Money Marketing
3 January 2007

  • Private Health takes over Red Arc

    4 Jan 2007

    The Private Health Partnership, part of Skipton Building Society Group, has acquired a 75 per cent shareholding in care advisory firm Red Arc.

  • A question of Treasury competence

    4 Jan 2007

    Referring to your pre-Budget report supplement, on the front page, you quote an anonymous Treasury spokesman as saying: "When you introduce a system of rules, you make assumptions about how that system will work in practice. If it works differently in practice, then you revise those rules."

  • A simple twist of rate

    4 Jan 2007

    People only get one shot at buying their annuity so it is vital for advisers to base their recommendations on more than just the rate, says Prudential head of annuities Aston Goodey

  • Aberdeen to run VCT for Guinness Flight

    4 Jan 2007

    Aberdeen Asset Managers has won the contract to run Guinness Flight Venture Capital Trust. Neil MacFadyen, investment director - growth capital, will be the lead manager.

  • Acquisitive advisers still seeking to buy

    4 Jan 2007

    If there is one key message that the IFA sector seems to want to communicate, it is that their plans for 2007 include "more of the same".

  • Alliance Trust wins £1.95m grant from Scottish Executive

    8 Jan 2007

    Alliance Trust has won a £1.95m grant from the Scottish Executive that will support its plans to expand its pensions, asset management and investment dealing businesses over the next three years.

  • Alternative universes

    4 Jan 2007

    What might be the outcome for markets in 2007, mused the chairman of the curiously named Betelgeuse Investment Funds as he looked out of his office on to the floor where his investment managers sat engrossed in the information displayed on their multiple screens.

  • Aris Vatis to take helm on Fidelity American fund

    3 Jan 2007

    Fidelity International has appointed Aris Vatis as the new manager of the Fidelity Investments Funds (FIF) American Fund.

  • Ashburton - Chindia Equity Fund

    5 Jan 2007

    AshburtonChindia Equity Fund

  • Ashburton finds 'Chindian' opportunities

    5 Jan 2007

    Ashburton has brought out the Chindia equity fund, an Oeic that aims for growth by investing in China and India.

  • Beringea treads proven path

    5 Jan 2007

    Venture capital specialist Beringea is aiming to raise up to £15m for the Proven venture capital trust through a C share issue.

  • Bespoke Financial Consulting tracks new ground

    5 Jan 2007

    Bespoke Financial Consulting has established a UK commercial property tracker fund.

  • BM revamps BTL and self-cert ranges

    8 Jan 2007

    BM Solutions has today launched a number of new products across its buy-to-let, self-cert and mainstream ranges. Its BTL range includes a two-year product, which tracks the base rate at -0.01 per cent for two years, with a £599 arrangement fee. Other BTL products include a two-year tracker at base rate +0.09 per cent which comes with a valuation refund (maximum £490). The self-cert range includes a two year tracker, currently at 5.19 per cent with 90 per cent loan to value ...

  • Bonus ball to bring boost

    4 Jan 2007

    The overriding fear this time last year was that Gordon Brown's spectacular U-turn on residential property into a Sipp would lead - not to a housing market crash, exactly - but certainly a slowdown in house price growth.

  • Bright Grey joins threesixty protection panel

    4 Jan 2007

    threesixty has added the life products of Bright Grey to its protection panel which can be accessed through its online quotation service.Bright Grey is the seventh provider in the protection range that covers term assurance, critical illness and mortgage protection plans.threesixty services partner David Ingram says: “Bright Grey’s inclusion in our protection panel represents a major addition to the range of providers available. The protection panel continues to grow in popularity ...

  • British Insurance and Moneyquest in link-up

    4 Jan 2007

    British Insurance is teaming up with Moneyquest to set up a specialist income protection brokerage service which will launch on February 1.

  • Broker

    4 Jan 2007

    Will 2007 be a good year for your business?Yes 87%No 13%Yes "I am looking forward to next year because we have a definite business plan in place."

  • Buyout bill is £440bn

    4 Jan 2007

    UK employers would have to pay out £440bn more than the current value of pension assets to honour their pension promises in full, according to latest figures.

  • Chelsea makes new board appointment

    3 Jan 2007

    Chelsea Building Society has made a new board appointment.

