on RDR

    23 Aug 2007

    Burns-Anderson is commissioning consumer research to prepare its response to the retail distribution review consultation paper.

  • Barclays reported to be borrower of BoE £314m emergency loan

    22 Aug 2007

    Reports suggest Barclays Bank was the recipient of the £314m emergency loan from the Bank of England made on Monday through its standing lending facility.

  • Broker talkback

    23 Aug 2007

    Should providers be forced to reveal their annuity rates?

  • Burdett and Potter aim to focus

    23 Aug 2007

    Thames River multi-manager pair Gary Potter and Robert Burdett have vowed to avoid gimmicks and focus on running demand-led products.

  • Buy-to-let buoyant

    23 Aug 2007

    Confidence is generally high after a strong first half, says Tanya Powley

  • Canada Life revamps annuity account

    23 Aug 2007

    CANADA LIFEAnnuity Growth Account

  • Cancer survival rates low in the UK

    23 Aug 2007

    UK cancer survival rates are among the lowest in Europe, according to analysis published in the Lancet Oncology.

  • Cash control

    23 Aug 2007

    What resources are available to help people take charge of their financial affairs?

  • Catalyst Investment - ARM Assured Income Plan

    23 Aug 2007

    Catalyst InvestmentARM Assured Income Plan

  • Cavanagh opens office in Chichester

    28 Aug 2007

    National IFA Cavanagh Group is opening an office in Chichester with a team of five consultants who previously worked at Barclays Wealth.Cavanagh Group managing director Simon Redgrove says: "As well as our operations across the rest of the UK, Cavanagh's aim is to continue to build the largest quality IFA business operating along the South Coast in West Sussex, East Sussex and Hampshire. We have a truly professional team of people committed to establishing and developing relationships ...

  • Cazalet fears MVRs hitting with-profits

    23 Aug 2007

    Independent analyst Ned Cazalet warns that the stockmarket volatility could see the return of market value reductions on with-profits policies.

  • Charcol launches tracker aimed at side-stepping remortgage fees

    22 Aug 2007

    Charcol has launched a “simple-to-switch” tracker aimed at borrowers who do not want to pay remortgage fees every few years.

  • Cheltenham & Glouceste - Five Year Fixed Rate 100% Mortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    Cheltenham & GloucesterFive Year Fixed Rate 100% Mortgage

  • Cheshire Building Society - Buy-To-Let Five Year Fixed Rate

    23 Aug 2007

    Cheshire Building SocietyBuy To Let 5 Year Fixed

  • China makes the long jump

    23 Aug 2007

    The Olympic effect is already boosting the Chinese market but Henry Chan, head of the Asian equity investment team at Baring Asset Management in Hong Kong, says the benefits of economic growth and infrastructure expansion will be felt a lot longer

  • Cliff quits Threadneedle to start boutique

    23 Aug 2007

    Threadneedle European select fund manager Philip Cliff is leaving to open his own boutique.

  • Close grows hedges to widen reserve remit

    23 Aug 2007

    Close Investments has been building positions in funds of hedge funds and other absolute return funds within its reserve equity fund.

  • Confidence in equity prospects

    23 Aug 2007

    Equities received a resounding vote of confidence from the Adviser Fund Index panellists in the third AFI mid-season questionnaire.

  • Contagion or convulsion?

    23 Aug 2007

    Last week saw the FTSE 100 drop below 6,000 as investors took flight amid fears that the market is going to have a harder landing than anticipated.

  • 'Conveyor belt of death to suck down markets 20%'

    23 Aug 2007

    The financial markets are entering the worst banking crisis in decades and the stockmarket is set to fall by another 20 per cent, says Blue Planet Investment Worldwide Financials Investment Trust manager Ken Murray.

  • Cornell is in for Duffy to lead Hamptons' loan push

    23 Aug 2007

    Hamptons has picked technical director Jonathan Cornell as managing director of its mortgages division, four months after Kevin Duffy left the broker to join Robert Sterling.

