Money Marketing
24 October 2001

  • 'Clairvoyant' can't see whole picture on with-profits

    25 Oct 2001

    With reference to Roger Harris and his reply (seemingly on behalf of Skandia) with regard to with-profits funds, not only did Mr Harris miss Brian of Skandia's letter but he also missed my own article on why with-profits funds can and do outperform other funds. Like many readers and correspondents together with market analysts and the FSA, attention is only drawn to investors. With-profits bonds is the example used. My remarks are primarily aimed at savers. That is, the majority ...

  • 'FSA believed Equitable Life's confident claims'

    25 Oct 2001

    Appalling communications and an information vacuum between the regulator and Equitable Life led to the Equitable debacle, according to the FSA. It says the "die was cast" well before it took over regulating Equitable in 1999 but the internal report by Ronnie Baird admits there are a "number of things which the FSA could have done better". Now all eyes are on the independent Penrose inquiry which will look at all parties involved as far back as the 1950s. The report says although ...

  • 'Let Isas take savings lead'

    25 Oct 2001

    Isas should be the central plank of the Government's tax-friendly savings vehicles rather than new concepts which confuse consumers, say fund management chief executives. At a meeting in Parliament, Inland Revenue director of investment, pensions and savings policy Paula Diggle was told the Government should not introduce new concepts such as individual pension accounts and child trust funds. Instead, pension Isas, education Isas or healthcare Isas should offer opportunities ...

  • 'Sandler must see value of IFAs' - Bankhall

    25 Oct 2001

    Bankhall support services group emphasises the distinction between independent and tied advice in its response to Sandler and calls on him to recognise the value of IFAs. Bankhall describes an IFA as a "personal shopper" who resear-ches the whole market on behalf of the client, who recognises the value that this comprehensive service provides them. The firm contradicts the perceived wisdom of the Government and regulators that consu-mers require more education, saying it is accurate ...

  • 'Sandler must see value of IFAs' - Informed Choice

    25 Oct 2001

    Informed Choice believes it reflects badly on the regulator and the industry that many of the concerns raised by Sandler have not already been addressed in the last decade. The company says it would be "disingenuous" of the regulators over the years to claim they had no role to play in ongoing issues affecting long-term savings. Informed Choice says it is disappointed that the scope of the review will not cover deposit accounts and other forms of cash savings as these are used ...

  • 'Sandler must see value of IFAs' - Millfield

    25 Oct 2001

    National IFA Millfield says Sandler's consultation period of two months is too short to be able to cover all the issues under its remit. The company says no one seems to be clear about Sandler's scope as the term "medium to long-term savings" does not have a clear start and end point. Millfield believes the shock to the economy caused by the terrorism attacks in the US last month may refocus the review and its initial comments on with-profits. It says the review may have ...

  • 'Sandler must see value of IFAs' - The Marketplace at Bradford and Bingley

    25 Oct 2001

    Rather than submit a written response to the Sandler review, National IFA The Market-place at Bradford & Bingley was visited by the review team. The team asked B&B about its commission structure, how its product panels are formed and how it researches the funds it recommends. B&B says the review team was especially interested in how it remunerates its advisers. The IFA has equalised commission payments to prevent product bias and advisers are awarded credits which are equivalent to ...

  • 'Sandler must see value of IFAs' - Torquil Clark

    25 Oct 2001

    The industry should be encouraged to move towards charging fees if it wants to improve professionalism and consumer confidence, says IFA Torquil Clark in its Sandler response. The IFA says in order to bring further clarity, advice must be separated from product purchase, a move which will increase the likelihood that consumers will view IFAs as offering a professional service. Torquil Clark says independent advice is essential to combat the growing lack of understanding and confidence ...

  • 20-20 offers Optimum approach to recruitmen

    25 Oct 2001

    Financial services search and selection consultancy 20-20 is offering a a recruitment tool which lets IFAs see footage of prospective employees by email before an interview is arranged. The Optimum service is designed to complete many standard checking procedures for the firm with the prospective candidate. 20-20 says it has developed Optimum in response to market needs as it has found one of the most cited problems in financial services is the excessive amount of time employees ...

  • A consumer's view

    25 Oct 2001

    Anything that will raise standards in the life and pension business has to be applauded but it is difficult not to view the ABI's Raising Standards initiative as a bit like rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic. This week the ABI's "independent" Pensions Protection and Investment Accreditation Board announced the first five brands which have been accredited under the Raising Standards quality mark scheme. The brands which have qualified are Cooperative, Norwich Union, Scottish ...

  • Abbey inhabits safe house

    25 Oct 2001

    Abbey National has introduced safety plus growth issue 5, a guaranteed equity bond that is available within an individual savings account (Isa) wrapper as well as outside. Both guises are of the bond are linked to the FTSE 100 index over a five-year term and guarantees the return of the original capital plus a minimum of 20 per cent growth. The maximum potential growth is 60 per cent at the end of the term. The average level of the FTSE 100 index is recorded for each ...

  • ABI claims that IFAs want quality marks extended

    25 Oct 2001

    IFAs would like to see the ABI's Raising Standards quality mark extended to mortgages and financial advice, according to a survey conducted by the ABI's for its Saltr initiative. The research with 21 IFAs was undertaken early this month and revealed more than 76 per cent - 16 of those surveyed - said where there is little to choose between product features, they would actively recommend products from providers which had met a set of minimum standards. Eighty per cent thought ...

  • Advisers call for help over clients' charity donations

    25 Oct 2001

    IFAs do not have enough information to advise their clients on how to make tax-efficient donations to charity, according to charity the Giving Campaign. A study of 280 IFAs, stockbrokers, accountants, investment managers and solicitors revealed that many IFAs do not tell their clients about tax-efficient methods of giving to charity. Fifty-seven per cent of IFAs and nearly half of the stockbrokers surveyed said they "hardly ever" give such advice. More than 80 per cent of stockbrokers ...

  • AIG Life tailors bond to fit

    26 Oct 2001

    AIG LIFECAPITAL PORTFOLIO BONDType: Unit-linked bond.Aim: Income or growth by investing in unit-linked funds.Minimum investment: Lump sum £5,000.Fund links: Choice of 136 funds from AIG, Aberdeen, Gartmore, M&G, Newton, Deutsche, Invesco Perpetual, JPMorgan Fleming, Threadneedle, ABN Amro, Exeter, Fidelity, Jupiter.Allocation rates: Penalty free charging structure, £5,000-£14,999 - 99.5 per cent, £15,000-£49,999 ...

  • All for one - and one for all?

    25 Oct 2001

    Mortgages are big business. They are complex and can run for decades. They are the most expensive purchase most people make and the biggest monthly expense anyone will have. Yet it is easy to overlook them in financial planning discussions. We take for granted that the amount we pay for our mortgage is fixed. We accept the fact that we are tied to a fixed period for a fixed amount. If we need more money, such as when we buy a car, we borrow from a different lender instead of using ...

  • Autif calls for reform of offshore legislation

    24 Oct 2001

    Autif has called for the abolition or substantial reform of offshore fund legislation in its pre-budget submission. The trade body says the current offshore tax rules are outdated and now unnecessary. The submission also calls for the abolition of Stamp Duty Reserve Tax on fund of funds, which it says renders them at a considerable disadvantage by making them liable to a three-tier stamp duty charge. 

  • Axa Sun Life appoints two to its business development team

    29 Oct 2001

    Axa Sun Life is appointing Nina Glass and Duncan Mosely to senior positions to its business development unit.

