Money Marketing
4 July 2007

  • Bupa eyes a bigger slice of the Aussie health market

    10 Jul 2007

    Bupa is thought to have made a £639m bid to buy Australia's second-largest health insurer MBF.Bupa already has a million customers in Australia but the aquisition would give it a 28 per cent share of the market and make it the largest health insurer in the country.But MBF is also considering bids from a number of private equity groups and a stock market flotation.

  • Hillenbrand takes Wagstaff's role

    5 Jul 2007

    Simon Hillenbrand is being promoted to managing director of UK sales at New Star, replacing Phil Wagstaff who left to join Gartmore last week. Hillenbrand was previously responsible for New Star's London-based discretionary client service.

  • Just Retirement boosts salesforce to improve services for advisers

    10 Jul 2007

    Just Retirement is expanding its sales team with an aim to improve its dealings with advisers.

  • £300M VAT victory for investment trusts

    5 Jul 2007

    The European Court of Justice has ruled that investment trusts should be exempt from paying VAT on their management expenses in a move that will bring their treatment in line with mutual funds.

  • 115% LTV on Yorkshire loan

    5 Jul 2007

    Yorkshire Building Society has entered the higher loan-to-value market with a 115 per cent product. As revealed by moneymarketing.co.uk, it has introduced Mortgage+, a no-deposit mortgage with no application fee or higher lending charge.

  • 'A dog's dinner of a discussion document'

    5 Jul 2007

    We can see lots of opportunities for Simply Biz and its member firms but we believe the proposals in the RDR to be anti-consumer at their heart.

  • A new release of life

    5 Jul 2007

    Equity-release plans are rapidly growing in popularity as people look to release capital tied up in their homes to fund an active retirement, reports Will Henley.

  • A shaw thing

    5 Jul 2007

    Sam Shaw is a reporter on Money Marketing

  • ABI bloc back plans as confusion fears grow

    5 Jul 2007

    Fidelity and Skandia have split from the line being pushed by most product providers in their response to the retail distribution review.

  • Accounting for change

    5 Jul 2007

    The roles of the bodies charged with delivering personal accounts.

  • Adviser Fund Index

    5 Jul 2007

    From May 1, this year, the Adviser Fund Index panellists are free to include multi-manager funds in their AFI portfolios. However, these funds cannot in aggregate exceed 30 per cent of any one portfolio.

  • Advisers call for Equitable chief to be sacked

    10 Jul 2007

    Advisers have called on Equitable Life chief executive Charles Thomson to be sacked after he was reprimanded by the Faculty of Actuaries.

  • Advisers call for more clarity as property funds hit liquidity buffers

    9 Jul 2007

    Advisers have called for greater clarity for investors in property funds following a spate of announcements by firms to prevent snowballing rises in redemptions.

  • Advisers facing further exams

    5 Jul 2007

    Only limited grandfathering likely.

  • Aegon and Zurich to fund 7IM

    10 Jul 2007

    Seven Investment Management is launching a new independent trading company, moving beyond its current status as a division of Killik & Co.

  • Aegon increases financial underwriting

    9 Jul 2007

    Aegon Scottish Equitable has increased its financial underwriting limit from £800,000 to £1.5m for personal and mortgage life cover in line with the lifetime allowance.

  • Aegon lands senior Morley property trio

    9 Jul 2007

    Aegon Asset Management is to widen its property business after poaching leading Morley fund managers Philip Clark, Gerardine Davies and David Wise.

  • Aifa slams FSA's capital adequacy paper

    6 Jul 2007

    The Association of Independent Financial Advisers has challenged the FSA’s discussion paper on the Review of the Prudential Rules for Personal Investment Firms which claims prudential rules may not be incentive enough for firms to stop misselling.

  • All change please!

    4 Jul 2007

    While the industry has been thrown into the midst of the Retail Distribution Review, Gartmore has made its own strides to change the fortunes of its US fund range by replacing Gil Knight and co with Denver-based Marisco Capital Partners.

  • Amnesty for critical cover

    5 Jul 2007

    Norwich Union is trying to drive down the number critical-illness and life insurance claims rejected due to non-disclosure by contacting 5,000 existing policyholders.

  • An empire of confusion

    5 Jul 2007

    Those of us engrossed by the BBC2 TV series Rome will have watched Brutus and his pals plunge their daggers repeatedly into Julius Caesar. Despite their deadly intent, however, he takes an unconscionably long time to die.

  • Another interest rate hike to 5.75 per cent

    5 Jul 2007

    The Bank of England has increased interest rates by a quarter point to 5.75 per cent, a rate not seen since May 2001.

  • Arc Capital & Income - Bull & Bear Tracker Plan 2

    5 Jul 2007

    Arc Capital & IncomeBull & Bear Tracker Plan 2

  • Arc plan faces bear necessities

    5 Jul 2007

    Arc Capital & IncomeBull & Bear Tracker Plan 2

  • Average age of consumers getting advice is 43

    4 Jul 2007

    The average age of consumers seeking financial advice for the first time is 43, according to research by MetLife, but 53 per cent of IFAs fear many of their clients have left it too late to plan for retirement.

  • Axa and Winterthur announce senior appointments

    6 Jul 2007

    Axa and Winterthur Wealth Management have announced further senior management appointments for the newly created business unit.

  • Axa bond gives access to Horlick's alternatives fund for £1k

    5 Jul 2007

    Axa Isle of Man says its exclusive link with institutional multi-manager Bramdean Asset Management was a result of Bramdean chief executive Nicola Horlick wanting to "democratise" her newly launched alternatives fund.