  • Currency specialist joins Investec

    23 Aug 2007

    Investec Asset Management has appointed Richard Benson of Fisher Francis Trees and Watts as a portfolio manager in its specialist currency team, reporting to head of currency management Thanos Papasavvas.

  • Davy wants grandfather route into PFP category

    23 Aug 2007

    SimplyBiz chairman Ken Davy is calling for all advisers with three years' exper-ience and an unblemished claims' record to be included in the professional financial planner advice category proposed in the retail distribution review.

  • Dawnay Day Quantum - European Stockmarket Maximiser 2

    23 Aug 2007

    Dawnay Day QuantumEuropean Stockmarket Maximiser 2

  • Deadline extended for NU orphan cash

    23 Aug 2007

    Aviva policyholder advocate Clare Spottiswoode has extended the deadline for completing talks with Norwich Union over reattribution of the inherited estate of two of its with-profits funds from early next year until later in2008.

  • Defaqto boosts its Aequos database

    23 Aug 2007

    Defaqto has enhanced its Aequos database products and made them completely accessible online.

  • Drop in the Ocean

    23 Aug 2007

    This is the Aegon press team's sterling imitation of the Ocean's 13 gang, with Money Marketing (and, no doubt, Aegon) ladies wishing there was a Brad and a George.

  • Edeus - Two Year Buy-To-Let Tracker

    23 Aug 2007

    EdeusTwo Year Buy-To-Let Tracker

  • Edeus -Two Year Buy-To-Let Tracker

    23 Aug 2007

    EdeusTwo Year Buy-To-Let Tracker

  • Emerging markets caught in fallback

    23 Aug 2007

    Emerging markets have suffered a sharp setback as investor fears grow over contagion from the US.

  • ETF Securities - ETFS Brent 1 Year

    23 Aug 2007

    ETF SecuritiesETFS Brent 1 Year

  • ETF Secutities - ETFS WTI 1 Year

    23 Aug 2007

    ETF SecutitiesETFS WTI 1 Year

  • ETFS focuses on oil

    23 Aug 2007

    ETF Securities has brought out a range of oil exchange traded commodities on the London Stock Exchange.

  • Executives up their borrowing in shares hunt

    28 Aug 2007

    Investec Private Bank has seen a 30 per cent increase in executives looking to borrow money from the firm to buy shares in their business this month, following the recent market volatility.

  • F&C Commercial Property Trust calls EGM to consider wind-up

    23 Aug 2007

    F&C Commercial Property Trust has called an extraordinary meeting following its failure to meet company targets where board members will consider proposals to wind up the trust.

  • Fidelity predicts market shift in EMEA region

    24 Aug 2007

    A booming middle class and growth in consumer demand will fuel sector growth in the emerging Europe, Middle East and Africa regions, according to Fidelity International.

  • Flight says FSA trying to squeeze out IFAs

    23 Aug 2007

    The FSA's retail distribution review risks causing severe consumer detriment by trying to squeeze mid-market IFAs out of the equation, says former Tory Shadow minister Howard Flight.

  • Food for thought as Insight goes short

    23 Aug 2007

    Insight's multi-manager team has increased its short position on US smaller companies in its diversified target return fund through the ProShares ultra-short Russell 2000 exchange traded fund.

  • Fringe benefits

    23 Aug 2007

    Impressionable visitors to Scotland are requested to take note of a shameless plug by MM features writer Will Henley.His sister's show, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea (pictured right) is setting the Edinburgh Festival on fire. The macabre medley of silent movie-style sketches by performance group 1927 has received a coveted Fringe First award Get your tickets now. The Underbelly, 8.15pm until August 26. www.19-27.co.uk.

  • FSA probes advisers on multi-manager sales

    23 Aug 2007

    The FSA is investigating adviser sales of multi-manager funds, focusing on the justification for the level of charges and how advisers react to star managers moving companies.

  • FSA shake-up cuts enforcement team

    23 Aug 2007

    Almost a third of staff in the FSA's enforcement division are to leave this year through redundancy or being moved to another department.