  • Claim firm says it can double cash for clients

    4 Jan 2007

    I must complain about the article in the December 14 edition of Money Marketing headlined, Complaining through CMC can halve compensation.

  • Consolidation is on the cards

    4 Jan 2007

    2007 could prove to be the year of consolidation,

  • Court clash and a new delivery

    4 Jan 2007

    There are many things to look forward to in the world of pensions.

  • CTF accounts approach 2.5m

    4 Jan 2007

    Child Trust Fund (CTFs) accounts are set to break the 2.5 million barrier with three-quarters of all parents opening children’s accounts themselves.

  • Dalton Strategic Partnership - Melchior Selected Trust: Canadian Opportunities Fund

    5 Jan 2007

    Dalton Strategic PartnershipMelchior Selected Trust: Canadian Opportunities Fund

  • Dangers of no contest

    4 Jan 2007

    ABI says non-contestability period could lead to social exclusion for insurance products

  • Defaqto partners with Assureweb

    3 Jan 2007

    Defaqto and Assureweb have forged a strategic partnership to develop a streamlined research, quotation and new business service for the intermediary market available with immediate effect.

  • Double your money deal for Towry IFAs

    4 Jan 2007

    Company switches remuneration structure away from product sales to longer-term business

  • Dripping yarns

    4 Jan 2007

    Public interest in equities is back and regular savings could be the best plan

  • Fidelity says look beyond UK as nine firms switch to Reit status

    4 Jan 2007

    Nine companies have conver-ted to Reit status in the inaugural week for the vehicle but Fidelity is warning the choice is too narrow and investors should look beyond the UK.

  • First-time buyers at lowest since 1980

    4 Jan 2007

    The number of first-time buyers last year represented the lowest annual total since 1980, according to data from Halifax. The research shows that the number of FTBs fell by 7 per cent from 340,000 in 2005 to 315,000 in 2006.

  • FSA backing for the 'lone voice' on fees

    4 Jan 2007

    John Scott & Partners Towry Law chief executive Andrew Fisher says he is no longer a lone voice calling for advice to be fee-based.

  • FSA finally showing its teeth

    4 Jan 2007

    Many people look at January through fresh eyes, with a view to making a clean break with the past and making improvements for the future. Personally, I hope the FSA keeps right on track with the progress it was making as last year drew to a close.

  • FSA pledges to continue crackdown on PPI

    4 Jan 2007

    The FSA is stepping up its clampdown on payment protection insurance and is shortly set to announce further fines and enforcement action against another six PPI companies.

  • FSA says two thirds of mortgage advisers failing customers

    8 Jan 2007

    The Financial Services Authority will punish several mortgage firms after research showed that only one third of the firms it sampled had robust processes in place to provide customers with suitable advice.

  • FTBs made up almost half of all mortgages last month

    4 Jan 2007

    The number of first time buyers grew 11 per cent in December 2006 to 48 per cent of all mortgages, according to Mortgage Direct, the highest figure since its survey on the industry began.

  • FundsNetwork forecasts record year for Isa sales

    4 Jan 2007

    FundsNetwork predicts that 2007 will be a record year for Isas and forecasts a 30 per cent increase in Isa sales through the platform.

  • Goddard-Jones moves to NDF

    4 Jan 2007

    Jim Goddard-Jones has joined NDF in the newly created position of structured products director. He was head of third-party distribution at Bristol & West.

  • Hazard warnings

    4 Jan 2007

    Readers may remember a scene from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom in which a huge boulder comes rolling down the cave towards the hero.

  • Henderson expands its horizons

    5 Jan 2007

    Henderson Global Investors is launching the Horizon Pan-European Alpha Plus fund, which will bridge the gap between long-only funds and hedge funds.

  • Henderson expands its horizons

    5 Jan 2007

    Henderson Global Investors is launching the Horizon Pan-European Alpha Plus fund, which will bridge the gap between long-only funds and hedge funds.

  • Home affairs

    4 Jan 2007

    A happy, healthy and prosperous New Year to all the wonderful people I have met working within financial services. Do you know what 2007 will bring? How about these not insignificant things as a starter?