  • Bankhall and DBS offer N2 support

    25 Oct 2001

    Bankhall has developed an N2 package for directly PIAregulated members to ensure they meet the changed compliance requirements. It is also running 18 presentations around the UK until November 7, emphasising the importance of senior management responsibility, effective systems, controls and risk assessment, the implication of the new approved persons' regime and the code of practice and conduct of business requirements. It is also supplying members with an N2 transition document ...

  • Blurring the view

    25 Oct 2001

    This week, I would like to stay with the theme of owner-managed companies and look at the very important issue of financial dealings between the owner/directors and the company. This is particularly important as there is evidence in many cases that the boundaries between the separate legal entity that the company is and the owner-managers sometimes gets blurred and sometimes ceases to exist. This can be especially worrying if the "blurring" involves the moving of funds from the ...

  • BOE follows the Act

    29 Oct 2001

    BoE International has designed a trustee investment bond that is aimed at trustees of pension schemes following the introduction of the Trustee Investment Act 2000.

  • Boots pension switch "a wake up call"

    30 Oct 2001

    Boots is selling all equities invested in its pension fund and reinvesting in bonds in response to the longevity of its workforce and concerns over the volatility of equity returns.

  • Brave FSA is big enough to own up to mistakes

    25 Oct 2001

    In the last few days, the FSA has learned to admit it can get things wrong, the significance of which should not be underestimated by IFAs. It is to the credit of the regulator and the Treasury that some clarity has been injected into the account of events leading up to Equitable's closure to new business and subsequent advice given to policyholders. The Treasury, after some initial reluctance, has decided it is better to get the report into the public domain many months before ...

  • CGNU sees pensions sales grow

    26 Oct 2001

    CGNU wrote new business worth £10.4bn in the first nine months of this year, with £5.3bn of business in its UK life and pension arm.

  • Charge cap rise is welcome news

    25 Oct 2001

    I welcome recent reports of a possible rise in the cap on charges for stakeholders and Isas, although perhaps for a different reason compared with other IFAs. At Ethical Investors Group, we feel current commission on stakeholder pensions is more than enough for IFAs to make a reasonable living. We felt this to such an extent that we have recently negotiated a reduction in the AMC on a leading provider's stakeholder pension by asking to be paid less commission(we will write more ...

  • Charging tables could be FSA's biggest blunder

    25 Oct 2001

    The FSA would be the first to admit that it has made some mistakes during its short existence - the handling of the Equitable Life case, decision trees, the delay of N2, to name but a handful. But since its latest project - the comparative tables - went live two weeks ago, there has been a growing feeling across the industry that the regulator may have well sown the seeds for yet another error. For an organisation whose mission statement includes that it aims to "promote public ...

  • Chase de Vere Investments appoints marketing director

    30 Oct 2001

    IFA Chase de Vere Investments has appointed Dave Newman to the new role of director of marketing. Newman joins from Britannic Assurance where he was head of marketing and channel management. Chase de Vere, which has140 RIs, says the appointment is designed to keep the firm at the forefront of financial services during a time of change for the IFA sector, including the Sandler review. It wants to ensure it is well placed to take on bancassurers and potential multi-tied providers.

  • CML urges Chancellor to freeze stamp duty

    24 Oct 2001

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders is urging Chancellor Gordon Brown to impose a freeze on stamp duty in his budget next Spring. The CML says another hike in stamp duty - which would be the fifth consecutive raise — would be ill-advised at a time when consumer confidence needs to be kept high. It says the £60,000 stamp duty threshold should be raised in line with house price inflation as the current level is a prohibitive cost for many first-time buyers. 

  • Competitive edge

    25 Oct 2001

    The Financial Services Forum will be looking at strategies for competitive advantage in financial services marketing in London next month. The event will include presentations on how those responsible for their companies' strategies can achieve innovation in marketing. Speakers will include Cahoot managing director Tim Murley describing creating a new bank, Lloyds TSB Create managing director Laurel Powers-Freeling on how to create and deliver a vision for wealth management and ...

  • Corporate strategy for the industry?

    25 Oct 2001

    I was impressed by last week's article on branding (Money Marketing, October 18). As life insurers and asset managers adopt a more strategic approach to marketing, branding is moving from a communications-based proposition to the "centre stage in corporate strategy",as the authors rightly state. However, the article does not develop the most critical issue. Does our industry have any real corporate strategy? Or is it simply a series of ongoing tactical responses? Gerry Johnson, ...

  • Davies loses £13k bonus but still earns £316k

    25 Oct 2001

    FSA chairman Sir Howard Davies has had a bonus cut by £13,900 as a result of the regulator's poor performance in the handling of the collapse of Equitable Life. Davies, who still received a pay packet of £316,100 in 2000, saw his bonus cut from £40,000 to £26,100, because of Equitable. However, his basic pay jumped £15,000 to £290,000 in 2000 from £275,000 the previous year. Speaking on Radio 4's Moneybox programme, Davies said: "I ...

  • DBS launches product guide

    30 Oct 2001

    DBS network has launched a new product guide for its member firms designed to support them in the process of selecting the most appropriate product and provider. It says the guide is in response to requests from members for a revised explanation and presentation of product research material gathered by the network. It also provides material to help IFAs put together suitability letters for N2. The guide is accompanied by a video presentation on CD-Rom which talks members through the ...

  • DBS pseudo-network targets regulated IFAs

    25 Oct 2001

    DBS is creating a "pseudo-network" to supply ad hoc services to IFAs who want to be regulated directly by the PIA. The new division was ann-ounced at DBS's annual conference in Birmingham despite chairman Ken Davy telling the conference that IFAs were still better off in a network. He said: "There is no real benefit in being directly regulated compared with being a member of a good network." But DBS is hoping to inc-rease its revenue by attracting directly regulated IFAs from ...

  • End of the Rainbow

    25 Oct 2001

    The closer you fly to the sun, the more chance you have of being burnt. No one knows this more than Ivan Massow, whose business has gone bust amid bitter acrimony and conflicting accounts. On October 5, Massow Rainbow Group went into receivership. Accompanied by recriminations and Byzantine complexity, Mas-sow let it be known that he had managed to buy back his business. Not surprisingly, accounts of what happened, and his firm's demise, differ according to who you ask. First, ...

  • EU opens up more funds to UK IFAs

    25 Oct 2001

    IFAs will have a broader range of funds at their disposal under a new EU investment fund directive, commonly known as Ucits II, approved this week. In a first step towards an integrated single market for financial services, investment managers will be all-owed to market their funds across the EU after registration with that country's regulatory authority. It also proposes minimum capital adequacy requirements. UK fund managers will also be able to create a new category of mixed ...

  • Euronext takes over Liffe

    30 Oct 2001

    The Liffe derivative exchange has been bought by Euronext, the group formed by the Paris, Amsterdam and Brussels stock exchanges, in a £555m cash takeover.The deal, which saw Euronext fight off bids from the London Stock Exchange and Germany's Deutsche Bourse has led analysts to suggest the LSE is now itself vulnerable to a takeover bid.The acquisition will see London as the base for all of Euronext's derivative business.

  • Exeter appoints European fund manager

    29 Oct 2001

    Exeter Asset Management is appointing Mark Webster as a European fund manager, joining from Murray Johnstone where he was investment director for continental Europe.

  • Five-year ban on genetic test results

    25 Oct 2001

    The use of all genetic test results by life offices is to be banned for five years in an agreement announced this week between the ABI and the Government. In response to the Parlia-mentary science and technology committee's report on the use of tests by life offices for underwriting life and protection products, the Department of Health and ABI jointly announced the moratorium, which starts on November 1. The industry welcomed the move, saying it gives everyone involved breathing ...