  • FSA teams up with Police Mutual on financial capability

    28 Aug 2007

    The FSA has joined forces with the Police Mutual Assurance Society to deliver the FSA’s financial capability material to the Police Service.

  • FSA's move to fees will just end in tiers

    23 Aug 2007

    I was astounded to read that the FSA has deemed it their right to take away from members of the public how their advisers should be remunerated.

  • Fund mergers at Insight

    23 Aug 2007

    Insight Investment is merging its US portfolio and global dynamic managed funds to create the diversified dynamic return fund in October. It is also merging its UK equity income portfolio into its diversified high income fund.

  • Gam grabs US smid caps

    23 Aug 2007

    GAM has added the GAM Star US small & mid cap fund to its US equity fund range.

  • GMAC-RFC denies claims it has pulled its BDMs off the road

    23 Aug 2007

    GMAC-RFC has denied claims it has taken its business development managers off the road and says it is sending its BDMs out to meet brokers in order to help with pipeline cases.

  • GMAC-RFC poaches BDMs from Edeus and Mortgages plc

    24 Aug 2007

    GMAC-RFC has poached two business development managers from Mortgages plc and Edeus.

  • Good deal from Natonwide

    23 Aug 2007

    NATIONWIDE BUILDING SOCIETYTwo Year Tracker A

  • Heartwood outlines pre-emptive measures taken against market correction

    22 Aug 2007

    Heartwood Wealth Management has revealed the pre-emptive measures it took to protect clients from recent market volatility.

  • Homeloan record high for July

    23 Aug 2007

    Gross mortgage lending reached its highest ever figure for July at 34.4bn, says the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

  • Hot metals

    23 Aug 2007

    Economic growth is slowing and this will continue into next year. Inflation is starting to increase and interest rates are rising to counter it. Inflation is particularly showing in areas such as food, basic materials and oil where we are seeing prices at record levels. With growth slowing and interest rates rising, the environment is right for a move into more defensive stocks.

  • HSBC Investments - Emerging Markets Local Debt Fund

    24 Aug 2007

    HSBC InvestmentsEmerging Markets Local Debt Fund

  • HSBC Investments - New World Income Fund

    23 Aug 2007

    HSBC InvestmentsNew World Income Fund

  • IFA jailed after fleeing to US with widow's £100k

    23 Aug 2007

    Three-year custodial sentence and property confiscation hearing for fraud which destroyed elderly client’s trust

  • IHT threshold increased 300 per cent in France

    23 Aug 2007

    Up to 95 per cent of the French population will not have to pay inheritance tax upon the death of their parents, following changes to IHT laws.

  • IN Partnership rules itself out of merger with Burns-Anderson

    23 Aug 2007

    IN Partnership has ruled itself out of bidding for Burns-Anderson, saying it does not want to dilute its controlling shareholders' positions.

  • In the Pink

    23 Aug 2007

    PINK HOME LOANSKensington Mortgages Near Prime Three-Year Fixed BTL

  • India is jewel in gold crown

    23 Aug 2007

    Gold is regaining its lustre with fund managers positive on the commodity as a hedge against rising inflation and stockmarket falls.

  • Industry slams proposal to scrap IHT

    23 Aug 2007

    Conservative proposals to scrap inheritance tax on primary residences have been branded an unrealistic vote-grabbing exercise that would drive up tax elsewhere.

  • James Hay extends wrap fund choice

    23 Aug 2007

    James Hay is adding six funds to its wrap platform, bringing the total to 1,246 funds from 54 firms. They include Norwich Union global balanced income and Capita CF OLIM UK equity.

  • Jayne Almond

    23 Aug 2007

    A keen solver of problems, this ex-business consultant and banker began to ask why elderly people should not be able to release equity from their homes to bolster their income in old age. The answer - equity-release lender Stonehaven - came into being last October with the aim of offering innovative loans. By Will Henley

  • JPMAM changes its pricing structure

    28 Aug 2007

    JPMorgan Asset Management has announced changes to its pricing structure across the UK OEIC range in what it says will offer transparency, simplicity and consistency.

