Money Marketing
25 October 2006

  • Bright Grey extends life and CI terms

    26 Oct 2006

    Bright Grey is to extend the maximum term of its life and critical-illness cover from 25 years up to 40 years in response to demands from advisers wanting longer-term protection for their clients. The changes will take place at the end of October and reviewable rate life or critical-illness cover will increase to a maximum 40-year term while guaranteed rate life or critical-illness cover will increase to 30 years.

  • Options E to H are favoured in review

    26 Oct 2006

    The FSA says the majority of responses to the Financial Ombudsman Service funding review favoured options E to H, where advisers get between five and 10 free cases with an increasing flat fee.

  • £100M Axa deal for Thinc Destini

    26 Oct 2006

    Chief executive Simon Chamberlain set to pick up more than £5m

  • 17.3m cannot get on housing ladder, says Abbey

    30 Oct 2006

    Over 17m people are unable to get on to the property ladder, according to research from Abbey.

  • 47% Would opt out of NPSS

    26 Oct 2006

    Forty-seven per cent of people eligible for NPSS would opt out,says a survey by JP Morgan Asset Management. Forty-nine per cent said they were unlikely to opt out and 4 per cent said they did not know.

  • A Personal Health Solution from BCWA

    30 Oct 2006

    BCWA Healthcare has introduced Personal Health, an individual private medical insurance plan offering a mix and match range of five benefit options.

  • A right pain in the Asp

    26 Oct 2006

    I refer to your article in Money Marketing, 19 October, 'Balls is set to axe ASPs'. Is it unreasonable to assume that ASPs will survive the pre-Budget statement which is expect- ed in December? One of the main objections to pension schemes that we encounter is a reticence to invest in them because death shortly after annuity purchase would mean that a lifetime of savings could be lost. Furthermore, the purchase of a spouse's annuity at outset can also be wasted if he or she pre-deceases ...

  • A speciality for Close

    30 Oct 2006

    Close Property Investment is looking to raise up to £10m for the Eighth special opportunities fund, which is available as a limited partnership or exempt unit trust for pension investors.

  • A&L looks at instant offers

    26 Oct 2006

    Alliance & Leicester plans to launch instant offers next year in a bid to ramp up its service to brokers.The firm says automated valuation models, which facilitate point of sale offers, are a key part of its future strategy.A&L will follow GMAC, Edeus and ING Direct as lenders offering Posos while BM Solutions says it is also planning to generate instant offers.GMAC chairman Stephen Knight said last week that lenders that failed to embrace such technology would see business ...

  • ABN AMRO Asset Management - Brazil Equity Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    ABN AMROBrazil Equity Fund

  • ABN Amro cracks Brazil

    30 Oct 2006

    ABN Amro’s Brazil Equity Fund aims for growth by investing in Brazilian equities using socially responsible criteria.

  • Aegon explores group Sipp

    30 Oct 2006

    Aegon Scottish Equitable has established a group Sipp aimed at employers with at least five employees.

  • Aegon offers 5 for life

    30 Oct 2006

    Aegon Scottish Equitable International’s 5 for life is a unit-linked investment plan providing people who are at or near retirement with a guaranteed income from the age of 60.

  • Aegon Scottish Equitable International - 5 For Life

    30 Oct 2006

    Aegon Scottish Equitable International5 For Life

  • Age-old plight

    26 Oct 2006

    Many industry professionals believe that CF8 is merely a token move and does not address the real issues

  • Alliance & Leicester - Prime Buy To Let Two Year Fixed Rate

    30 Oct 2006

    Alliance & LeicesterPrime Buy To Let Two Year Fixed Rate

  • Alliance & Leicester - Two-Year Base Rate Tracker

    30 Oct 2006

    Alliance & LeicesterTwo-Year Base Rate Tracker

  • Anger as Govt refuses to pay workers' legal costs

    26 Oct 2006

    Altmann says legal precedent has been broken as 75,000 fight for £3bn in compensation

  • Balls points to trusted and affordable advice

    26 Oct 2006

    Treasury Economic Secretary Ed Balls believes that raising financial capability on its own is not enough and the role of "transparent, trusted and affordable" full financial advice must be promoted.Speaking at the UK's first Financial Capability Conference, Balls said at present financial planning is the "preserve of the better off".He said key questions, such as how to increase access and take-up of generic advice, who is best placed to deliver it and who should determine and ...

  • Barclays - Guaranteed Annual Income Equity Deposit Account - Issue November 2006

    30 Oct 2006

    BarclaysGuaranteed Annual Income Equity Deposit Account - Issue November 2006

  • Barclays - Guaranteed Equity FTSE 100 Deposit Account - Issue November 2006

    30 Oct 2006

    BarclaysGuaranteed Equity FTSE 100 Deposit Account - Issue November 2006

  • Barclays targets bond investors

    30 Oct 2006

    Barclays has brought out two structured products aimed at people with offshore life bonds.

  • Bill Mott U-turn at Credit Suisse

    26 Oct 2006

    Credit Suisse investment guru Bill Mott has agreed to stay on as strategic director at the group two weeks after announcing his retirement.

  • BlackRock Merrill Lynch Investment Managers - Target Return Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    BlackRock Merrill Lynch Investment ManagersTarget Return Fund

  • BoS computer glitch hits 7,000 mortgages clients

    26 Oct 2006

    Bank of Scotland has apologised to borrowers after a computer glitch saw thousands of mortgage customers have their monthly repayment taken three times.Estimates suggest that about 7,000 had payments taken from their current accounts on up to three consecutive days last week.BoS blames the problem on a technical error and stresses that it is acting as quickly as possible to refund the people affected.Brokers say there is little that the intermediary market can do to help ...

  • Boulger calls for end to redemption confusion

    26 Oct 2006

    John Charcol senior technical director Ray Boulger says lenders should only call redemption penalties exit fees in their literature to avoid confusing consumers.His call comes as the FSA is set to rule on whether lenders unfairly increase their fees during the term of a contract.Boulger says: "The FSA's requirements could be met by lenders dropping the pretence that their exit fees reflect the cost of redeeming a mortgage and giving the fee a different name, say, exit fee, instead ...

  • Bright Grey manager kicks job into touch

    26 Oct 2006

    Bright Grey product marketing manager Alison Flintham is leaving the firm in January to play for the Scottish team in the touch-rugby World Cup.

  • Britannia International - Optimum Growth Bond 17

    30 Oct 2006

    Britannia InternationalOptimum Growth Bond 17

  • British Insurance backs flat rate for income protection

    30 Oct 2006

    British Insurance has brought out an income protection plan that differs from many plans on the market in its flat rate premiums for all applicants.

  • Broker

    26 Oct 2006

    Is stakeholder still an important part of your pension offering?Yes "I have a lot of clients in the garage trade and it is useful for them if they are moving in and out of employment."Martin Cox, Freeman and Associates No "I have not done an individual pension for three years. Most of my clients are older and have established pension schemes but I am concerned about younger people who are just starting out and are not investing in them."David Goodman, David ...

  • Buxton backing small cap to top Skandia best ideas fund

    26 Oct 2006

    Schroder UK fund manager Richard Buxton says he is unlikely to be the top-performing manager of the 10 chosen to contribute to the Skandia UK best ideas fund.Buxton, who runs Schroder alpha plus, picked nine large cap and one mid-cap stock for the Skandia portfolio but is backing a small cap manager to be the best performer.Buxton currently holds 32 stocks in his UK alpha fund and contributes 20 stocks to the 50 stocks held in the special situations fund he runs with colleague ...