  • Framlington goes for biotech

    25 Oct 2001

    Framlington Unit Management is taking the pulse of the specialist market with its new biotech fund.

  • Framlington takes the plunge to wind up the NetNet fund

    25 Oct 2001

    One of the UK's worst-performing funds, Framlington NetNet, is finally taking steps to wind up, with its share price now down more by than 94 per cent since launch. The split-cap trust, which launched at the height of the technology boom in March 2000 with £100m under management, has seen its value plummet over the past 18 months and now has assets of just under £6m. At the start of this week, the fund's net asset value per share was 7.93p while the share price ...

  • Friends CD shows net admin deal

    25 Oct 2001

    Friends Provident is giving IFAs a CD which demonstrates its online admin system for its stakeholder pensions. The CD uses voiceovers and graphics from Friends' online systems to show IFAs and employers how various aspects of scheme admin can be undertaken on a cost-effective and efficient basis. The admin services inc-lude inputting members' det-ails, making contributions, adding new members and making benefit statements. Friends believes one of the key factors to its ...

  • Friends Ivory & Sime - Baronsmead VCT 4

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001.Aim: Growth by investing in unquoted companies.Minimum investment: Lump sum £3,000.Opening-closing date: November 7, 2001-April 30, 2002.Charges: Initial 5 per cent, annual 2 per cent.Commission: Initial 3 per cent.Tel: 08457 992299. 

  • Friends Ivory & Sime designs baronmead 4

    25 Oct 2001

    Friends Ivory & Sime has introduced its fourth baronsmead venture capital trust (VCT). Baronsmead VCT 4 aims for long-term capital growth by investing in a portfolio of between 30 and 40 unquoted companies. Some of these will be listed on the alternative investment market (Aim) and are likely to be within sectors like business & financial services, consumer markets, healthcare, information technology and media & communications. Friends Ivory & Sime sees these areas as good growth ...

  • FSA 'could have done better' on Equitable

    25 Oct 2001

    The FSA's inquiry into its own handling of Equitable Life claims the patient was dead on arrival. Nevertheless, the report is a candid account of the regulator, which FSA chairman Howard Davies accepts makes "pertinent criticisms" of its regulation of the troubled insurer. The 260-page report was finally published last week - "flushed out" in the words of Conservative MP Richard Ottaway - only two hours before a Parliamentary debate on the country's oldest life company. The ...

  • FSA is swinging towards single pricing for funds

    25 Oct 2001

    The FSA is considering an overhaul of unit trust and Oeic regulations to bring single pricing and greater transparency to fund dealing. In a discussion paper this week, the FSA says research reveals investors are confused by dual pricing structures. Single pricing is the standard for Oeics but most unit trusts operate dual pricing. The FSA is looking at improving Oeic rules with a single price structure which includes all dealing costs. Currently, investor dealing costs are ...

  • FSA says split-caps are steering clear of crisis

    25 Oct 2001

    The FSA has dismissed concerns that the split-cap investment trust industry is on the verge of crisis, saying that only a handful of trusts are even remotely in danger. The regulator, which has been undertaking a review of the sector over the last two weeks, says that of around 115 split-cap trusts, only six are in risk of folding but only if the FTSE 100 falls below the 4,500 mark. The FSA says a further 30 to 40 trusts would be in danger if the market dipped below around 4,000, ...

  • FSA will regulate LTC and advice is poised to follow

    25 Oct 2001

    The Treasury has confirmed that sales and marketing of long-term care insurance will become fully regulated by the FSA, with providers predicting advice will also fall under the regulator's remit. The Treasury appears to have ruled out Catmarking of LTC, with providers claiming the failure to mention it in the announcement this week indicates the plans have been dropped. This is despite its prominence in the original Treasury consultation paper released in December. Although ...

  • Fund bodies developing new trading costs code

    30 Oct 2001

    A new disclosure code on trading costs for fund managers is being developed jointly by the National Association of Pension Funds and the Fund Managers’ Association.

  • Genesis Home Loans - Planet & Moons Fixed 6.25 Per Cent

    25 Oct 2001

    Thursday, 25 October 2001. Fixed term: Until January 1, 2003. Fixed rate: 6.25 per cent. Minimum loan: £35,000. Maximum loan: Up to 70 per cent of valuation subject to a maximum of £1m. Income multiples: 3.5 times principal income plus second or three times joint. Arrangement fee: £395. Redemption: 6 per cent of original loan in years one and two, 5 per cent in year three, 1 per cent of amount repaid ...

  • Genesis Home Loans - Planet & Moons Fixed 6.74 Per Cent

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001. Fixed term: Until January 1, 2003. Fixed rate: 6.74 per cent. Minimum loan: £35,000. Maximum loan: Up to 80 per cent of valuation subject to a maximum of £350,000, up to 75 per cent subject to no maximum. Income multiples: 3.5 times principal income plus second or three times joint. Arrangement fee: £395. Redemption fee: 6 per cent of original loan in years one and two, 5 per ...

  • Genesis Home Loans - Planet & Moons Fixed 6.99 Per Cent

    25 Oct 2001

    Thursday, 25 October 2001. Fixed term: Until January 1, 2003. Fixed rate: 6.99 per cent. Minimum loan: £35,000. Maximum loan: Up to 85 per cent of valuation subject to a maximum of £750,000, up to 90 per cent subject to a maximum of £200,000. Income multiples: 3.5 times principal income plus second or three times joint. Arrangement fee: £395. Redemption: 6 per cent of original loan in years one ...

  • Genesis Home Loans - Planet & Moons Fixed 7.24 Per Cent

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001. Fixed term: Until January 1, 2003. Fixed rate: 7.24 per cent. Minimum loan: £40,000. Maximum loan: Up to 95 per cent of valuation subject to a maximum of £200,000m. Income multiples: 3.5 times principal income plus second or three times joint. Arrangement fee: £395. Redemption fee: 6 per cent of original loan in years one and two, 5 per cent in year three, thereafter 1 per ...

  • Gerrard £30k portfolio deal

    25 Oct 2001

    Gerrard is offering a portfolio management service for clients with more than £30,000 to invest. The news comes as Old Mutual announces that Gerrard Investment Funds is to be merged with Old Mutual Asset Management, with the Gerrard brand remaining only for its portfolio services, where it aims to be a market leader. The millennium global portfolio service will offer investors individually tailored portfolios, investing mainly in Oeics, unit trusts and investment trusts. ...

  • Govt should fund advice service, says thinktank

    25 Oct 2001

    The Government or the industry should create and fund a generic advice service catering for those who cannot afford financial adv-ice, claims a report by new consumer thinktank the Consumer Policy Institute. The report, Where Next for Financial Advice?, conducted by FSA consumer panel member Jane Vass, says there is a need to provide advice to low and middle earners. Vass, whose study was funded by the LIA and published this week, revisits the idea of a financial health-check first ...

  • HedgeWorld FundSelect platform goes live

    29 Oct 2001

    HedgeWorld FundSelect is launching its hedge fund supermarket service to individuals and IFAs, giving access to investment in its list of single and multi-manager hedge funds.Over 100 single and multi-manager hedge funds have agreed to list their funds on the Bermuda-based platform. HedgeWorld Markets managing director Jeff Joseph says: "Hedge fund strategies are an increasingly acceptable asset allocation solution for today's uncertain investment climate."