  • July gross mortgage lending 12 per cent higher than 2006 says BBA

    28 Aug 2007

    New statistics from the British Bankers’ Association has found that July’s gross mortgage lending of £21.3bn was 12 per cent higher than the same time last year.

  • Kellard sees the appeal of RDR changes

    23 Aug 2007

    Winterthur chief says review will help it attract more IFAs and boost business

  • Keydata brings out extra income

    23 Aug 2007

    Keydata has brought out issue 14 of its extra income plan, a capital-protected bond linked to two stockmarket indices.

  • L&G apology as Israeli is questioned on term plan

    23 Aug 2007

    Legal & General has apologised over the questioning of a customer by its underwriting team.

  • L'Anson leaves Preferred to join Beacon Group

    24 Aug 2007

    Shaun l’Anson has left Preferred Mortgages to join the Beacon Group as head of lending.L’Anson was acting head of sales at Preferred.Beacon Group managing director Andrew Townsend says: “I am delighted to announce Shaun’s appointment, which comes at a time of solid performance and strong growth of our proposition. I am sure that Shaun’s contribution will add to our further development and look forward to working with him ”

  • Lautro 12 verdict could open door on naming firms

    23 Aug 2007

    The Information Commissioner's decision to order the FSA to name the 12 endowment providers which misused Lautro projections to set premiums could open the floodgates for similar requests, says a leading compliance consultant.

  • Leeds Building Society - 2 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    Leeds Building Society2 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

  • Lehman Brothers says it's committed to UK mortgage market

    23 Aug 2007

    Lehman Brothers says it remains committed to its UK mortgage operations following the news that it will shut its US sub-prime mortgage subsidiary BNC Mortgage.

  • Lehman Brothers to close US sub-prime mortgage subsidiary BNC Mortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    Lehman Brothers is closing its sub-prime mortgage subsidiary BNC Mortgage, losing 1,200 jobs across 23 US locations.

  • Lenders tighten criteria amid sub-prime turmoil

    23 Aug 2007

    A number of lenders, including GMAC-RFC, have changed criteria and increased rates in response to continued market turbulence.

  • Lincoln Retirement Income - i2Live Retirement Plan

    23 Aug 2007

    Lincoln Retirement Incomei2Live Retirement Plan

  • Look to long term as PI rates set to harden

    23 Aug 2007

    PYV is warning that professional indemnity insurance rates are likely to rise.

  • LV= not convinced veggies are healthier

    28 Aug 2007

    Animal Friends Insurance, the pet insurance specialist, is sacrificing a whopping 75 per cent of the commission it receives from its underwriter LV= to finance the life insurance discounts it now offers vegetarians and fish-eaters.

  • Managers go to the dogs

    23 Aug 2007

    HENDERSON ROWEElite Henderson Rowe Dogs of The FTSE 100 Fund

  • Manifesto for value

    23 Aug 2007

    Let's focus on demonstrating the advantages of advice over non-advice

  • Manor park explores protected markets

    23 Aug 2007

    Structured product provider Manor Park has introduced a version of its guaranteed global growth fund that is linked to stockmarkets in China, Japan and Hong Kong.

  • Mellon Capital Management - Mellon Evolution Core Alpha Fund

    23 Aug 2007

    Mellon Capital ManagementMellon Evolution Core Alpha Fund

  • Mellon Capital Management - Mellon Evolution Currency Alpha Fund

    23 Aug 2007

    Mellon Capital ManagementMellon Evolution Currency Alpha Fund

  • Meteor launches Orion

    23 Aug 2007

    METEOR ASSET MANAGEMENTOrion

  • Miton hits the ejector button

    23 Aug 2007

    MitonOptimal says it has concerns about blackbox investment strategies and sold out of the JP Morgan Highbridge statistical market-neutral fund just before it fell by almost 7 per cent in less than a week.

  • Model behaviour

    23 Aug 2007

    Rutherford Wilkinson was an early adopter of the wrap concept as we felt there were a number of attractions but the main question was - which wrap?