  • Home eternal

    4 Jan 2007

    Annie Shaw reports that the true potential of equity-release business is massive after new research shows that the vast majority of older people want to stay in their own homes rather than downsize

  • HSBC leads league for cheapest lending

    4 Jan 2007

    HSBC was the cheapest mortgage lender for existing borrowers in 2006, according to new research from Defaqto. It found that for standard variable rate mortgages or equivalent, HSBC was the cheapest, followed by Intelligent Finance.

  • Ingenious goes live

    5 Jan 2007

    Ingenious Ventures, the private equity arm of specialist media finance business Ingenious Media, is looking to raise up to £25m each for the Ingenious Live VCTs 1 and 2.

  • Jenkins becomes head of Japanese equities at F&C

    5 Jan 2007

    F&C has appointed Jamie Jenkins as head of Japanese equities reporting to Mike Hanbury-Williams, head of Pacific equities.Jenkins will be responsible for delivering consistent out performance across F&C's Japanese equity products.Mark Perrin has been transferred across from the Asia desk where he worked as an analyst for three years and will now report to Jenkins as assistant fund manager.Hanbury-Williams says: "Over the last two years our core Japanese process has delivered ...

  • JO Hambro appoints chief operating officer

    8 Jan 2007

    JO Hambro Capital Management has appointed former Aberdeen Asset Management managing director David Rhydderch as chief operating officer.

  • L&G appoints head of EU equities

    9 Jan 2007

    Legal & General Investment Management has appointed Ian King to the position of head of active European equities who will join at the end of January.

  • L&G extends bond allocation offer

    4 Jan 2007

    Legal & General is extending the extra allocation offer on its portfolio bond until April 30. Investors receive an extra 1 per cent allocation through an adviser and 0.5 per cent on top through Cofunds.

  • Legal & General - Discounted Gift Scheme

    8 Jan 2007

    Legal & GeneralDiscounted Gift Scheme

  • Liontrust moves with the cashflow

    5 Jan 2007

    Liontrust has launched the continental Europe fund, a unit trust that will be based on the fund managers cash flow related investment process.

  • London Mortgage Company - Product 6 2-Year Fixed

    5 Jan 2007

    London Mortgage CompanyProduct 6 2-Year Fixed

  • London repossessions at 10-year high

    9 Jan 2007

    Fitch Ratings has revealed that repossessions in London have increased to their highest levels in 10 years.

  • Luke newman

    4 Jan 2007

    The performance of F&C's special situations fund has been impressive in its first year and the 28-year-old manager explains to Helen Pow how he separates companies into 'buckets' and looks for catalysts which define the characteristics of a company and why speaking to operations staff can often be the best way to gauge success and sustainability

  • Market stands to retention

    4 Jan 2007

    Guy Anker and James Salmon find that after a record year, the mortgage business could see a downturn as lenders strive to hold on to borrowers

  • MEPs want three more months for Equitable inquiry

    4 Jan 2007

    Members of the European Parliament's committee of inquiry into the collapse of Equitable Life have asked for a threemonth extension due to the complexity of the evidence.

  • Mercantile spots a sea of opportunity

    5 Jan 2007

    New investment boutique River and Mercantile Asset Management has launched two funds investing in UK equities.

  • Mezzanine at core of VCT offer

    5 Jan 2007

    Core Capital has introduced a double VCT offering to invest in later stage small and medium-sized unquoted UK companies using a mezzanine investment approach.

  • Miton Optimal UK - CF Miton Acturus

    5 Jan 2007

    Miton Optimal UKCF Miton Acturus

  • NDF Administration - Income and Growth Plan December 06

    5 Jan 2007

    NDF AdministrationIncome and Growth Plan December 06

  • Neptune increases global alpha fund charge by 0.4%

    4 Jan 2007

    Neptune has increased annual management charges on many of its funds by as much as 40 basis points.

  • New look for Standard LIfe income protection

    5 Jan 2007

    Standard Life has re-launched its income protection plan to include the introduction of guaranteed rates, index-linked options and other enhancements.

  • Nomura expends protection

    5 Jan 2007

    Nomura International has expanded its range of 80 per cent capital protected funds with the launch of the global property 80 per cent protected fund.