  • ICMG - Buy-to-Let Exclusive

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001.

  • ICMG - Self-Certification

    25 Oct 2001

    Thursday, 25 October 2001. Discounted term: Until December 1, 2002. Discount: 1.5 per cent until March 1, 2002, 0.7 per cent until December 1, 2002. Payable rate: 4.99 per cent until March 1, 2002, 5.69 per cent until December 1, 2002. Minimum loan: £25,001. Maximum loan: Up to 80 per cent of valuation subject to a maximum of £500,000, up to 85 per cent subject to a maximum of £300,000. First-time buyers up to 85 per cent subject ...

  • ICMG - Sub Prime

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001. Fixed term: Until March 31, 2003. Fixed rate: Loans up to 70 per cent of valuation - 6.75 per cent, 71 per cent and above - 7.25 per cent. Minimum loan: £25,001. Maximum loan: Up to 95 per cent of valuation subject to a maximum of £1m. Income multiples: 3.5 times principal income plus second or three times joint. Arrangement fee: £395. Redemption fee: 8 per cent of amount repaid ...

  • ICMG - Sub Prime Exclusive

    25 Oct 2001

    Thursday, 25 October 2001.

  • IFonline hands Abbey stake to ensure loyalty

    25 Oct 2001

    Abbey National is believed to have been handed a free 10 per cent stake in IFonline in a deal which commits the lender to an exclusive contract with the mortgage platform. Industry sources say that Abbey - which had vowed to concentrate its efforts on developing its own broker website - has been given the stake in a bid by IFonline to ensure the lender pledges sole allegiance to its trading system. As the last remaining major lender not committed to a platform, Abbey had been the ...

  • Independent view

    25 Oct 2001

    The Liberal Democrats' suggestion that the Government and product providers should shoulder the cost of independent financial advice is, as Paul Smee said, "a very interesting concept" - but I would argue only in part. Product providers did, and still do to a large extent, bear the cost by way of commission - although this is being eroded due to over-reaction by the Government to the highly effective, if somewhat misguided, anti-commission lobby by certain groups. We all know ...

  • Inside edge

    25 Oct 2001

    There is more to Raising Standards than acquiring a new logo. History is full of examples of those who led the way in their field but were ridiculed for their beliefs or achievements during their lifetime. The UK financial services industry is peppered with examples. Given that the industry is frequently charged with being conservative and resistant to change, it is perhaps surprising that more of the leading players are not receptive to the concept of change, or even prepared to light ...

  • Intermediaries confident in buy to let market

    26 Oct 2001

    But to let investment is set to increase, according to data from Bradford & Bingley specialist lender Mortgage Express.Mortgage Express's property hotspots report reveals that 95 per cent of intermediaries who responded to the survey said the market would rise or remain stable over the next six months.The survey showed Sheffield, Brighton, Birmingham and South East London as being amongst the areas with the highest demand for buy to let investments.

  • Investment view

    25 Oct 2001

    I do not know what it is about October that makes it such a difficult month for the stockmarket. The Arab/Israeli conflict in 1973, which ushered in the worst bear market in my experience, took place in October. The great stockmarket crash of 1987, exacerbated in the UK by the closure of the stockmarket on the preceding Friday thanks to the hurricane that swept through Southern England, began on October 19. And of course, there was the Wall Street crash of 1929. So far this October ...

  • Jelf IFM buys healthcare intermediary CHMG

    29 Oct 2001

    IFA Jelf IFM Group has purchased Wiltshire based specialist healthcare intermediary Corporate Health Management Group.

  • JPMorgan Fleming - JPMF Capital Protection - Global Growth

    25 Oct 2001

    Thursday, 25 October 2001. Type: Guaranteed growth bond. Aim: Growth linked to the JPMF premier equity growth, JPM global fixed income, JPMF European growth, JPMF US growth and JPMF South East Asia funds. Minimum-maximum investment: £3,000-no maximum. Term: Five years. Guarantee: Capital returned in full at end of term. Return: 75 per cent of total return. Closing date: December 5, 2001. Commission: 3 per cent. Tel: ...

  • Julian Gibbs

    25 Oct 2001

    An IFA said to me the other day it was a funny time to launch a fund when there are only a few investors about. He was referring to the launch of New Star UK Aggressive. I think he is totally wrong. Investor confidence is returning and I believe in two or three years time today will seem to have been an excellent buying opportunity. IFAs should encourage their clients to invest now. What I particularly like about New Star is that they hire top class fund managers and incentivise ...

  • L&G wants compulsion on occupational plans

    25 Oct 2001

    Legal & General says the Government should reintroduce the right for employers to insist that staff join the occupational pension scheme. The ability to compel employees in this way was scrapped in April 1988 amid concerns that increasingly mobile employment patterns meant it was no longer beneficial to force individuals to save with an employer. But L&G believes the re-introduction of compulsion at this level would be a step in the right direction as part of a package of developments ...

  • Leeds & Holbeck - Platinum Access Bond

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001.

  • Life offices face upheaval in Baird bid to update solvency

    25 Oct 2001

    Life offices are braced for the biggest regulatory shake-up in years following sweeping recommendations from the FSA's Equitable inquiry on solvency requirements. The recommendations are part of the Baird report on the FSA's handling of Equitable Life. They could see current practices scrapped, including the use of future profits and reinsurance contracts to boost headline financial strength. FSA director of internal audit Ronnie Baird's concerns follow Equitable's ...

  • Life offices lose plea to add Serps onus on IFAs

    25 Oct 2001

    The PIA has rejected calls from life offices to reconsider proposals on meeting the cost of recalculated redress on Serps transfers in phase two of the pension review which product providers felt were too generous to IFAs. The method of meeting the additional cash to policyholders who are entitled to recalculated redress, estimated at up to £80m, was detailed in PIA consultation 35 in August. Plans for an 85 per cent of costs to life offices versus a 15 per cent proportion to ...

  • Lines crossed

    25 Oct 2001

    I know the phone systems of some companies is a subject that has been dissected by us all many many times but: 1: The average time spent holding to be put through is a minimum five minutes. 2: I'm constantly getting cut off "by accident" when things get complicated. 3: I can never speak to the same person twice. 4: Consequently, no one takes responsibility for anything. 5: "You're through to the wrong department" is becom-ing a mantra for many companies and then, ...

  • Liv Vic Life head of sales resigns

    24 Oct 2001

    Liverpool Victoria Life head of sales and marketing Rod Macdonald has left the company after seeing his role reduced following the takeover of protection specialist Permanent Insurance by the friendly society. Macdonald is the fourth senior member of the old Permanent team to leave following former managing director Andrew Chapman taking a job with the parent company, and former head of customer service Alan Ord and former head of national accounts Phil Calvert departures in August. ...

  • Lloyds TSB - London Guaranteed Equity Savings Plan

    24 Oct 2001

    Wednesday, 24 October 2001.

  • Loan site relaunch after Eve buys back company

    25 Oct 2001

    Flexemortgage, the first online flexible loan website, is relaunching this week after original owner Frank Eve bought it back from E-loan for a fraction of the sale price. Eve had set up the website - which gives inf-ormation on the features and benefits of flexible mortgages - during the e-commerce boom in 1999 and sold it to E-loan for an undisclosed sum the same year, becoming managing director in the process. Following the dotcom collapse, E-loan was broken up, with Eve taking ...