  • Mortgages Plc tightens lending criteria

    28 Aug 2007

    Merrill Lynch-owned Mortgages Plc has confirmed it will be changing its lending criteria due to the volatility of the global capital markets.

  • Mott moving in to pick up value

    23 Aug 2007

    Stockmarket volatility is likely to continue in the short term but the recent FTSE falls are throwing up excellent buying opportunities, say leading fund managers.

  • Multi choice in spotlight

    23 Aug 2007

    The FSA is taking a look at multi-manager recommendations from advisers and is thought to have visited at least 10 firms.

  • Music to whose ears?

    23 Aug 2007

    As we approach the end of summer - and we know it is the end of summer not because of this volatile weather but because the shops are now stocking their new winter ranges - it is time to prepare for a period of change like has never faced financial services before.

  • Nationwide calls for industry action on introductory saver deals

    22 Aug 2007

    Nationwide has called for changes to the Banking Code to ensure that savers are informed when introductory deals come to an end.

  • Nationwide suspends PPI after its own mystery shop

    23 Aug 2007

    Nationwide has temporarily withdrawn its loan and credit card payment protection insurance after admitting its salesforce was not advising customers adequately.

  • NDF Administration - 7.25% Fixed Income Plan June 07

    23 Aug 2007

    NDF Administration7.25% Fixed Income Plan June 07

  • NDF Administration - Growth Kick Out Plan June 07

    23 Aug 2007

    NDF AdministrationGrowth Kick Out Plan June 07

  • Net-Work Meetings launches conference for investment industry

    28 Aug 2007

    The Net-Work Meetings Limited has announced the launch of a membership-based standing conference for retail investment professionals.

  • New Star - European Value Fund

    23 Aug 2007

    New StarEuropean Value Fund

  • New Star International Property fund exceeds £300m

    28 Aug 2007

    The New Star International Property Fund has now exceeded £300 million in funds under management in under three months.

  • No woolly thinking

    23 Aug 2007

    Knitting has never been a core competency of the Institute of Financial Planning as it is not seen as totally relevant to the development of the profession of financial planning. There might clearly be some lifestyle benefit to the hobby but I gather that it is all too easy to drop a stitch, meaning the whole thing has to be unravelled.

  • No-one has the foggiest

    22 Aug 2007

    The recent global market volatility has sparked a barrage of opinions, predictions and speculation from City professionals all more than willing to offer their views ranging from “don’t panic” to dire warnings of a crash.

  • Northern Rock and HSBC - a match made in heaven?

    24 Aug 2007

    What a week it has been for the UK’s third biggest lender, Northern Rock. It has been at the centre of media focus with take-over speculation looming over its head.

  • Northern Rock to increase sub-prime rates by up to 1.25 per cent

    23 Aug 2007

    Northern Rock will be increasing its sub-prime fixed rates by up to 1.25 per cent from August 29.

  • NU doubles size of large case admin team

    24 Aug 2007

    Norwich Union has doubled the size of its large case administration team.

  • NU enhances out-patient treatment for healthcare customers

    28 Aug 2007

    Norwich Union Healthcare is introducing enhanced policy benefits on out-patient treatment for acute psychiatric conditions.

  • Obituary of Alexander Scott Bell by former Standard Chief Executive Jim Stretton

    28 Aug 2007

    Alexander Scott Bell, who died on Thursday aged 65, was one of the most significant business leaders in Scotland of the last century and the very early part of this. As Managing Director of the Standard Life Assurance Company he led the giant Scottish based mutual to unprecedented successes in the highly competitive world of the life assurance industry.

  • Obsessed with making changes

    23 Aug 2007

    I have to say that the Conservative Party's plans to discard mortgage regulation and to prune financial services regulation in general sound to me like little more than shallow electioneering. What the financial services community and its customers, of course, really need is regulation that is clearer, fairer, more stable, more consistent, more cost-effective and a regulator that is more accountable to the industry it charges handsomely to support it.

  • On a wing and a prayer

    23 Aug 2007

    The Hartford's Mike Kalen went through hell and high water to get to a lunch meeting with a Money Marketing hack.