  • C&G moves into light adverse but not sub-prime

    26 Oct 2006

    Cheltenham & Gloucester has moved into the light adverse market but has decided against moving deeper into the sub-prime sector, following an internal review.

  • C&G moves into light adverse but not sub-prime

    26 Oct 2006

    Cheltenham & Gloucester has moved into the light adverse market but has decided against moving deeper into the sub-prime sector, following an internal review.

  • C&G relaunches adviser site

    26 Oct 2006

    Cheltenham & Gloucester is relaunching its intermediary website this week.The revamped website will include an affordability calculator, which will enable brokers to get a decision on how much C&G will lend their client without leaving a footprint on their credit record.C&G has also added a news alert service to keep intermediaries abreast of any new offers from the lender and a salesforce locator, which will hook brokers up with a local intermediary sales manager. The products ...

  • Calculated risk

    26 Oct 2006

    Matt Goodburn on the dangers and rewards of high risk investments

  • Canada Life offers aid on IHT

    26 Oct 2006

    Canada Life has set up a dedicated technical team to help IFAs with estate planning and IHT mitigation.The firm says that with IHT thresholds not rising in line with house prices, more and more homeowners are being hit with IHT bills so the number of IFAs having to deal with IHT planning has increased.IFAs will be able to arrange face-to-face meetings with Canada Life specialist advisers on a one-to-one basis.The new format will allow advisers to delve deeper into the technicalities ...

  • Cash 'sweeteners' could be taxed

    26 Oct 2006

    The Government is considering taxing cash "sweeteners" used by trustees to persuade employees to transfer out of final-salary schemes.Peter Askins, a senior off- icial at the Department for Work, is thinking about a range of options to clamp down on the growing trend of firms offering cash ind- ucements to employees to manage down their pensions liabilities.Speaking at a recent event held by actuarial consultancy Punter Southall, Askins said: "The DWP has to consider the taxpayer ...

  • Chain reaction

    26 Oct 2006

    Winchester White director Aileen Croft questions the pay now, reap rewards later value chain for life cover and pensions and says a new model is long overdue

  • Change of style

    26 Oct 2006

    My annual pilgrimage to the West Country was a somewhat muted event on this occasion. True, it was as enjoyable as usual. The weather was kind(ish) and the turnout for the seminar at the splendidly sited Carlyon Bay hotel, if a little down on previous years, included a top line-up of local advisers. But I had to come clean, you see. It is possible that 2006 would be the last year in which I endeavoured to give the good folk of Devon and Cornwall the City's view on what was likely to happen ...

  • Chelsea Building Society - Cashback Plus Fixed Rate Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Chelsea Building SocietyCashback Plus Fixed Rate Mortgage

  • Chelsea Building Society - Helping Hand 2 Year Tracker Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Chelsea Building SocietyHelping Hand 2 Year Tracker Mortgage

  • Cheltenham & Gloucester - Five- Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Cheltenham & GloucesterFive -Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

  • Cheltenham & Gloucester - Three Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Cheltenham & GloucesterThree-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage

  • Cheltenham & Gloucester - Two Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Cheltenham & GloucesterTwo Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

  • Churning curve

    26 Oct 2006

    Guy Anker asks whether churning is threatening the mortgage market

  • City Group targets regulation

    26 Oct 2006

    The first meeting of the Government's High-Level City Group has called for a cut in financial services regulation and further action against the unnecessary gold-plating of European directives.The group, which met last week in London, said the FSA's principles-based regulation must be maintained but put forward proposals to reduce the admin burden of the regulation.As part of the group's work, the Government outlined its efforts to take further action against "unnecessary gold-plating ...

  • CML attacks Hips and calls for Government re-think

    27 Oct 2006

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders says Home Information Packs will not work in their current form.

  • Collins Stewart Aims for trust alternative

    30 Oct 2006

    Stockbroking firm Collins Stewart has established the Aim Portfolio Service which aims to reduce potential inheritance tax liability and provide capital growth.

  • Correspondent's Week

    26 Oct 2006

    This week by personal finance reporter at The Daily Telegraph Faith ArcherMonday marked my first day back in the office after a week in New York celebrating an old friend's wedding.

  • Coventry Building Society - Extra Light Full Status 6.5% Fixed rate

    30 Oct 2006

    Coventry Building SocietyExtra Light Full Status 6.5% Fixed rate

  • Coventry Building Society - Light Self Cert 7% Fixed Rate

    30 Oct 2006

    Coventry Building SocietyLight Self Cert 7% Fixed Rate

  • Coventry Building Society - MOREgage 6.19% Fixed

    30 Oct 2006

    Coventry Building SocietyMOREgage 6.19% Fixed

  • Coventry Building Society - Near Prime Full Status 6.1% Flexx Fixed Rate

    30 Oct 2006

    Coventry Building SocietyNear Prime Full Status 6.1% Flexx Fixed Rate

  • DB Mortgages - Heavy 1 Adverse Two Year Fixed Rate

    30 Oct 2006

    DB MortgagesHeavy 1 Adverse Two Year Fixed Rate

  • DB Mortgages - Light Adverse Three Year Fixed Rate

    30 Oct 2006

    DB MortgagesLight Adverse Three Year Fixed Rate

  • Defence strategy

    26 Oct 2006

    The healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors are creating new investment opportunities

  • Deferred Sipp widens options at Pru

    30 Oct 2006

    Prudential’s new deferred self-invested personal pension is a Sipp that is structured as a fund option for Prudential’s flexible retirement plan.

  • DWP axes web service for pensions

    26 Oct 2006

    The Department for Work and Pensions has dropped plans for a web-based pension service for people who cannot afford advice because it admits it does not know what future pen- sion provision will look like.The Retirement Planning web service, costing the taxpayer £11m, was intended to provide advice on planning and saving for retirement for people on low to medium incomes.The first element of the service, the provision of online state pension forecasts, was delivered in 2004 ...

  • Equity release sales creeping up, reveals Ship

    26 Oct 2006

    Equity release sales rose slightly during the third quarter of the year.

  • Ex-Egg CEO joins Edeus

    25 Oct 2006

    Edeus has appointed ex-Egg chief executive Paul Gratton as a non-executive director to the firm.

  • Fears that Nutt could be stretched by global fund

    26 Oct 2006

    IFA reaction to Jupiter's planned global income fund has been mixed, with some advisers voicing concerns that star manager Anthony Nutt may become overstretched.Nutt already runs £4bn in retail money split across the £3.4bn income and £600m high-income trusts.Bestinvest head of communications Justin Modray says: "My main concern would be whether they are stretching the capabilities of the managers too far. For Tony Nutt, this would be a huge expansion of his remit."The new ...

  • Fidelity - FIF American Special Situations Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    FidelityFIF American Special Situations Fund

  • Fidelity - Global Property Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    FidelityGlobal Property Fund

  • Fidelity - Global Special Situations Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    FidelityGlobal Special Situations Fund

  • Fidelity forms fund from special sits split

    30 Oct 2006

    Fidelity has launched its global special situations fund. which was formed from the division of Anthony Bolton’s Fidelity special situations fund.

  • Fidelity is panned for special sits charge cut

    26 Oct 2006

    Fidelity is under fire for restoring the normal initial charge on its UK special situations without naming Anthony Bolton's replacement.The firm has cut the initial charge back to 3.5 per cent after raising it to 5.25 per cent last September to stem inflows on the then 5.4bn fund.Some IFAs say Fidelity should not encourage inflows without naming a successor to Bolton, who steps down in 15 months.Chelsea Financial Services managing director Darius McDermott says: "The fund ...

  • Fidelity reopens American Special Sits

    30 Oct 2006

    Fidelity is reopening the £420m American special situations fund to new business three years after it soft closed the fund.