  • Look to the long term

    25 Oct 2001

    I have an investment portfolio of mainly equity-based unit trusts, Peps and Isas. Given the recent stockmarket crash, should I keep these funds? The answer depends as much on the kind of person you are as much as it does on the facts. Run this little test: Are you generally pessimistic? Are you very risk averse by nature? Are you more concerned about not losing any more money on your investments than making money from today? Have you been checking the unit prices ...

  • LTC - threat or opportunity?

    25 Oct 2001

    Long-term care funding is often associated with vague guidelines and confusion on what is or is not means tested. Add to this the independent nature of local authorities and you can see why IFAs wonder what stance they should take. The recently published royal commission report on long-term care seems now to have set out the Government's stall on this issue. Longevity and ill heath are effects of medical advances and new treatments. LTC is a cost the Government cannot afford. The ...

  • Man Investment Products - Man-IP 220 Plus (Series 4)

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001.

  • Mark of distinction?

    25 Oct 2001

    The Raising Standards initiative is banking on IFAs' support to make the quality mark, awarded to the first five brands last week, a success. But how exactly will it benefit advisers and how long will it be before IFAs can use the quality mark for its intended purpose of raising confidence and ultimately growing the market for long-term savings products? Last week, Norwich Union, Scottish Equitable, Scottish Widows, CIS and Unum were awarded the ABI's quality mark from the ...

  • Market forces

    25 Oct 2001

    Last week, I looked at the services Skandia is making available to IFAs to help populate their own websites. The first fund supermarket to launch tools to populate IFAs' own websites was Fidelity's FundsNetwork. It is nearly a year since it launched this facility initially via The Exchange, which would offer a standard version of FundsNetwork with the normal look and feel used by Fidelity, either as one of The Exch-ange Adviser Web Build sites or standard linked web pages, known ...

  • Marketing via the internet is a must

    25 Oct 2001

    I have been banging the internet drum to other IFAs for over two years now, so I was interested to see the article "Internet is the key to survival" (Money Marketing, October 11). It seems that, at last, the penny has dropped. It is indeed a very foolish IFA who ignores the internet. It will never replace us entirely but it will certainly play an increasing role in the public's own research. We should never forget that today's schoolchildren are tomorrow's clients. The ...

  • Marketplace MD aims to recruit 100 advisers

    25 Oct 2001

    The MarketPlace at Bradford & Bingley is aiming to recruit 100 IFAs in the next six months and develop a wealth management service, according to new managing director Peter Barrett. Barrett, 35, joined the IFA from Centrica where he was managing director of Goldfish and was behind the strategy for the recently launched AA IFA. He has worked in financial services for 17 years. As part of the drive to maintain and expand on the MarketPlace's brand name and position as the UK's ...

  • Master/servant fear over FSA loan ad rules

    25 Oct 2001

    IFAs warn that lenders will take control of many brokers' advertising, which could lead to bland and unimaginative marketing if new FSA mortgage rules are applied. From N3, all intermediaries' product ads must be signed off by a registered individual. But with around half of the 14,000 mortgage brokers not regulated, len-ders are expected to take responsibility for ads, which advisers fear could lead to a master/servant relationship in favour of the lenders. IFAs believe ...

  • Merrill Lynch adds to defined return range

    26 Oct 2001

    Merrill Lynch Investment Managers has brought out the second version of its defined returns fund.

  • Merrill Lynch income and growth product offers annual 8.25% yield

    25 Oct 2001

    Merrill Lynch Investment Managers has set up a protected income and growth product offering a yield of up to 8.25 per cent a year. The Merrill Lynch def-ined returns 2 fund opens from October 29 until the end of November. The product offers two share classes - income and zero-dividend preference shares - and is linked to the performance of 30 blue-chip pan-European stocks. The income shares offer a dividend yield of 8.25 per cent, paid quarterly over three years. Capital is ...

  • Millennium service from Gerrard

    26 Oct 2001

    Old Mutual subsidiary Gerrard Investment Funds has introduced the millennium global portfolio service.

  • MM wins ABI award

    25 Oct 2001

    Money Marketing has won the prestigious Association of British Insurers' Financial Services Media Award for best life insurance/pensions trade publication. MM editor John Lappin was presented with the accolade last week by award sponsor Friends Provident at a ceremony opened by ABI director general Mary Francis at the London Hilton Hotel, Park Lane and hosted by TV comedian Rory Bremner.

  • Mortgage 2000 - Verso Buy-to-Let Mortgage

    25 Oct 2001

    Thursday, 25 October 2001.

  • Mortgage Next targets £2bn business for 2001

    29 Oct 2001

    Mortgage Next has anounced it completed £1.6bn of lending business in 2000 and it expect this figure to exceed £2bn in 2001.The company is now moving to new premises twice the size of their current headquarters in Caterham, Surrey. The extra space will make room to increase the new business team as it embarks upon a recruitment drive.

  • MP in 'igroup secret commission' claim

    25 Oct 2001

    Sub-prime lender igroup has been slammed in the House of Commons by Labour MP Barry Gardiner over claims of secret commission on past loan contracts. In a Commons debate last week, Gardiner urged DTI minister Melanie Johnson to meet with igroup owner GE Capital over allegations of undisclosed commission on the lender's previous loan contracts and described igroup as "extremely disreputable". Speaking in the debate, Gardiner said: "The mortgage code is ritually ignored in the ...

  • N&P goes live on Mortgage Brain

    30 Oct 2001

    Norwich & Peterborough Building Society is the first non-consortium member to go live on Mortgage Brain, accepting mortgage applications electronically from intermediaries.

  • Nationwide - Nationwide High Income Fund

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001.

  • Network Data makes three top appointments

    24 Oct 2001

    Independent mortgage and general insurance sourcing software provider Network Data is making three senior appointments this week.

  • New fixed rate mortgage from Genesis

    29 Oct 2001

    Genesis Home Loans is launching mortgage fixed until January 2004 at 4.49 per cent up to 75 per cent loan to value and 4.69 per cent up to 95 per cent loan to valueThe redemption penalty is 5 per cent of the loan during the fixed rate period, and the arrangement fee costs £295. The loan is available to borrowers with one county court judgment or a default of less than £300, provided it has been satisfied. The minimum loan is £25,000.

  • NHL borrowers may take appeal to Lords

    25 Oct 2001

    The Court of Appeal ruling last week that disgruntled borrowers of National Home Loans must continue to pay its high variable rates has left lenders breathing a sigh of relief. By issuing a ruling which did not let the Paragon subsidiary entirely off the hook but which failed to set the precedent the borrowers were looking for, the court managed to maintain the status quo in an area many feel is in need of review. But while NHL was claiming outright victory following the announcement, ...

  • Norwich Union rolls up a retirement package

    25 Oct 2001

    Norwich Union is rolling up a range of products for the retirement market into one package to provide a comprehensive offering for people approaching retirement. The package, marketed under the line "For the life your clients deserve after work", has been designed to help IFAs offer clients greater flexibility in retirement and highlights the breadth of provisions available to meet individual needs. NU is urging advisers to look on retirement not just in terms of pension planning ...

  • NU suspends access to pension assured fund

    29 Oct 2001

    Norwich Union is temporarily suspending its Pension Assured Fund. The fund, which holds £1.5bn will not accept new single or regular contribution contracts and the fund will not be available as an investment choice to new members of group schemes. NU blames the move on falling stockmarket returns which would hit the level of guarantees available to new policyholders.

  • NVM updates guide to VCTs

    25 Oct 2001

    Fund management group Nor-thern Venture Managers has produced an updated VCT tax guide for investors following the launch of its £25m Northern 3 VCT last month. The guide is laid out in a question and answer format and aims to provide potential investors and IFAs with straightforward explanations about the advantages of investing in a VCT. It provides an overview of the personal tax incentives to invest in a VCT, the availability of income tax relief and the time limits which ...