  • Nomura International - Global Property 80% Protected Fund

    5 Jan 2007

    Nomura International Global Property 80% Protected Fund

  • Picking over the value prospects

    4 Jan 2007

    Matt Goodburn says stock selection looks like getting tougher

  • PMS to extend offering to mortgage industry

    5 Jan 2007

    Bankhall's Premier Mortgage Service is launching a proposition to the mortgage market offering full aggregation of the mortgage club plus compliance and new protection panels.

  • Polar points to a split sector

    4 Jan 2007

    Predicting what will happen in the protection market, particularly after such a turbulent year, is never going to be easy but there are some things that we can expect.

  • Political parties vying to cut back on the red tape as Brown's reign runs out

    4 Jan 2007

    Deregulatory pressure from Westminster looks set to be a major theme of 2007, with Chancellor Gordon Brown's high-level group looking at cutting back red tape and the hard-hitting National Audit Office reporting on its review of the FSA.

  • PTA U-turn has damaged industry's reputation

    3 Jan 2007

    The Chancellor’s U-turn on pension term assurance was a “total botch” which is damaging the advice, life and pensions industries and has forced an extra cost burden onto IFAs says Positive Solutions.

  • RBS launches online application service for advisers

    8 Jan 2007

    RBS Intermediary Partners has launched an online application facility for advisers.

  • Reit advice

    4 Jan 2007

    Reits have now launched as an onshore product in the UK, with many predicting that funds of Reits in all shapes and forms will become a key part of many IFA clients' portfolios.There are many good things about Reits yet what they may invest in ranges wide and far from pubs and prisons to companies listed in the UK but invested in emerging markets. So why on Earth is there no regulatory guidance about advising on them?

  • Revamp as IFADU aims to fight for IFA rights

    4 Jan 2007

    The IFA Defence Union has restructured with a seven-man executive committee aimed at portraying a more professional outlook and better representing and defending the rights of IFAs and retired advisers.

  • River and Mercantile spots a sea of opportunity

    5 Jan 2007

    New investment boutique River and Mercantile Asset Management has launched two funds investing in UK equities.

  • Scarborough joins Trigold's ENC module

    9 Jan 2007

    Trigold has signed Scarborough as the 23rd lender to support its enhanced non-conforming sourcing module.

  • Seven up

    4 Jan 2007

    Alan Lakey, partner, Highclere Financial Services

  • Sifa recommends Synaptic Clarity

    4 Jan 2007

    Synaptic Systems has been appointed by Sifa - the support group for IFAs working with the professions.

  • Soft landing

    4 Jan 2007

    Dalton Strategic Partnership was founded less than five years ago by Andrew Dalton and some colleagues from Mercury Asset Management and Merrill Lynch. It has expanded rapidly and has produced some excellent results and nearly all its funds have performed extremely well.

  • St James's Place chief exec quits

    5 Jan 2007

    St James's Place chief executive Mark Lund is leaving the Group in what SJP has called a joint agreement.

  • Standard LIfe - Income Protection Plan

    5 Jan 2007

    Standard LIfeIncome Protection Plan

  • Standard Life has £272m of unclaimed shares

    4 Jan 2007

    Standard Life says it has over 90 million unclaimed shares worth approximately £272m following the company’s demutualisation and flotation in July 2006.

  • Standard sets wrap mark

    4 Jan 2007

    When the results of the 2006 e-Excellence study were published in May for the second year in a row, we were not able to award an eee rating to any wrap provider. Two providers, Standard Life and Lifetime, did however manage to achieve the next best thing - an ee+ rating.

  • Standard's Select Property Fund breaks £1bn barrier

    4 Jan 2007

    Standard Life Investments' Select Property Fund has broken the £1bn barrier in less than 15 months since its launch on 13 October 2005, making it the fastest growing mutual fund in the UK during the first 11 months of 2006.

  • Sumus chooses Defaqto's product search tool

    9 Jan 2007

    Sumus has announced that it will offer Defaqto’s Aequos Engage product search and selection tool to its members.

  • Supermarkets and banks could be driven out

    4 Jan 2007

    Supermarkets and banks could be driven out of the protection market if a non-contestability period on insurance products is brought in.

  • Take a u-turn on annuities

    4 Jan 2007

    Samantha Downes says there are promising signs that the Treasury is finally realising that action is needed to improve the retirement income market

  • Taking care of business

    4 Jan 2007

    The FSA has declared 2007 as the year of treating customers fairly for advisers, with a much signalled March crackdown on firms that have not shown they are well on their way to implementing the principles.