  • Fidelity takes multi-manager route to with-profits alternative

    30 Oct 2006

    Fidelity has added a distribution fund to its range of multi-manager funds.The Fidelity multi-manager distribution fund provides diversification in terms of asset class and underlying manager.

  • First State in search for property securities

    30 Oct 2006

    First State has introduced the global property securities and Asian property securities funds.

  • First State Investments - Asian Property Securities Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    First State InvestmentsAsian Property Securities Fund

  • First State Investments - Global Property Securities Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    First State InvestmentsGlobal Property Securities Fund

  • First State to offer Indian subcontinent fund onshore

    31 Oct 2006

    First State is set to commence the offer period for the First State Indian subcontinent fund on November 1.

  • First-time buyers 60 per cent worse off than parents

    27 Oct 2006

    The ratio of house price to income has risen by an average of 60 per cent in the UK between 1970 and today with London, East Anglia and the South West having the highest ratios.

  • Flexishare Up The Property Ladder

    30 Oct 2006

    Non-conforming mortgage specialist Advantage, part of the Morgan Stanley Group, has brought out two mortgages under the Flexishare home ownership plan.

  • Focus Capital setting up multi-assets fund

    26 Oct 2006

    New multi-manager Focus Capital is set to launch a multi-asset class emerging markets fund of funds in the new year.The firm, headed by former Standard Asset Management chief investment officer John Cleary, was established in September as a specialist global emerging markets boutique.The fund will invest glob-ally in emerging markets across asset classes, including equities, bonds and hedge funds. This is seen as particularly useful in reducing emerging market risk as these ...

  • Form of defence

    26 Oct 2006

    For the next Adviser Fund Index rebalancing on November 1, 2006, panellists are concentrating on both risk levels and individual fund performance.Ben Willis, investment manager and head of research at Whitechurch Securities, has made a number of fund changes in his AFI portfolios, each relating to risk.In the cautious portfolio, Willis is moving into the Lazard UK alpha fund because he wants to be more defensive. He says: "We have a fair exposure to some distribution funds. ...

  • FSA action against mortgage broker

    31 Oct 2006

    The FSA has ordered a mortgage adviser to stop carrying out regulated activities for failing to organise and control his business responsibly and effectively.The regulator says it took action after receiving information from a lender that it had removed the adviser, Paramjit Singh Bali, from its panel due to concerns about mortgage applications submitted to it by Bali.Another lender also provided the FSA with assistance at a later stage in the case.The FSA says the key reasons ...

  • FSA investigates BNP arm Albion

    26 Oct 2006

    The FSA is investigating the British National Party's financial services arm Albion Life after concerns were raised about its unregulated status.In documents seen by Money Marketing, the FSA has responded to an enquiry about Albion with the statement: "We are aware of this firm and it is currently being investigated by the relevant department."The BNP launched the life arm recently to raise funds for the party using Welsh broker Financial Solutions Unlimited to target party ...

  • FSA issues £455,000 PPI fine to Loans.co.uk

    26 Oct 2006

    The FSA has fined Loans.co.uk £455,000 for failing to treat its customers fairly when selling PPI in a further sign the regulator is cracking down in this area.The FSA says it found the firm did not have appropriate systems and controls in place to minimise the risk of unsuitable sales.At this week’s Treasury select committee meeting FSA chief executive John Tiner told MPs the regulator was considering enforcement action against 10 further firms after recently handing out its first ...

  • FSA teams up with Teachers’ TV

    30 Oct 2006

    The FSA has teamed up with Teachers’ TV to offer a series of programmes about personal financial education to be aired on the channel.The series, called Financial Capability, is made up of four programmes with two designed for use in class as a teaching aid and two designed to build teacher confidence in the subject.The initiative complements the existing programmes offered in the regulator’s Learning Money Matters programme, which 278 schools have so far signed up for.FSA ...

  • Gallagher exits BlackRock MLIM European Dynamic fund

    31 Oct 2006

    BlackRock MLIM European dynamic fund manager Niall Gallagher has left the group to join US fund manager T Rowe Price.

  • GAM - GAM Star Asian Equity

    30 Oct 2006

    GAMGAM Star Asian Equity

  • Gartmore bolsters global emerging markets team

    27 Oct 2006

    Gartmore has made two senior appointments to its global emerging markets team.

  • GDT censured on withdrawal

    26 Oct 2006

    'Lack of explanation on the risks on income withdrawal can have dire consequences for clients in their retirement'

  • GE Life open business for sale as Dolfi quits

    26 Oct 2006

    Swiss Re has revealed it will listen to any offers for the open GE Life businesses it bought two weeks ago as the retirement specialist's chief executive Scott Dolfi is to quit in the fallout from the acquisition.Swiss Re's main driver for buying GE Life is widely seen as a move to add the closed former National Mutual fund to its book of closed funds, Admin Re, while the open impaired life, equity release and drawdown businesses were not seen as core.GE Life will reassure advisers ...

  • Government blasts CML stats on FTBs

    25 Oct 2006

    The Government has attacked the Council of Mortgage Lenders for using “questionable” data in its first-time buyer statistics.

  • Haber slashes Fidelity special sits stocks

    26 Oct 2006

    Fidelity American special situations manager Bob Haber has slashed the fund's number of holdings from 200 to 54 stocks in his first three months at the helm.Haber, who took over from Neal Miller in July, has also shifted the fund's bias towards more large cap stocks, with a greater emphasis on quantitative screening.In a bid to make the fund more sector-neutral, the funds weighting in financials has been raised from 7.4 per cent to 17.9 per cent while healthcare is up from 5 ...

  • Halifax launches legal services advice initiative

    30 Oct 2006

    Halifax is to offer customers access to everyday legal products such as wills and expert legal advice.

  • Hargreaves Lansdown urges pension fund consolidation

    26 Oct 2006

    Hargreaves Lansdown is urging customers to consolidate their pensions pots and break from the dogma of spreading pension arrangements.The firm says the fact that people are getting through an average of five jobs in their working lives has led to a massive increase in the number of pension pots in existence.ABI figures show 21 per cent of adults over the age of 50 had at least three private pensions in 2002 and there were 23 million personal pension contracts.But only 10 ...

  • HBOS is set to follow Rock with FTB deal

    26 Oct 2006

    The UK's biggest lender says it is interested in replicating the product but is not comm-itting to any timescale for launch and has not finalised under which brand it would be offered.Brokers stress that when-ever the HBOS offering is launched, it may force rates down due to the increased competition.Together has been a major success for Northern Rock since its launch in 1999 and has accounted for 33 per cent of completions by the lender so far this year.Brokers were told ...

  • HBOS pledges it will pump £10m into broker services

    26 Oct 2006

    HBOS is to embark on a multi-million-pound inv- estment drive over the next two years to boost its already dominant position in the intermediary mortgage market.The giant has pledged to pump £10m into improving services for brokers, in addition to its "business as usual" investment.It will be largely spent on improving technology to protect and increase its 21 per cent market share.The cash injection is seen by some as a reaction to the wave of new lenders who are building ...

  • Heritable Bank - Buy To Let Two Year Fixed With Extended Lock In

    30 Oct 2006

    Heritable BankBuy To Let Two Year Fixed With Extended Lock In

  • Heritable Bank - Self- Cert 2 Year Discount

    30 Oct 2006

    Heritable BankSelf- Cert 2 Year Discount

  • Heritable Bank - Status Two Year Fixed With Extended Lock In

    30 Oct 2006

    Heritable BankStatus Two Year Fixed With Extended Lock In

  • HSA - Dental Plan

    30 Oct 2006

    HSADental Plan

  • HSA plans something to smile about

    30 Oct 2006

    HSA has brought out its first cash plan focused on dental cover.