  • paaleads.com expands offering

    24 Aug 2007

    Lead distributor paaleads.com has expanded its Standard Plan, which now allows intermediaries to choose how they want to receive leads - the auto-bid scheme, online bidding scheme or a mixture of both - but they can also now select a variety of lead types.

  • Phoenix offered to introduce IFA clients to rival adviser

    23 Aug 2007

    An IFA has slammed Resolution-owned Phoenix Life for targeting his clients and offering to introduce them to a different IFA firm.

  • Pink Home Loans - Abbey Flexible Plus - Nine-Month Discount Remortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    Pink Home LoansAbbey Flexible Plus - Nine-Month Discount Remortgage

  • Pink Home Loans - BM Solutions Buy To Let Three Year Discounted Tracker

    23 Aug 2007

    Pink Home LoansBM Solutions Buy To Let Three Year Discounted Tracker

  • Pioneer Friendly Society - Professional Income Protection

    23 Aug 2007

    Pioneer Friendly SocietyProfessional Income Protection

  • PosSol warns many IT systems will struggle in post-RDR world

    23 Aug 2007

    Positive Solutions is confident its systems will enable it to support the three adviser types proposed in the retail distribution review but warns that other firms will struggle.

  • Potter and Burdett ready for long run

    23 Aug 2007

    Thames River new recruits Gary Potter and Robert Burdett say they expect this to be their last job in the financial industry.

  • Preferred to increase sub-prime rates by 0.65 per cent from September 10

    28 Aug 2007

    Preferred will be increasing its sub-prime product range on average by 0.65 per cent from September 10.

  • Premier managers set to seal MBO

    28 Aug 2007

    The senior management of Premier Asset Management has pushed through their proposed management buyout at the second attempt.

  • Product matters

    23 Aug 2007

    OK, I too thought infrastructure sounded a really rather dull topic but when you dig a little deeper, you realise that First State could be on to something with its global infrastructure fund.

  • Property trusts take a high gear

    23 Aug 2007

    Getting paid on the amount of assets managed, inflated by bank borrowings, was a common feature of the split-capital investment trust structure. It is one that still exists today although mainly in property trusts.

  • Protected rights set to get freedom

    23 Aug 2007

    Self-investment for protected rights could be given the green light by October, removing restrictions that prevent investors directly self-investing in shares, bonds or commercial property.

  • Providers blamed for IP sales slump

    23 Aug 2007

    Provider apathy is the biggest threat to developing the income protection market and is driving the current sales slump, according to Defaqto research.

  • RDR qualification plans could be seen as anti-competitive by Europe, says Aifa

    23 Aug 2007

    Aifa has questioned whether Retail Distribution Review proposals for mandatory higher qualifications will get past the European Commission and suggested they could create an anti-competitive market.

  • Reap the benefits

    23 Aug 2007

    Alittle bit of everything in this article as I recount the historical progress within my own firm of the provision of various types of employee benefits. My personal specialisations are in pensions and investments but I have now quickly gained a decent working knowledge of small group life insurance, medical insurance and permanent health insurance schemes.

  • Repricing returns rates to reality

    23 Aug 2007

    The recent repricing by non-conforming lenders will see sub-prime mortgage rates return to a sensible level after months of rates being too competitive, says John Charcol senior technical manager Ray Boulger.

  • Responsible parenting

    23 Aug 2007

    How independent can advisers remain under provider ownership?

  • Robert Reid to be new PFS president

    28 Aug 2007

    Robert Reid will take over from Carole Nicholls as the next president of the Personal Finance Society.

  • Rock bids to end sub-prime panic

    23 Aug 2007

    Northern Rock is trying to calm investors' fears over its exposure to the US sub-prime crisis which has seen its share price halve since its March high.

  • Royal wedding is called off

    23 Aug 2007

    Royal Liver has pulled out of the proposed merger with fellow mutual Royal London.

  • S&P launches two new STARS indices

    23 Aug 2007

    Standard & Poor’s Index Services has announced the launch of two new STARS indices that provide investors with exposure to the top stock picks of S&P’s equity research analysts in America and Europe.