  • Tax alert on absolute trust gifts to minors

    4 Jan 2007

    Skandia is warning that gifts being made into absolute trusts could be stung by ano-ther stealth tax if the beneficiary is under 18.

  • The bespoke Way

    5 Jan 2007

    The Way Group has launched the Way Tax-efficient Portfolio Management Service, an offshore bond providing access to a bespoke portfolio comprising three of its multi-manager funds.

  • The estate of things to come

    4 Jan 2007

    Another active year of merger and acquisition activity is expected in the life market.

  • The large lady sings

    4 Jan 2007

    The time is right for large-cap investment to ensure growth and a strong dividend at a minimal price

  • The wrap race

    4 Jan 2007

    A new year brings new opportunities and it is time for some predictions. One I am confident about making is that 2007 is the year when wrap could become a mainstream part of financial planning. There is far broader recognition of the potential of such products and services than ever before but the key question is, can wrap deliver?

  • Threesixty launches TV channel

    3 Jan 2007

    threesixty has launched a TV channel exclusive to its clients in conjunction with Assetz TV.

  • Time for a fundamental change in our views

    4 Jan 2007

    On December 7, the House of Lords debated the crisis facing adult social care and 45 council leaders, in an open letter, warned that the elderly care services are "teetering on the brink".

  • Toll routes

    4 Jan 2007

    The industry must not be divided into two camps of fees and commission

  • Tony Jones leaves Pink

    5 Jan 2007

    Pink Home Loans managing director Tony Jones is leaving the company after four and a half years at the mortgage distributor to pursue other ambitions.

  • Tories launch CLT taskforce

    3 Jan 2007

    The Tories have launched a special taskforce to investigate how Community Land Trusts can help first time buyers get on the housing ladder.Shadow housing minister Michael Gove is leading the initiative based on a model championed by Martin Luther King and the Levellers.CLTs allow land to be released for development and then owned permanently by a not-for-profit organisation with homes built on the land made available to new purchasers at half the cost they would normally pay.Owners ...

  • Trail and tribulation

    4 Jan 2007

    Debates initiated in the pages of Money Marketing and elsewhere have a habit of petering out after one or two responses in the weeks that follow. Sometimes that is a good thing. The topics themselves are trivial or the responses can be.

  • Trigold and Mortgage Brain in merger talks

    4 Jan 2007

    Trigold and Mortgage Brain are in merger talks that would see the combined company holding around 80 per cent of the mortgage sourcing market, Money Marketing understands.

  • Unicorn buys British

    5 Jan 2007

    Unicorn Asset Management has introduced the Unicorn outstanding British companies fund. This will have a buy and hold strategy rather than chase short-term price movements.

  • Way Group - Way Tax-Efficient Portfolio Management Service

    5 Jan 2007

    Way GroupWay Tax-Efficient Portfolio Management Service

  • Which way for quality street?

    4 Jan 2007

    The mortgage market will wait anxiously in the first few months of the year for the results of the FSA's quality of advice probe.

  • Whittaker appointed manager of New Star’s equity income unit trust

    8 Jan 2007

    Stephen Whittaker has been appointed to manage New Star’s equity income unit trust.Whittaker, who is New Star’s joint chief investment officer, already manages the firm’s UK growth fund.He takes over from Tim Bray who will focus on the management of New Star’s institutional business.New Star managing director of UK retail sales and marketing Phil Wagstaff says: “Stephen's appointment gives a greater focus to the management of the New Star equity income unit trust. His strong ...

  • With the greatest of Ps

    4 Jan 2007

    If advisers adhere to the four protection P's of product, place, price and promotion, they will hit the jackpot

  • Woolwich sets the pace with lifetime tracker

    4 Jan 2007

    The Woolwich is offering a lifetime tracker which will track at 0.01 per cent below the base rate for two years, making it the market-leading lifetime tracker.

  • Wrap war warms up while advisers wait in the wings

    4 Jan 2007

    The wrap race will gather momentum as a number of entrants are expected in the market while adviser take-up is predicted to continue apace.

  • Younger IFAs are wrap fans

    4 Jan 2007

    The average age of IFAs using wraps is 10 years younger than those running transactional businesses.

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