  • HSBC Bank International - Bric Growth Fund - CSGF October 2006

    30 Oct 2006

    HSBC Bank InternationalBric Growth Fund - CSGF October 2006

  • HSBC Bank International - Japan Real Estate Fund - CSGF October 2006

    30 Oct 2006

    HSBC Bank InternationalJapan Real Estate Fund - CSGF October 2006

  • HSBC International builds with Bric

    30 Oct 2006

    HSBC International has brought out a capital-protected offshore Oeic that is linked to the performance of the DAX global Bric Index for five years.Investors in this fund will receive a full capital return at the end of the term regardless of the performance of the index, plus a minimum return of 9 per cent growth.

  • IFAs are a soft target for the media

    26 Oct 2006

    I am responding to the statement made by the Tory Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Philip Hammond, who said at the ABI/CBI event on pension reform, that "financial advisers have a worse reputation than anyone else in the industry." It is symptomatic of politicians, and much of the media, to jump on the bandwagon most likely to get them publicity, irrespective of the truth of their statements. It is a sad day when a politician such as Philip Hammond sees fit to knock financial ...

  • iFunds - MFM iFunds ETF Global Growth Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    iFundsMFM iFunds ETF Global Growth Fund

  • iFunds hunts for commodity ETFs

    30 Oct 2006

    iFunds, a franchise of Raymond James Investment Services, has crought out the MFM iFunds ETF Commodity Fund, a fund of funds investing mainly in exchange-traded funds.

  • Industry call goes out to carry on selling Asps

    26 Oct 2006

    GE Life is leading industry- wide calls for advisers to defy Government pressure and continue to advise all suitable clients to take out Asps.Fears that the Government will spoil or scrap Asps were confirmed last week when Treasury Economic Secretary Ed Balls said changes will be included in the next pre-Budget report.The Government says advisers are abusing Asps which it claims were designed solely for people with moral or religious objections to annuities.But GE Life retirement ...

  • Inspired thinking

    26 Oct 2006

    Schroders has been steadily rebuilding its European proposition over the last year or so.It went through a number of departures, including Adriaan de Mol van Otterloo in 2005, having already lost Mark Pignatelli.It has addressed this by bringing in Denis Clough to head the European desk - a surprise to many as he has long been associated with the Japanese market. However, fund manage- ment skills should be easily transferable from market to market although, of course, managers ...

  • Invesco Perpetual launches online IFA training website

    25 Oct 2006

    Invesco Perpetual is launching a free intermediary training website utilising the latest web cast technology.

  • Invesco sets up free training website

    26 Oct 2006

    Invesco Perpetual is launching a free online intermediary training website to provide IFAs with access to up-to-date market views round the clock. The portal includes video and audio webcasts.

  • Jacobs warning on stakeholder switch into Personal Accounts

    26 Oct 2006

    Advisers selling stakehol- der pensions face compoun-ding their losses on this bus- iness by being forced to move their stakeholder cli- ents into Personal Accounts, warns Pensions IFA Richard Jacobs.The director of Richard Jacobs Pension & Trustee Services says many advisers have sold stakeholders with only a long-term prospect of making any profit.He says if and when Personal Accounts are rolled out, advisers will have to review all their contracts with existing stakeholder ...

  • JPMorgan aims for total return balance

    30 Oct 2006

    JPMorgan Asset Management has brought out the JPM balanced total return fund, an Oeic which takes advantage of the greater flexibility allowed under Ucits III.

  • JPMorgan applies alpha plus style to emerging markets

    30 Oct 2006

    JPMorgan Asset Management has established the emerging markets alpha plus fund, a Luxemburg-domiciled Sicav that invests in a concentrated portfolio of 25-50 emerging market companies.

  • Jupiter - China Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    JupiterChina Fund

  • Jupiter looks to China phase two

    30 Oct 2006

    Jupiter is launching the Jupiter China fund for its latest recruit, former Gartmore head of global emerging markets Philip Ehrmann.

  • Just Retirement moves to boost equity release

    26 Oct 2006

    Firm sets up multi-tied advisory service to advise on lifetime loans, reversion and drawdown

  • Keydata Investment Services - Income Property Bond

    30 Oct 2006

    Keydata Investment ServicesIncome Property Bond

  • King & Shaxson Asset Management - Green Solutions Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    King & Shaxson Asset ManagementGreen Solutions Fund

  • Kleinwort Benson - CF KB Endeavour Balanced Total Return Fund - B

    30 Oct 2006

    Kleinwort BensonCF KB Endeavour Balanced Total Return Fund - B

  • Kleinwort follows the MAP

    30 Oct 2006

    Kleinwort Benson has introduced two multi-asset absolute return funds for high-net worth and institutional investors.

  • Klienwort Benson - CF KB Endeavour Absolute Return Fund - B

    30 Oct 2006

    Kleinwort BensonCF KB Endeavour Absolute Return Fund B

  • Klienwort tells a tale of two Devas

    30 Oct 2006

    Private bank Kleinwort Benson and investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort have brought out two capital-protected Oeic funds, which aim for absolute returns by tracking volatility.

  • L&G adds TIP to Portfolio Plus range

    30 Oct 2006

    Legal & General has established a trustee investment plan that provides access to over 250 funds from 40 fund management groups.

  • L&G set for offshore division

    26 Oct 2006

    Legal & General is recruiting a chief executive to set up and run a new offshore division based in Dublin, Money Marketing understands.The firm has made no secret in the past of its aim to eventually enter the offshore arena but has never committed to a timescale for entry or released any further details of its plans.But Legal & General is now understood to be actively seeking a CEO for a Dub- lin-based offshore branch and the provider is expec- ted to launch an offshore insurance ...

  • L&G steps up pension drive with podcast

    26 Oct 2006

    Legal & General has produced a pensions podcast to be broadcast as part of its continued drive to encourage their customers to consider contracting back into the state second pension.The firm is writing to its clients for the third successive year to ask them to consider their options and will guide them to the podcast as part of this.The new podcast, available on the L&G website, is an overview of the pros and cons of contracting out delivered by pensions strategy director ...

  • Lacomp takes to the early stage

    30 Oct 2006

    The Lacomp British enterprise Fund 7 is an enterprise investment scheme fund that will invest in unquoted companies at an early stage of their development.

  • Layton offers 750 core funds on platform

    26 Oct 2006

    Layton Blackham Financial Services has set up its wealth management platform after white-labelling Standard Life's wrap.The firm is launching with 750 core funds but clients can access funds off the platform for an additional fee.Layton says it will aggregate the annual management charges across the tax wrappers on its platform, with legacy products charged separately.The firm says its asset allocation tools will help clients to find the blend of investments best suited ...

  • Leeds Building Society - Two Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Leeds Building SocietyTwo Year Fixed Rate Mortgage

  • Liv Vic updates its flexible protection plan using STP

    27 Oct 2006

    Liverpool Victoria has added a new online processing system for their flexible protection plan using a straight-through processing system.

  • Loan industry criticises twin strike at MPPI

    26 Oct 2006

    The mortgage industry has expressed its disappointment that mortgage payment protection insurance has been referred to the Competition Commission as part of the wider PPI storm.Both the Council of Mortgage Lenders and Association of Mortgage Intermediaries claim that the MPPI sector is the healthier end of a market that came in for a twin-barrelled assault last week from the FSA and the Office of Fair Trading.The CML says MPPI gives greater access to stand-alone cover than other ...