  • Scottish Widows Bank - Offset Two-Year Fixed Rate

    23 Aug 2007

    Scottish Widows BankOffset Two-Year Fixed Rate

  • Sesame to host IHT planning seminars

    22 Aug 2007

    Sesame is to host a series of 21 technical seminars on the technical aspects of inheritance tax planning.

  • Seven pillars of wisdom

    23 Aug 2007

    Chris Salih says last week's market falls have split fund managers between those who believe there is more bad news to come and those who see buying opportunities amid the chaos

  • Shopping around for platforms

    26 Aug 2007

    Peter Jordan, platform marketing manager at Skandia, looks at wrap requirements and says loss leading, “low cost” platforms should be treated with the suspicion they deserve

  • Sipp providers hit out at rivals over in specie contributions

    23 Aug 2007

    Rowanmoor and IPS Pensions have criticised Sipp providers which do not allow in specie contributions, saying they are hiding behind poor IT systems.

  • Skandia combines emerging talents

    23 Aug 2007

    Skandia Investment Management has introduced a global emerging markets equity fund which blends the talents of six external managers.

  • Skipton Building Society - Flexible Three-Year Base Rate Tracker Capped Mortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    Skipton Building SocietyFlexible Three-Year Base Rate Tracker Capped Mortgage

  • Skipton flexes cap

    23 Aug 2007

    SKIPTON BUILDING SOCIETYFlexible Three-Year Base Rate Tracker Capped Mortgage

  • SLI given enhanced bond role by The Pensions Trust

    28 Aug 2007

    Standard Life Investments has been appointed as a bond manager on The Pensions Trust’s UK gilt portfolio, following a restructure by the firm.

  • Special brew

    23 Aug 2007

    Giles Hargreave, manager of Marlborough special situations fund, has by far the best record of any UK fund manager. Since he started running the fund in 1998, it has risen in value by 862 per cent compared with a sector average of 135 per cent, turning a £1,000 investment into £8,620.

  • Specialists will be hit by pro planner bracket

    23 Aug 2007

    Specialist IFAs will lose out if the professional financial planner category of the retail distribution review is introduced, says Cavanagh Group chief executive Andrew Fay.

  • Splintered seeks cash

    23 Aug 2007

    Splintered Films is aiming to raise £900m for the production of a psychological thriller, Splintered, through this enterprise investment scheme.

  • Standard Bank Offshore - Structured Growth Solutions - Blue Chip Booster Security Variant

    23 Aug 2007

    Standard Bank OffshoreStructured Growth Solutions - Blue Chip Booster Security Variant

  • Standard Life's Scott Bell dies of cancer

    24 Aug 2007

    Standard Life former chief executive Scott Bell died yesterday following a battle with cancer.

  • Standard looks at annuity sell-off

    23 Aug 2007

    Standard Life is considering a sale of part of its annuity portfolio, which is worth up to £12bn. It says it is looking at a range of options, including a reinsurance deal, a move to hedge some of the risks or a sale of part of the portfolio.

  • StanLib - Standard South Africa Equity Fund

    23 Aug 2007

    StanLibStandard South Africa Equity Fund

  • StanLib - Stanlib Africa Equity Fund

    23 Aug 2007

    StanLibStanlib Africa Equity Fund

  • STANLIB launches two Africa funds amidst market volatility

    22 Aug 2007

    STANLIB has announced the launch of its standard South Africa equity fund and standard Africa equity fund, amidst a period of major volatility in global markets.

  • Stroud & Swindon Building Society - Self-Cert 3-year Fixed Rate Mortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    Stroud & Swindon Building SocietySelf-Cert 3-year Fixed Rate Mortgage

  • Sub script

    23 Aug 2007

    It looks as though we cannot entirely escape America's sub-prime woes after all as the ripple effect works its way across the Atlantic. After months of sub-prime troubles in the US, the contagion is now affecting the UK, first, via jitters in the stockmarket and now through sub-prime lenders refusing to provide funding to new customers or imposing higher lending rates on adverse products.