  • Octopus tentacles out to bio VCT

    30 Oct 2001

    Brewin Dolphin Securities has linked up with Octopus Asset Management for the introduction of the bioscience venture capital trust (VCT). This VCT invests in a portfolio of between 25 and 30 companies within the biotechnology sector. The portfolio will be made up of quoted companies in the UK and overseas, companies listed on Aim and Ofex, unquoted companies that are in the early stages of development and also those at the later stages. Growth in the biotechnology sector ...

  • Old Mutual and Gerrard join up to create top 20 fund firm

    25 Oct 2001

    Old Mutual is to merge Gerrard Investment Funds with Old Mutual Asset Managers in a move which will propel Omam into the top 20 biggest UK fund firms. The merged firm will run under the Omam brand, with the Gerrard name being pha-sed out for all but the portfolio management division. Omam chief executive John Ainsworth will head the mer-ged operation, with fund mergers and rebranding expected to be his first tasks in the new year. With more than £1bn under management, ...

  • Old Mutual picks the best of the FTSE 250

    25 Oct 2001

    Old Mutual Fund Managers’ UK select mid cap fund is a unit trust aimed at the experienced investor who is looking for growth and seeking to add a medium-risk fund to an existing portfolio.

  • Omam set to offer UK mid-250 fund

    25 Oct 2001

    Old Mutual Asset Managers is planning to offer a new UK mid-250 fund in February. The fund will combine the skills of small-cap star Ashton Bradbury and newly recruited UK growth manager Richard Moore, who joined Omam from Singer & Friedlander at the end of last month. It will invest in a tight portfolio of around 50 to 60 stocks and will be managed in a similar style to Bradbury's UK select smaller companies fund, which was launched in January. Head of marketing Ian Pascal ...

  • Open season

    25 Oct 2001

    If you have not yet sent a response to the FSA's consultation on Disclosure: Trading an endowment policy and buying a pension annuity, don't worry - you still have a few days to pen some well-chosen words. The consultation period ends on October 31. Like most people, you may find the title of the review rather heavy and less than enticing. However, I would encourage you to participate. Why? It deals with an increasingly important subject, the open market option - the right ...

  • Orbitex appoints new sales support head

    29 Oct 2001

    Specialist fund manager Orbitex Investment is appointing Mark Berry as manager if its sales support desk.

  • Outside edge

    25 Oct 2001

    This week I noticed reports that the ABI was proposing a new type of adviser for middle-income earners. This tier was referred to as financial awareness representatives, who would gain from reduced compliance and training burdens. So in one move we could arrive at a model where the competence of the advisers was diluted in proportion to someone's income. This is continuing down the road of trying to satisfy the lowest common denominator in terms of competency and is completely ...

  • Parliamentary ombudsman to investigate FSA over Equitable

    30 Oct 2001

    The parliamentary ombudsman is to investigate the role of the FSA in managing the Equitable Life debacle, in a move that could see policyholders receiving state compensation.

  • Peter Barrett

    25 Oct 2001

    Lives: Buxted, East Sussex Born: 1966, West Sussex Education: Left comprehensive school to go to college in East Surrey to study for a diploma in business studies Career: Started with admin role with subsidiary of Signa US, Crusader Insurance, In 1989 joined Inter-American International as a director of offshore operations. In 1990 set up his own brokerage in the south of England and in 1993 he joined GE Capital. 1995 joined GE Financial Assurance. In 2000, he was made ...

  • Pink adds to 100 LTV club

    26 Oct 2001

    Pink Home Loans is offering a 100 per cent loan to value discounted rate mortgage.

  • Pink Home Loans - The Chameleon Mortgage 50 Per Cent

    30 Oct 2001

    Tuesday, October 30, 2001.

  • Pink Home Loans - The Chameleon Mortgage 60 Per Cent

    30 Oct 2001

    Tuesday, October 30, 2001.

  • Pinnacle cashplan opts for maturity

    29 Oct 2001

    Pinnacle Insurance has introduced a healthcare cashplan aimed at the mature end of the age spectrum.

  • Portfolio is set to offer blue-chip protection

    25 Oct 2001

    Legal & General is introducing a new protected portfolio which offers investors growth while giving some protection on their capital. The protected portfolio is available for investments from October 22 until November 30. It invests in 30 stocks selected from the top 200 UK companies and has a five-year term with capital security at the fifth anniversary. Returns are based on the performance of the 30 stocks, which is calculated individually. The growth on any individual stock ...

  • Product matters

    25 Oct 2001

    A number of groups are launching new funds at the mom-ent. Given the present state of the investment market, they will prob-ably struggle to obtain much new money. A headache for marketing departments but a godsend to investors brave enough to venture out. Smaller funds with dynamic fund managers who are heavily incentivised make for a potent mix. One group that has caught my eye is JO Hambro, which is launching four new funds. The UK emerging and recovery funds are to be run by Max ...

  • Pru fined £650,000 for pensions review failures

    30 Oct 2001

    Prudential has been fined £650,000 by the PIA for failures in its pensions review procedures.Pru was criticised for delays in paying redress to policyholders who had retired and beneficiaries of those who have died. Some policyholders were waiting more than six months for cases to be reviewed. Its records also came under fire, with Pru in some cases unable to produce any documents.

  • Public turning away from face-to-face advice

    25 Oct 2001

    More than half of the public would prefer not to have a face-to-face meeting with a financial adviser, according to new research by Marlborough Stirling. Although 47 per cent of consumers prefer to meet their adviser in person, new media channels are gaining a hold with the public as an advice source. Software firm Marlbor-ough Stirling believes this should push more IFAs towards a multiple channel marketing strategy as failure could see them missing out on marketing opportunities. The ...

  • Quester - Quester VCT

    30 Oct 2001

    Tuesday, October 30, 2001. Aim: Income and growth by investing in unquoted companies. Minimum investment: Lump sum £3,000. Opening-closing date: September 26, 2001-until further notice. Charges: Annual 2.5 per cent. Commission: Initial 3 per cent. Tel: 020 7227 3358.

  • R&SAIFS feels agressive with new fund

    24 Oct 2001

    Royal & SunAlliance International Financial Services’ (R&SAIFS) new aggressive managed fund is introduced in co-operation with Collins Stewart Asset Management, who will be dealing with the management of the fund.

  • RBSI offers dual currency bond

    24 Oct 2001

    Royal Bank of Scotland International has unveiled a guaranteed growth bond that is available in either sterling or dollars.

  • Reasons to be cheerful

    25 Oct 2001

    Friday, November 30 is set to be a momentous date. While it will not be quite in the same league as the second coming of Christ or the advent of the new century, there will clearly be much rejoicing and celebration throughout the land. The fatted calves will be slaughtered, wine will flow and there will be singing and dancing in the streets. Peace and goodwill among men will abound, with the breathing of a great and collective sigh of relief. It will be a sort of triumphant Mardi ...

  • Resolve offers review reassurance

    25 Oct 2001

    Consultants and actuaries The Resolve Partnership is setting up a specialist decommissioning service this week to help IFAs preparing to enter the final leg of their pension misselling reviews. The service aims to provide an independent analysis of a firm's review and work with in-house staff and advisers to ensure it meets the FSA's stringent requirements ahead of the June 2002 deadline. The service is designed to provide comprehensive auditing, thoroughly examining the ...