  • M&G inflows up 78% in first nine months

    26 Oct 2006

    M&G has taken in more net new money in the first three quarters of the year than in the whole of 2005, which was a record-breaking sales year for the firm.Gross fund inflows in the first nine months are up 78 per cent, hitting £9.98bn, compared with £5.6bn over the same period last year while net fund inflows have almost doubled to £5.1bn. Looking at pure retail money, gross inflows almost doubled to £5.1bn, with net inflows reaching £2.6bnIn the UK, data from fund research company ...

  • Make the transition

    26 Oct 2006

    Creating a transitional serial interest by exercising a power of appointment should be carefully reviewed by most trustees

  • Making advances

    26 Oct 2006

    Global stockmarkets seem to have shaken off their summer worries over the past few weeks. With this change in mood has come not only new, or at least recent, highs for some of the world's major indices but, we believe, a fundamental shift in the type of stocks likely to lead further advances.

  • Marc gordon

    26 Oct 2006

    The Co-founder and managing director of Close Fund Manage-ment says he has been accused of being too evangelical in his concerns about aspects of the industry but there is no doubting his feeling concerning the 'huge savings dilemma' and the general failure of with-profits funds. Interview by Matt Goodburn

  • Matrix - Max Closed End Share Securities Note

    30 Oct 2006

    Type: Fund of hedge fundsAim: Growth by investing in a portfolio of hedge fundsMinimum investment: Lump sum £50,000Investment split: 100% in hedge fundsPlace of registration: BermudaClosing date: September 26, 2006Charges: Initial up to 4%, annual 1.75%, 5% performance feeCommission: Initial up to 3%, renewal 0.5%Tel: 020 7925 3377

  • Matrix Peers Over the Hedge

    30 Oct 2006

    Matrix Structured Products has established the Matrix ascension plan 3, a capital-protected hedge fund.

  • Matter of trust

    26 Oct 2006

    Investment trusts have several advantages over unit trusts. Most investment trusts have beaten inflation over the past 10 years - and many of them both in terms of income and growth.

  • MBSL looking to poach Classic ARs

    31 Oct 2006

    Mortgage Broking Services is planning to poach up to 30 of Classic Network Solutions’ 64 appointed representatives.

  • MEPs' fears at delays into Equitable probe

    26 Oct 2006

    The revelation that the Parliamentary Ombudsman's report into the Equitable Life crisis faces further delays has been branded "disturbing" by the group of MEPs involved in a separate inquiry into the firm.Parliamentary Ombudsman Ann Abraham has written to MPs saying that her report will be delayed until at least May next year, taking the total length of the inquiry to nearly three years.Abraham says the further delay has been caused by her team uncovering the fact that potentially ...

  • Midas funds find the right balance

    26 Oct 2006

    The CF Midas balanced growth and CF Midas balanced income funds have both passed 200m in assets under management.The company says monthly fund inflows are now averaging 20m, helped by its various distribution links. It says the performance of the funds will not be hampered by their increase in size as their multi-asset strategies can easily absorb the cash.Midas says that as the funds have grown, the consistency of performance has also grown since launch in April 2002.Figures ...

  • Money Portal is looking to cross-selling opportunities

    26 Oct 2006

    The Money Portal says it will look to maximise cross-selling opportunities between its different adviser businesses rather than run them as completely separate entities.The group comprises Bates Investment Services, Bates Millfield, Sage Financial Services, Willis Owen, GP Noble Trustees and Lifetime Estate Planning.Chief executive Richard Craven has delivered an update to members on the process of integrating the Millfield advisers and confirmed his senior management team.Chris ...

  • Morgan Stanley - FTSE Simple Growth Plan 11

    30 Oct 2006

    Morgan StanleyFTSE Simple Growth Plan 11

  • Morgan Stanley -FTSE Protected Growth Plan 13

    30 Oct 2006

    Morgan StanleyFTSE Protected Growth Plan 13

  • Moving story

    26 Oct 2006

    lender profile Guy Anker on the move of established lenders into specialist markets

  • Mutually exclusive

    26 Oct 2006

    Building societies Annie Shaw looks at the future for the mutuals in the home loan market following a wave of mergers

  • Nationwide Building Society - Two-Year Tracker

    30 Oct 2006

    Nationwide Building SocietyTwo-Year Tracker

  • NDF Administration - 7.5% Annual Income Plan October '06

    30 Oct 2006

    NDF Administration7.5% Annual Income Plan October '06

  • NDF Administration - NDF Growth Kick Out Plan September 2006

    30 Oct 2006

    NDF Administration - NDF Growth Kick Out Plan September 2006

  • Neptune diversifies income

    30 Oct 2006

    Neptune Investment Management’s global income fund was designed to enable investors to diversify income outside of the UK.

  • Newcastle extends product range

    30 Oct 2006

    Newcastle Building Society has added a three-year stepped discount product and a two-year fixed product to its mortgage product range.

  • Newton down to earth

    26 Oct 2006

    Bless Newton and their efforts. With what can only be described as marketing genius, the fund manager sent out polystyrene model aeroplanes boasting "Income funds with less drag" across the body.The irony comes, of course, when the plane is launched into flight - or rather, a sudden drop, as the plane possesses absolutely no aerodynamic ability whatsoever.Diary hopes this is not a portent of the performance of its funds.

  • Nick Conyers retires after 21 years at Pearson Jones

    26 Oct 2006

    Pearson Jones consultant Nick Conyers is retiring from the industry after a career spanning 27 years.The 51-year-old, a director of the national IFA firm, will leave in mid-January and says he plans to take some time off before deciding on his future. But he is adamant his days in financial services are over saying he is tired of the regula- tory difficulties facing IFAs.Conyers has been at Pearson Jones for the past 21 years after starting his career at Towry Law.Conyers ...

  • NM Rothschild & Sons - DepositPlus 7

    30 Oct 2006

    NM Rothschild & SonsDepositPlus 7

  • Norwich Union - Guaranteed Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    Norwich UnionGuaranteed Fund

  • NPSS misselling fear

    26 Oct 2006

    Bee says the Government must outline how savers in Personal Accounts will be protected

  • NU and Openwork in equity release tie-up

    25 Oct 2006

    Norwich Union has signed a deal with Openwork that will see the network refer equity release business to the insurer.

  • NU equity director Carter is replaced

    26 Oct 2006

    Norwich Union equity release chief Daren Carter is to be replaced next month as part of the firm's internal restructuring.Carter's role as NU personal finance director of sales and marketing, which encompassed equity release, will disappear as part of a programme of changes that will see 4,000 jobs lost and the combining of the firm's life and general insurance businesses.He will be replaced by Willie Mowatt, who last week switched from director of portfolio management to director ...

  • Octopus raises money for Protected VCT

    30 Oct 2006

    Octopus Investment is aiming to raise up to £30m for the Octopus protected venture capital trust.

  • Once In A Lifetime Sipp from Hartley

    30 Oct 2006

    Pension specialist Hartley SAS has brought out the Lifetime Sipp, a self-invested personal pension that provides three investment options with different levels of charges

  • Openwork lines up with-profits deal with Pru

    26 Oct 2006

    Openwork is lining up a single-tie agreement with Prudential to sell its with-profits bonds, Money Marketing understands.The two companies are thought to be in advanced discussions and an announcement is expected later this month following a "rigorous" tender process.The deal will represent Openwork's first venture into with-profits bonds since it was formed last year. The network already has an annuity tie-up with Pru.Despite the negative publicity surrounding with-profits ...