  • Summer pension spats continue

    23 Aug 2007

    This week’s pensions news centred around heated debates over in specie contributions, annuity rates and what the stock market volatility could mean for with-profits.

  • Survey reveals public's views of CAR plan

    23 Aug 2007

    Four out of 10 consumers say they would be more likely to use a financial adviser if their business was based on the customer-agreed remuneration model, according to Skandia.

  • The point of no return

    23 Aug 2007

    New proposals could significantly reduce the number of taxpayers reporting chargeable lifetime transfers

  • The real risk

    23 Aug 2007

    Regulatory forces are pushing us to play safe with our money but it is only by taking risks that we can achieve our goals, says IFG Group UK chief executive Mark Bogard

  • The silver lining

    23 Aug 2007

    Amid the market volatility, a flight to quality is needed, as it is the experienced managers with a few grey hairs who will best be able to exploit the opportunities that undoubtedly exist in the markets.

  • The whole story

    23 Aug 2007

    Exams on their own do not guarantee competence

  • Time to answer back

    24 Aug 2007

    With the RDR still very much at the heart of IFA concerns some new viewpoints have been voiced by representatives from SimplyBiz, Cavanagh Group and pi Financial Dixon Sutcliffe, breathing new life into the hot topic.

  • Tories set out plan for investors' disclaimer

    23 Aug 2007

    A Conservative policy group is recommending a new focus on caveat emptor and lighter-touch pension regulation as well as a controversial plan to axe inheritance tax on primary residences.

  • Touch of irony over statistics

    23 Aug 2007

    In his letter, Robert Reid questions the assumptions that I made and there is an implied criticism that perhaps the statistics I quoted are unsubstantiated.

  • Two-way education

    23 Aug 2007

    All advisers must unite to fight the catastrophic plans in the RDR

  • UK drinking itself to higher protection premiums according to Standard Life

    23 Aug 2007

    The UK is drinking its way to obesity and making protection far more expensive and in some cases unachievable according to Standard Life.

  • UK funds under management hit £456bn

    28 Aug 2007

    Funds under management of UK domiciled investment funds reached £456 billion in July, a fall of 1.6 per cent from June but 22 per cent higher than July 2006, according to IMA figures.

  • Unconvinced on capital adequacy

    28 Aug 2007

    Martin Archer, legal and claims director at PI insurer Collegiate Management Services, believes that capital adequacy is less important than a company's reputation and calls on the advice industry to "grow up" on responsibility for rubbish products

  • Watson Wyatt predicts change in pension buyouts

    23 Aug 2007

    Consultancy firm Watson Wyatt thinks companies will be able to shed their pension obligations at a lower cost than would be required by a fully authorised insurance company in the future.

  • Way Group - Way Income Plan

    23 Aug 2007

    Way GroupWay Income Plan

  • Way revamps income plan

    23 Aug 2007

    Way Fund Managers has revamped the Way income plan, a product it launched in 1998.

  • WH Smith to sell premium bonds

    23 Aug 2007

    National Savings & Investments has linked with WH Smith to market premium bonds and savings through its high-street stores. After a trial starting on November 1, the full marketing launch is expected in April 2008.

  • Which? says independence must mean whole of market

    23 Aug 2007

    Consumer champion Which? says independence must mean whole of market and the FSA needs to ensure that customer-agreed remuneration does not allow product providers to earn more in charges.

  • Woolwich - Fix and Track Mortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    WoolwichFee Free Lifetime Tracker

  • Woolwich - Two Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

    23 Aug 2007

    WoolwichTwo Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

  • Yorkshire appoints David Henderson as chief information officer

    23 Aug 2007

    Yorkshire Building Society has appointed David Henderson as chief information officer.

  • Young blood needed

    26 Aug 2007

    Jon Hopper, marketing and commercial development director for Openwork, argues the industry should invest more in new recruits and rely less on cannibalising existing resources

  • Zurich offers factory gate pricing on Sterling bond

    23 Aug 2007

    Zurich has introduced a factory gate-priced version of its Sterling investment bond.

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