  • Royal & SunAlliance - Trustee Investment Plan

    24 Oct 2001

    Wednesday, 24 October 2001.

  • Royal & SunAlliance hopes that fund will become a mainstay

    29 Oct 2001

    Royal & SunAlliance International is joining forces with Thames River Capital to provide a new fund for investors.

  • Royal Bank of Scotland International - Stepped Growth Bond

    26 Oct 2001

    Friday, 26 October 2001. Type: Guaranteed growth bond. Aim: Growth by tracking FTSE 100 index for sterling investments, S&P 500 index for dollar investments. Minimum investment: Lump sum £10,000, $20,000. Place of registration: Isle of man. Investment split: 100 per cent FTSE 100 index for sterling investments, S&P 500 index for dollar investments. Guarantee: Capital returned in full at end of three year term. Isa ...

  • Schroders picks ex-Grenfell chief Dobson as CEO and buys his firm

    25 Oct 2001

    Schroders has appointed former head of Morgan Grenfell, Michael Dobson as chief executive and is to buy Dobson's hedge fund firm Beaumont Capital Management as part of the deal. Dobson will take over from David Salisbury who quit Schroders after a 68 per cent fall in profits during the first half of this year. Schroders is to pay £33.5m for the hedge fund boutique, which has around £190m under management. All 15 Beaumont partners are to join Schroders, with Dobson, ...

  • Scot Life introduces mortgage tracker service

    29 Oct 2001

    Scottish Life has launched a new mortgage tracking service for introducers which provides up-to-date information on submitted applications online.Mortgage Tracker gives introduces a caseload summary and status details of each case. The service shows references, valuation details, outstanding requirements and current status. It is available on ScotLife’s mortgage website.

  • Scottish accountant referral service set up

    24 Oct 2001

    A new service is being launched in Scotland to encourage chartered accountants no longer regulated by the FSA after N2 to refer work to IFAs. The IFA vehicle service idea comes from a London-based member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland, Bruce Candlish, of accountancy firm McKenzie Candlish. The service's first provider contract has been signed with DPB Financial Services in Dundee whose IFAs will get referrals from accountants with commission split between firms.

  • Scottish Legal Life offers extra allocation online

    30 Oct 2001

    Scottish Legal Life is offering investors a 2 per cent allocation on its mutual investment bond for applications made through its website. Allocation rates are now at 98 per cent for investments between £2,000 and £4,999, 99 per cent for sums between £5,000 and £9,999, 100 per cent for sums between £10,000 and £49,999 and 101 per cent for sums between £50,000 and £99,999. 

  • Scottish Legal Life offers IFA discount on investment bond

    26 Oct 2001

    Scottish Legal Life is offering IFAs an extra 1 per cent allocation on its guaranteed investment bond for applications received between October 29 and December 7.

  • Self interest

    25 Oct 2001

    In the mortgage industry, there is one strong theme that runs through all the regulatory moves of the past few years - from the mortgage code and compulsory qualifications for advisers through to the FSA taking over full regulatory powers by the end of August 2002 - and that is the concept of "responsible lending". When making any smaller-value purchases with cash (for example clothes or household goods) consumers must choose carefully for themselves and - so long as the seller has ...

  • Sitting comfortably

    25 Oct 2001

    Advising on phased retirement is second nature to many IFAs. But away from their clients' pension and investment needs, what advisers do to ensure their own slow and comfortable passage into retirement is not always so clear-cut. The high average age of advisers and low capitalisation of firms has been a persistent concern, leaving IFAs in a trap of wanting to sell their businesses but finding it difficult to do so. Tenet Group chief executive Simon Hudson says that, as is ...

  • Skandia adds to life cover in bond rebrand

    25 Oct 2001

    Skandia is rebranding its bond range and offering enhanced additional life cover to investors. Skandia's onshore bond range which includes its investment, capital and income and distribution bonds, will now come under the "multi" banner within its multi-manager fund supermarket. IFA clients can select life cover of up to 125 per cent of the initial investment with simplified underwriting. The new underwriting process means clients can answer one health question and one smoker ...

  • Skipton Building Society - 2 Year Fixed Rate Bond

    25 Oct 2001

    Thursday, 25 October 2001.Type: High interest account.Minimum-maximum investment: £3,000-£10,000.Interest rates: 5.15 per cent.Term: Until November 21, 2003.Offer period: Until further notice.Withdrawal penalties: No withdrawals permitted during term.Tel: 0800 446776.  

  • Skipton Building Society - 5 Year Guaranteed Growth Bond

    30 Oct 2001

    Tuesday, October 30, 2001. Type: Guaranteed growth bond. Minimum-maximum investment: £2,000-£50,000. Term: Five years. Interest rate: 4.75 per cent a year. Return: Up to 50 per cent of original investment linked to FTSE 100, Eurostoxx 50 and S&P 500 indices. Guarantee: Capital returned in full at end of term plus 22 per cent of initial investment regardless of movement in indices. Commission: None. Tel: 0800 ...

  • Skipton tracks three indices

    26 Oct 2001

    Skipton Building Society is feeding the current frenzy for guaranteed products with its 5-year guaranteed growth bond. The bond will track three stockmarket indices, the FTSE 100, Eurostoxx 50 and S&P 500, over a five-year term. It will return the original capital to investors however these indices perform, plus a minimum of 22 per cent growth. The maximum growth potential is 50 per cent. The starting level of indices are taken on January 4, 2002 and on each anniversary ...

  • SLI lauches revamped website

    26 Oct 2001

    Scottish Life International is launching its revamped website, with more interactive features than its three-year old predecessor.

  • Standard & Poor's Micropal Top 10's

    25 Oct 2001

    Merrill Lynch Investment Managers' gold & general fund has toppled Govett US Bear off the top of the unit trust league tables after several months in the number one spot. The MLIM fund has returned 24.59 per cent over the past 12 months, compared with the average unit trust return of -19.4 per cent. The remainder of the unit top 10 consists predominantly of income and corporate bond funds. On insurance funds, property funds continue to dominate, with Allied Dunbar's American ...

  • Standard Life Bank - Fixed Rate Bond

    24 Oct 2001

    Wednesday, 24 October 2001.Type: High interest account.Minimum-maximum investment: £1,000-£1m.Interest rates: 4.9 per cent a year, 4.79 per cent a month.Term: Until October 8, 2004.Offer period: Until further notice.Withdrawal penalties: No withdrawals permitted during term.Tel: 0845 6012340. 

  • Sun Bank & Genesis compete for attention

    26 Oct 2001

    Sun Bank and Genesis Home Loans have both introduced buy-to-let mortgages that are fixed until January 1, 2004.

  • Taking care of business

    25 Oct 2001

    The onset of mortgage regulation need not cause admin horror for intermediaries. The proposals set out in CP98, the consultation paper proposing the new mortgage regulations, focus heavily on regulating the level of information given throughout the entire mortgage life cycle, from pre-sale to redemption. Currently, lenders book most business through intermediaries, so these proposals will make them reluctant guar-dians as they will be responsible for the quality of information ...

  • Talkback

    25 Oct 2001

    Are you more likely to recommend a product if it is accredited with the ABI's Raising Standards quality mark? "No. Products have to be assessed on their own merits whether or not it carries such a mark." Paul Rayner,Rayner Woolner "No, I'd look at each product and recommend it or not on its individual merits." Martin Sell,MR Sell Financial Services "Yes. It shows companies have passed certain criteria and customers like kite marks as a standard measure." Paul ...