  • Paymentshield will be sold to Towergate for 180m

    26 Oct 2006

    Paymentshield is set to be sold to the UK's biggest regional general insurance intermediary in an expected 180m deal, Money Marketing understands.The Towergate Partnership, which controls over 1.25bn of gross written premiums, is believed to be in the final stages of negotiations to snap up the mortgage payment protection insurance and buildings and contents insurance provider in a deal that is will see chief executive Stuart Pender land a bumper pay cheque.Any deal is likely ...

  • Pension tension

    26 Oct 2006

    The far-reaching effects of the shift from defined benefit to defined contribution schemes

  • Pink Home Loans - Mortgage Express Buy To Let Fees Assisted Remortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Pink Home LoansMortgage Express Buy To Let Fees Assisted Remortgage

  • Portman Buiilding Society - Five Year Fixed Rate

    30 Oct 2006

    Portman Buiilding SocietyFive Year Fixed Rate

  • PR is a goody sport

    26 Oct 2006

    A good hostess will always go beyond the call of duty to please her journalist guests, even if it means getting told off as a result.Mitchell Moneypenny PR Sarah Wakefield was assisting a rather inebriated financial hack (not from MM, we are hasten to add), as she exited The Exchange press party last week, when said hack requested a goody bag, to which Sarah obliged.The only problem was that the goody bags were gifts from an adjoining party, rather than the host and a bit of ...

  • Premier Cru offers fine wine mortgage repayment rroduct

    30 Oct 2006

    Premier Cru Fine Wine Investments, a company specialising in fine wine portfolios has established a portfolio management service that is designed to pay off an interest-only mortgage.

  • Prime time

    26 Oct 2006

    Our panel assess the FSA's mortgage rules, the effect of a rate rise, the sub-prime market, proc fees and equity release

  • Proc fees could be blocked if loan is sold on

    26 Oct 2006

    Concerns have been raised that brokers may see the potential to earn future proc fees dashed once a mortgage is sold or securitised.In a case involving A J Hird Insurance Consultants dir-ector Chris Cundell, his client's mortgage was sold by Amber Homeloans to Infin-ity Mortgages and when the client moved home and the mortgage needed to be por-ted, Cundell was not given the expected £249 proc fee he would have got with Amber as Infinity told him they do not pay proc fees on Amber ...

  • Product Innovations - Aria Global Property Tracker+ 2

    30 Oct 2006

    Product InnovationsAria Global Property Tracker+ 2

  • Product matters

    26 Oct 2006

    Total return funds have not had a very good press lately. A raft of them launched around 12 months ago and, as yet, as far as I can see, none have achieved what they set out to.A combination of poor market conditions and unrealistic targets has even caused some to do some desperate goalpost shifting and public opinion of them is not very high.Launching a total return fund into this headwind might seem like marketing kamikaze but Royal London Asset Management is the latest firm ...

  • Production Innovations returns to aria property concept

    30 Oct 2006

    Product Innovations has brought out issue two of the aria global property tracker+ bond with Bank of Ireland Isle of Man.

  • Pru retail sales are up but domestic business falls

    26 Oct 2006

    Prudential delivered a mixed set of interim results, with double-digit growth in UK retail sales offset by a fall in the wider group's domestic business.The firm reports that UK retail annual-premium equivalent sales increased by 11 per cent to £485m over the first nine months of the year compared with 2005. This was buoyed by an upturn in with-profits and pension inflows.However, total APE sales across Prudential's UK ins-urance business fell 4 per cent from £692m to £664m ...

  • PruHealth takes £30m in its first two years

    26 Oct 2006

    PruHealth has pulled in £30m of new business two years since launching into the UK market.The private medical insurance provider now has 80,000 UK policyholders, 85 per cent of which were intermediary-based sales.Pru says its strategy of rewarding people for looking after their health, such as reducing premiums for clients who go to the gym, has resul-ted in lower claim rates against the firm.Pru says it will continue to urge healthier individuals to consider private medical ...

  • Punter Southall to buy Opus

    30 Oct 2006

    Punter Southall Financial Management has acquired Opus Consulting for an undisclosed sum.

  • Purnell snubs claims that women lose out on NPSS

    26 Oct 2006

    Pensions Minister James Purnell has rejected widespread concerns that women and carers will lose out under the proposed NPSS reforms, arguing that the pensions White Paper represents the biggest move to sexual equality in pensions since Barbara Castle's 1978 reforms.Speaking at a pensions debate in Westminister last week, Baroness Hollis of Heigham said the NPSS reforms are male-oriented and argued that, under them, many women will not be eligible for the basic state pension.She ...

  • Raid review

    26 Oct 2006

    The figure dwarfs previous estimates, which put the damage to pension schemes, caused by the Chancellor's decision to remove advanced corporation tax relief from equity dividends in 1997, at 40bn-50bn.

  • Rechabite appoints new chief executive as Turnball retires

    26 Oct 2006

    Healthy Investment has appointed Peter Green as chief executive following the retirement of William Turnball.Healthy Investment, the trading name of Salford-based Rechabite Friendly Society, has undergone some dramatic changes in strat- egy in the last few years.Its main products - a with- profits bond and a friendly society regular savings fund - are no longer restricted to teetollers but it does enc-ourage savings from clients who do not drink to excess.In 2003, the firm ...

  • Resolution appoints chief operating officer

    31 Oct 2006

    Resolution Asset Management has appointed Ian Paterson Brown to the newly created role of chief operating officer.

  • Resolution recruits S&F chief for European team

    26 Oct 2006

    Resolution Asset Management has completed its search for a third senior European equity team member having rec- ruited Singer & Friedlander head of European equities Ian Ormiston.Ormiston joins European team head Adrian Darley and Jonathan Fearon, who arrived recently from Gartmore.Tim Callaghan was origin-ally earmarked to head Resolution's new European in-house team after resigning from Gartmore and signing a contract with Resolution along with his two former colleagues.However, ...

  • 'Retention fees are web of sin'

    26 Oct 2006

    Edeus managing director Alan Cleary has launched a scathing attack on retention fees, branding them a "web of sin" and insisting they contravene treating customers fairly principles.Cleary says lenders do not have brokers' best interests at heart and are only out to kill the remortgage market, which could mean considerably less business for brokers in future.Alliance & Leicester head of intermediary mortgages Mehrdad Yousefi says a fairer way to remunerate brokers would be via ...

  • Rethink over complaint rules

    26 Oct 2006

    Rigid complaint-handling rules requiring firms to respond within five working days and give a four-week update are to be scrapped as part of the Newcob consultation and replaced with a requirement that firms respond in a "reasonable time-frame", Money Marketing understands.

  • RLAM bonds with best ideas

    30 Oct 2006

    Royal London has adapted the best ideas style of investing to the bond market with the launch of its strategic bond fund.

  • Royal London Asset Management - RLAM Strategic Bond Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    Royal London Asset ManagementRLAM Strategic Bond Fund

  • Royal London hopes for Life Of Riley

    30 Oct 2006

    Royal London has introduced a capital-protected bond that the company describes as an individually insured investment for the IFA market.

  • Sausage role

    26 Oct 2006

    A reporter from sister title Employee Benefits found himself in a particularly compromising position in front of a packed-out Hammersmith Apollo last week.The unsuspecting Kiwi was sitting innocently in the third row laughing at a performance of Little Britain Live when he caught the eye of David Walliams or shall we say ex-childrens' TV star Des Kaye.Kaye proceeded to drag him on stage where, under the guise of a game called Find the sausage, he prodded him with a salami then ...

  • Schroders gets energetic

    30 Oct 2006

    Schroders has established a Luxemburg-domiciled Sicav that invests globally in energy companies.

  • Scottish Widows Bank - Two Year Fixed Rate Offset Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    Scottish Widows BankTwo Year Fixed Rate Offset Mortgage

  • Sell UK insurance arms, UBS tells Pru

    26 Oct 2006

    Prudential's stockbroker UBS has suggested that the life office should sell its UK insurance operations in a cash for shares merger deal and says the obvious buyer is Resolution.

  • Sense of clarity

    26 Oct 2006

    With both the Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission taking an interest in the effect of non-disclosure on claims, it's likely that we will see a step change in the way non-disclosure is dealt with.

  • Set the pace

    26 Oct 2006

    When it comes to delivering new and smarter ways to do business, protection has long been the product type that has seen the greatest innovation from providers. In November, the FTRC research team will begin the workshops in preparation for delivery of the 2007 Protection e-Excellence ratings.

  • SG Adequity follows global track

    30 Oct 2006

    Societe General Adequity has brought to the market the optimised income global tracker.

  • SG Adequity introduces best asset strategy

    30 Oct 2006

    SG Adequity – Societe Generale’s open-ended structured product brand – has introduced the best asset protected fund to UK investors.

  • SGAM appoints new chief exec

    26 Oct 2006

    SG Asset Management has appointed Jean-Baptiste Segard as chief executive. Current joint CEO John Richards will focus entirely on his head of asset allocation and UK equities fund manager responsibilities while fellow current joint CEO Alex Buffet will take on new senior responsibilities within SGAM Group after nine years at SGAM UK.

  • Show of strength

    26 Oct 2006

    Fifty industry speakers and nearly 100 exhibitors will take part in Money Marketing Live at Manchester's G-Mex

  • Silver option from B&W International

    30 Oct 2006

    Bristol & West International is offering the Silver Anniversary Bond, a guaranteed equity bond linked to the performance of four indices – the FTSE 100, S&P 500, Nikkei 225 and DJ Eurostoxx 50 index.

  • Site aims to aid IFAs on TCF guidelines

    26 Oct 2006

    A new website has been launched for IFAs called tcf-online.com to help them comply with the FSA's treating customers fairly guidelines.

  • Skandia blends best ideas

    30 Oct 2006

    Skandia Investment Management has launched a UK best ideas fund, the second in its best ideas range.

  • Skandia in £25bn multi-manager milestone

    26 Oct 2006

    Skandia UK has passed the £25bn funds under man- agement mark for the first time.The company says this makes it the biggest multi- manager business, having pioneered open architecture more than 15 years ago.The £25bn is spread across its self-select fund range, which currently offers more than 400 funds from over 40 fund managers, and spans all product lines.By way of comparison, Fidelity, the UK's biggest fund manager has £30bn in assets under management although Norwich ...

  • Skandia Investment Management - UK Best Ideas Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    Skandia Investment ManagementUK Best Ideas Fund

  • Skandia protects portfolio

    30 Oct 2006

    Skandia’s protected portfolio investment range provides capital growth linked to an equally weighted portfolio of five externally managed funds with varying degrees of capital protection and return over a six- year term.

  • Skandia set to offer income drawdown on protected rights

    26 Oct 2006

    Skandia says offering income drawdown on protected rights is its top priority after the firm came under fire for not offering the facility.In August, Richard Jacobs Pension & Trustee Services director Richard Jacobs promised to name and shame providers he accused of failing to offer the full range of post-A-Day products.Jacobs says he is disapp- ointed that Skandia is not offering drawdown on protected rights and that the firm is also only offering alternatively secured pensions ...

  • Smith & Williamson favours pubs in the country

    30 Oct 2006

    Smith & Williamson is aiming to raise up to £8m through two share offers for the British Country Inns 2 enterprise investment scheme,

  • Smith & Williamson Investment Management - British Country Inns 2

    30 Oct 2006

    Smith & Williamson Investment ManagementBritish Country Inns 2

  • Snowball appointed as Sumus director

    25 Oct 2006

    Falcon parent Sumus has announced the appointment of Andrew Snowball as non-executive director.Snowball will remain as commercial director of Financial Services Advice & Support Limited, which was acquired by Sumus in September for £2m.Snowball says: “Becoming part of the Sumus group was a major strategic step for FSAS and I am delighted to be invited to join the quoted company board.The competitive advantage that Sumus, through its size, financial strength and public company ...

  • Societe Generale Adequity - Best Asset Protected Fund

    30 Oct 2006

    Societe Generale AdequityBest Asset Protected Fund

  • Societe Generale Adequity - Enhanced Growth UK Tracker

    30 Oct 2006

    Societe Generale AdequityEnhanced Growth UK Tracker

  • Societe Generale Adequity - Optimised Income Global Tracker

    30 Oct 2006

    Societe Generale AdequityOptimised Income Global Tracker

  • Spot the difference

    26 Oct 2006

    Gordon Brown's Budget changes have made choosing whether to invest in VCT or EIS a great deal more difficult

  • Standard Bank Offshore - Structured Guaranteed Solutions - Core Commodity Trigger November 2010

    30 Oct 2006

    Standard Bank OffshoreStructured Guaranteed Solutions - Core Commodity Trigger November 2010

  • Standard Bank Offshore - Structured Guaranteed Solutions - European Property Growth

    30 Oct 2006

    Standard Bank OffshoreStructured Guaranteed Solutions - European Property Growth

  • Standard Bank Offshore links to commodities

    30 Oct 2006

    Standard Bank Offshore has brought out a structured product that is linked to an equally weighted basket of commodities for a four-year term.

  • Standard Life buys 10 per cent shareholding of Simply Biz

    26 Oct 2006

    Standard Life has purchased a 10 per cent shareholding in Simply Biz as part of the continued development of its distribution strategy.

  • Swip seeks Shariah compliant investments

    30 Oct 2006

    Scottish Widows Investment Partnership has introduced a fund that enables British Muslims to invest in global equities without compromising their religious beliefs.

  • Swiss Re is not ducking cancer claims

    26 Oct 2006

    The suggestion in last week's Money Marketing that Swiss Re is seeking to avoid valid claims for two cancer conditions is, unfortunately, misleading. Swiss Re's dialogue with the Association of British Insurers on critical illness cancer definitions is not directed at preventing consumers from claiming for malignant myeloproliferative disorders. In earlier stages of draft-ing, the cancer definition in the April 2006 version of the ABO Statement of Best Practice for Critical Illness ...

  • T.Bailey says IMA diversity shows multi-manager value

    26 Oct 2006

    Multi-manager T.Bailey believes the diversity within IMA sectors highlights the added value of multi-manager funds relative to single manager funds.The firm says direct comparisons between funds in the same sector can be difficult to make as some sectors contain a mixture of very different funds.One fund in the IMA cautious managed sector will have the highest permitted equity content of 60 per cent but another fund in the sector may invest only 20 per cent in equities. Similarly, ...

  • TCF could see firms ditch the commission model

    26 Oct 2006

    Treating customers fairly will be used to force firms to abandon the "merry-go-round" commission model, says the FSA chairman.Speaking at a Treasury select committee meeting this week, Sir Callum McCarthy said the regulator cannot encourage a change in business model from the sidelines. McCarthy said TCF would be used to make it more difficult for people to use the traditional commission model attacked by McCarthy in Gleneagles without making significant amendments to it.The ...

  • Tenet says business should be booming

    26 Oct 2006

    Advisers should not have any problems selling protection products because Google is getting more than 660,000 related enquiries a month, says Tenet.The distribution group recently looked at the number of search enquiries Google UK received a month on life insurance. The terms "insurance life" brought up 450,508 search requests a month, which chief executive Simon Hudson says shows the huge demand for protection products.Tenet searched on different word combinations and found, ...