  • The Daley Update

    25 Oct 2001

    Framlington is offering a 1 per cent discount on its UK growth trust until the end of October after the fund was awarded a AA rating by Standard & Poor's Fund Services. The £68m fund, managed by Chris Murphy, is top quartile in the UK all companies sector over one, three and five years. Fourteen funds lost their Standard & Poor's ratings in its latest review of UK growth and smaller company funds. Gartmore UK smaller companies, JP Morgan Fleming UK growth & income and Jupiter ...

  • The road to regulation

    25 Oct 2001

    The sheer size of the FSA's CP98 draft mortgage sourcebook gives an early taste to brokers, lenders and borrowers alike as to how life is likely to be when the rule changes are brought in. At over 400 pages, the document is as daunting to brokers as a panoply of five-page pre-application illustrations per mortgage under consideration is likely to be for borrowers. Although the final document is yet to be drafted, brokers need to brace themselves for what the mortgage sourcebook ...

  • Think tank says UK economy wil outperform G7 next year

    26 Oct 2001

    The UK will avoid gong into recession in the coming months, according to a report by the Natrional Institute for Economic and Social Research.The NIESR says the UK will have the best growth of all the G7 countries in the coming year.It predicts the UK economy will grow by 2.3 per cent this year and 2.1 per cent next year. It also predicts inflation at 2.5 per cent for the end of 2001, falling to 1.8 per cent by the end of 2002.  

  • Tony Wood

    25 Oct 2001

    IFAs must build up as much value in their in their business as they can to ensure to ensure a retirement exit route There is no doubt that for any professional it should be part of the business plan to have a retirement "exit route" strategy thought through at an appropriate time. Many IFA businesses may look at an Aim or stockmarket listing well before retirement but, for the majority of IFA businesses, that is not a feasible possibility. So what do they do? It is vital that an ...

  • Top of the tech tree

    25 Oct 2001

    Royal Bank of Scotland, along with subsidiary NatWest, has become the latest lender to acquire a stake in Mortgage Brain, taking the number of equity partners in the platform to four. With other major lenders poised to buy into the platform, do you think Mortgage Brain has "won" the technology battle? Mawdsley: Certainly, the financial strength and credibility that these names bring to the party add to MBL's chances of success. However, I think it is far too early to predict winners ...

  • Treading the regulation boards

    25 Oct 2001

    Despite the fact the FSA is often considered as being the single financial regulator, it is only one of many bodies which play a role in overseeing the industry. It is true that at N2 the FSA will replace a number of the regulators currently controlling the various aspects of the industry, such as the PIA, but there are a number of other organisations which will continue to have significant influence. These other bodies often work in cooperation with the FSA or cover areas where ...

  • UK economy grows in third quarter

    26 Oct 2001

    The UK economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the third quarter of 2001, up from 0.4 per cent for the previous quarter, and giving an annual growth rate of 2.2 per cent.The figures, from the office for National Statistics, include the period covering the attacks on the US, and are likely to support those calling for cuts in interest rates to be resisted. 

  • Value added facts

    25 Oct 2001

    In looking at the objective and subjective factors aff ecting an individual's decision on whether or not it would be preferable to transfer preserved pension benefits from a defined-benefits occupational pension scheme to a private arrangement, we have now reached the second of four (or, in many cases, five) stages in the calculation of a transfer value. Stage one in this procedure is the identification and quantification of the nature and the level of benefits accruing to an early ...

  • Virgin One aids homebuyers with regional guides

    25 Oct 2001

    Virgin One is offering 11 regional guides for homebuyers moving to a new location. The guides give advice on the area for use by borrowers and mortgage brokers. In a survey conducted for Virgin, homebuyers say the proximity of local shops, good schools and availability of public transport are the top three most important factors when looking to buy a property. The househunting section of the guide contains descriptions of the most and least desirable locations in the region and ...

  • Virgin warns on enforcement of moratorium

    26 Oct 2001

    A robust system of checks will be required to effectively police the life industry's five year moratorium on using the results of genetic tests.

  • Wesleyan backing Faldo junior golf tournament

    25 Oct 2001

    Wesleyan Assurance Society has signed a sponsorship deal with the Faldo Junior Series youth golf club competition to encourage junior golfers to become professionals. Wesleyan has agreed a minimum three-year deal for an undisclosed sum staring this year. The company says it has already benefited from prominent branding at the recent final of this year's Faldo Junior Series at Sauton Gold Club in Devon. Prince Andrew presented prizes to the first overseas winners of the competition, ...

  • What advisers think of Sandler - Equal Partners

    25 Oct 2001

    Equal Partners believes consu-mers are reluctant to pay for advice because they do not recognise its value and it is up to distribution channels to change this view. It says client education is needed and the industry, commentators, regulators and the Government should be aiming to convince consumers of the worth of advice. It says IFAs should be seen by the public as charging for advice and the work involved rather than as product retailers. On remuneration, Equal Partners ...

  • What advisers think of Sandler - Syndaxi Financial Planning

    25 Oct 2001

    Syndaxi Financial Planning says separating advice from product purchase would improve the chances of clients receiving ongoing financial planning. In its response to Sandler, the company says this would tackle the "unhealthy preoccupation" the industry has with new business and the front-loaded nature of remuneration for salespeople which limits active reviewing of contracts. Principal Robert Reid also believes there is a discrepancy between the level of knowledge and qualifications ...

  • What advisers think of Sandler - Thomas Financial Planning

    25 Oct 2001

    IFA Thomas Financial Planning warns against the introduction of multi-ties in its response to the Sandler review, claiming that they would only benefit providers which want to increase sales of unsuitable products from their tied agents. Principal Philip Thomas says it is clear that there is a lack of co-ordination among the Government and regulators because of the the multiplicity of industry reviews. Thomas rejects the claim that higher commission rates may lead to product bias, ...

  • Whitechurch sets up pension service

    25 Oct 2001

    IFA Whitechurch Securities is setting up a pension advisory service to complement its inv-estment advice business. The service aims to encourage the firm's existing clients to treat retirement planning as part of their fund portfolios. Whitechurch's service will be available to clients for a minimum fee of £350, for which five advisers will offer face-to-face advice backed by a monthly newsletter covering issues such as annuities and how to evaluate the cost and value ...

  • Win a luxury weekend for two in Paris with £500 to Spend

    25 Oct 2001

    ENTRY FORM 1: What is the estimated size of the Complex Prime mortgage market? a: £32 million b)£3.2 billion c)£32 billion 2: Which of the following best describes a Complex Prime case? a: Those unusual cases that fall outside standard criteria b: Adverse credit c: Non-status 3: According to recent figures released by the Land Registry, approximately how many UK properties were sold between April and June ...

  • Workshops from Institute of Financial Planning and LIA

    24 Oct 2001

    The Institute of Financial Planning and the LIA are running workshops in November to encourage more people to become paraplanners. They will focus on the how paraplanners can add value to an IFA's business, the qualifications required, creating and implementing a financial plan and career paths. The IFP says the number of clients requiring a paraplanner is set to double over the next 15 years and firms must ensure they can meet this need. A one day workshop costs £75 for IFP ...

  • Worlds apart

    25 Oct 2001

    There often seems to be a shroud of mystery encircling the world of credit scoring and underwriting. For the borrower applying for a homeloan, the desire to understand such a process is probably minimal - until the answer comes back from the mortgage lender as: "No, we can not lend you the money". According to research from Datamonitor, more than 8.3 million people of working age would be rejected for a mainstream mortgage. That excludes 23 per cent of the working population. There ...

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