  • Thames River flows into Tybourne

    30 Oct 2006

    Thames River Capital has brought out a long/short European mid-cap equity fund, the Thames River Tybourne fund.

  • The best course of action

    26 Oct 2006

    Your article in Money Marketing last week, 'ABI chief blames contracting- out problems on IFAs', draws on comments made by ABI chairman Keith Satchell at the Treasury Select Committee, in his capacity as a member of the Retail Financial Services Group. Unfortunately, your reporter muddled two separate stories. Mr Satchell's remarks were made in response to questions from Jim Cousins, MP, about the position on contracting-out now and in the future, and in the context of how continual ...

  • The Exchange completes billionth quote

    26 Oct 2006

    The Exchange has completed its billionth quotation on behalf of the 24,000 advisers using its service since 1991.

  • The need for speed

    26 Oct 2006

    Speed is of the essence when you are working in an industry where the average house purchase takes 12 weeks. Admittedly, much of this is down to the grindingly slow legal system, but ensuring that a mortgage offer is achieved as quickly as possible helps speed things up.

  • The real world

    26 Oct 2006

    A few weeks ago, a right-of-centre thinktank published a report in which it claimed to have identified a new social group which, to coin a phrase, it called the "ipod Generation".

  • The Way to IHT planning

    30 Oct 2006

    The Way Group has designed an inheritance tax planning product aimed at people who have a high net income.

  • This week in Investment

    26 Oct 2006

    Fidelity's decision to reduce the higher initial charge it had imposed on the UK portion of its special situations fund has certainly rattled a few investment cages this week.

  • This week in Life and Protection

    31 Oct 2006

    'Happy's the wooing that's not long a doing', said Benjamin Franklin which is sound advice for Standard Life still on the look out for a new finance director.

  • This week in Mortgages

    27 Oct 2006

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders was at the centre of proceedings this week after its attack on Home Information Packs.

  • This week in Pensions

    25 Oct 2006

    Apparently the Egyptian queen Cleopatra was so monumentally peeved about her boyfriend, Antony, dying and the prospect of being ruled by the invading Augustus Caesar she committed suicide by allowing some poisonous asps to bite her.

  • This week in Politics

    31 Oct 2006

    The Treasury select committee was given its chance to scrutinise the FSA with chairman John McFall keen to hear more about the regulator's plans to follow up Callum McCarthy's recent landmark Gleneagles speech.

  • Threesixty signs deal with The Insurance Surgery

    27 Oct 2006

    threesixty has secured a deal with The Insurance Surgery offering its clients specialist risks insurance.

  • Threesixty warns over 'Catch 22' of fund manager e-commerce

    26 Oct 2006

    threesixty is warning IFAs they might be caught in a catch 22 over the e-commerce capabilities of fund managers.

  • Tiner says principles don't mean new FOS rules

    26 Oct 2006

    The FSA has moved to allay concerns that the move to principle-based regula-tion and the rewriting of Cob will result in the Finan- cial Ombudsman Service creting new rules to fill the vacuum.Speaking at the Apcims annual conference in Bar- celona last week, FSA chief executive John Tiner said he acknowledged industry worries that the move to more principles could mean FOS interpreting high-level rules differently from the regulator.But Tiner said these fears are misplaced as ...

  • Tory commission proposes £21bn cut in taxes

    26 Oct 2006

    The Tory Tax Reform Commission is recommending a £21bn cut in taxes, including scrapping IHT on primary residen-ces and slashing corporation tax levels.Head of the commission Lord Forsyth told an audience at KPMG's headquarters last week that the proposals are realistic and set in place ref-orms that would result in a "simpler, lower, flatter, fairer and more stable tax system".Responding to the commission's report, Shadow Chancellor George Osborne said he hopes the menu of ...

  • Transact rap for RSM over 'absurd piece of research'

    26 Oct 2006

    Financial research firm Ray- ner Spencer Mills has sparked a bitter wrap wrangle after branding Transact little more than a fund supermarket.Transact managing director Ian Taylor has in turn slammed RSM for producing "the most absurd piece of research he has ever seen".RSM rated eight wrap providers on a range of points, including tax wrapper and fund coverage, online functionality and quality of investment tools then graded them on a scale between fund supermarket and wrap.Standard ...

  • Treasury supporting call to monitor performance

    26 Oct 2006

    Treasury Economic Secretary Ed Balls has called for greater clarity in the way consumers can evaluate the performance of individual advisers and backed FSA chairman Callum McCarthy's recent attack on churning.Speaking at a recent Financial Services Forum event, Balls said it is easy for a consumer to compare the relative performance of funds but not advisers.He said the most important thing is to "make it clear to consumers upfront what charge they are paying and what they are ...

  • UCB Home Loans - Buy To Let Standard 5-Year Tracker

    30 Oct 2006

    UCB Home LoansBuy To Let Standard 5-Year Tracker

  • UCB Home Loans - Self-Cert Standard 3-Year Tracker

    30 Oct 2006

    UCB Home LoansSelf-Cert Standard 3-Year Tracker

  • University challenge

    26 Oct 2006

    What an exciting time to be involved with the IFP, after an excellent conference where the new joint venture with Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) was announced. The conference was oversubscribed and there was a tremendous atmosphere.

  • Wake-up call

    26 Oct 2006

    Lenders pay intermediaries to kill off remortgage market

  • Which? says FSA is leaving public at risk over PPI

    26 Oct 2006

    The FSA's failure to name and shame the companies profiteering on payment protection insurance will result in consumers being put at risk for at least another year, warns Which?Which? has called for quic- ker action after both the Off-ice of Fair Trading and the FSA released damning rep- orts into PPI last week claim- ing that consumers are being overcharged by up to £2bn a year.The OFT is referring the industry to the Competition Commission but the FSA says that any clampdown ...

  • Widows in link-up with FundsNetwork

    26 Oct 2006

    Scottish Widows has signed a deal with FundsNetwork, which will allow Widows retirement accountholders to access over 800 funds.

  • Widows report shows protection shortfall

    26 Oct 2006

    Consumers who have protection policies in place still face a 39 per cent financial shortfall if a breadwinner dies or becomes unable to work due to illness, according to research by Scottish Widows.

  • Wind of change

    26 Oct 2006

    Britishinsurance.com managing director Simon Burgess on why large-scale changes in PP are needed

  • Woolwich - City Mortgage

    30 Oct 2006

    WoolwichCity Mortgage

  • Woolwich praised as service improves

    26 Oct 2006

    Woolwich has been hailed for dramatically improving its service to brokers after coming through a turbulent period.John Charcol senior technical director Ray Boulger said earlier this month he has noticed a major service improvement since Woolwich ditched Global Home Loans as its outsourced servicer and other brokers have added their voice to the growing chorus of praise.In June, Woolwich revealed plans to increase its volume of intermediary business from 4bn in 2005 to 8bn ...

  • Zopa has 100,000 users signed up

    26 Oct 2006

    Online consumer lending portal Zopa has over 100,000 users signed up, not 1,000 as reported in Money Marketing on October 19.

  • Zurich Financial Services - Guaranteed Capital Account

    30 Oct 2006

    Zurich Financial ServicesGuaranteed Capital Account

  • Zurich offering IHT alternative

    26 Oct 2006

    Zurich has launched a new guaranteed whole-of-life plan, to be marketed as an alternative estate planning tool.The firm says although clients will pay a higher pre-mium for the guaranteed rate than a reviewable rate, it off-ers the peace of mind that many will people need when carrying out their estate planning.The Zurich adaptable life plan has a minimum contribution of £16 a month and is designed with both private and corporate clients in mind. It is available on a single ...

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