  • Baigrie hails change to Icob

    5 Jul 2007

    Money Marketing's No Advice No Protection campaign has won a significant victory, with the latest Icob review including a requirement that companies provide consumers with "sufficient information to make an informed decision" when buying protection products.

  • Bamford says RDR designed to crush small advisers

    4 Jul 2007

    Informed Choice managing director Nick Bamford says proposals in the retail distribution review could be designed to crush small adviser firms and suggests the FSA is conspiring to get rid of these firms.

  • Bank of England could scrap final salary pension scheme

    10 Jul 2007

    The Bank of England has announced plans for scrapping its final-salary scheme for all new employees and replacing it with a pension based on average salary.

  • Banks cast net wide

    5 Jul 2007

    Alliance & Leicester International sales and marketing manager Simon Ripton looks at how offshore providers are trying to meet the specific banking needs of the expatriate community.

  • Barrage of protest hits retail review plans

    5 Jul 2007

    The FSA has been accused of being out to crush small IFAs and the RDR branded anti-consumer by IFA industry leaders.

  • Be open and honest on what you charge

    5 Jul 2007

    The points in Douglas Baillie's letter on the additional costs of fees v commission are all very well but I wonder if his statement that he has been advising on investments, pensions and life insurance since 1969 is actually a euphemism for the fact that he has not been doing much more than selling those products since 1969 rather than advising on them?

  • 'Be prepared to meet multiasset demand'

    5 Jul 2007

    Defaqto warning that investors will expect more from their advisers.

  • Big is better

    5 Jul 2007

    I reviewed the M&G UK select fund last September and think it is worth another visit since I recently met with fund manager Mike Felton.

  • Bright Grey boosts financial underwriting

    9 Jul 2007

    Bright Grey has updated its financial underwriting so customers no longer need to give automatic evidence for up to £750,000 worth of life assurance and up to £350,000 for critical illness cover and joint life and CI. Previously the limit for life cover was £500,000, the CI and joint life and CI limit was £250,000.

  • Broker Talkback

    5 Jul 2007

    Do you agree that the term "independent" should be restricted for use only by those advisers who have higher levels of qualifications and agree their remuneration up front with the client?

  • Brown the builder

    5 Jul 2007

    The new PM claims he wants to put housing as a top priority but many figures in the mortgage business say he had the chance to help in his 10 years as Chancellor but just heaped on more tax. Tanya Powley reports.

  • Burgess hits out at ABI's Consumer Guide

    4 Jul 2007

    British Insurance managing director Simon Burgess has hit out at the Association of British Insurers claiming its recently launched Consumer Guide to Payment Protection Insurance is not helpful to consumers and is doing nothing to address misselling.

  • Cap ad paper's lack of numbers "a major disappointment "

    5 Jul 2007

    The FSA has caused huge disappointment for IFAs that were waiting on specific clarification regarding firms' capital adequacy requirements.

  • Capital adequacy paper could spell trouble ahead

    9 Jul 2007

    Last week's FSA capital adequacy paper saw the regulator asking itself as well as the industry more than a few difficult questions with plenty of room for some ominous sounding notes aimed the way of advisers.

  • Chairman Rennison says GFAs should stay

    5 Jul 2007

    Roderic Rennison, chair of the professionalism and reputation working group of the RDR, says he believes the new category of general financial adviser should be made a permanent fixture.

  • Changes to NI contributions will benefit women

    5 Jul 2007

    The House of Lords has voted through an amendment to the Pensions Bill relating to National Insurance contributions which will particularly benefit women.

  • Citi shuts down 'simple' advice

    5 Jul 2007

    Global financial services giant CitiGroup has closed its simplified UK advice arm CitiSolutions, citing a "lack of both clients and financial returns and profits".

  • 'Clients will need advice on which adviser to use'

    5 Jul 2007

    Financial Services Consumer Panel chairman John Howard is warning that the proposed changes to adviser definitions means consumers will be so confused, they will have to take advice about which adviser they need.

  • Closing time

    5 Jul 2007

    A fund can sometimes prove too popular but is soft closure the answer?

  • Conflicts of interest

    5 Jul 2007

    Concerns are mounting over the numbers of interest-only borrowers failing to take out repayment vehicles but it seems a risk that many are willing to take to get on the ladder, says Samantha Downes.

  • Cracknell joins Origen exodus

    5 Jul 2007

    Michelle Cracknell has become the latest high profile departure from Origen.

  • Darling hits out at mortgage brokers and lenders over short-term fixed-rate deals

    10 Jul 2007

    New Chancellor Alistair Darling has hit out at mortgage brokers and lenders for offering fixed-rate deals on only a short-term basis to maximise profits rather than selling longer-term mortgages which could help tackle the affordability crisis.

  • db Mortgages links with new networks

    10 Jul 2007

    Deutsche Bank’s specialist lending arm db mortgages has announced several business partnerships with intermediary networks Sesame, Home of Choice and Mortgage Next. This launch of initial distribution channels follow a series of developments to the company’s web-based services, allowing brokers greater ease of access and offering instant online KFIs, DIPs, online application submission and case tracking. db mortgages director of sales and marketing Mark Bergin ...

  • Dominion strikes a pose

    5 Jul 2007

    Dominion Fund ManagementDominion Chic Fund

  • Don't force all consumers to pay fees

    5 Jul 2007

    The self-evident fact is that if advice is not given, clients do not often seek out the products of their own volition. Pension planning became the first casualty of the move that made it uneconomical for the majority of advisers to advise clients who were not well off enough to pay fees and every move to drive out the adviser who has the temerity to offer clients a service on an instalment basis (commission) rather than on an upfront and continuing fee basis is distancing the client further ...

  • 'Don't tear up suitability letters for primary clients'

    5 Jul 2007

    The FSA risks violating one of its statutory requirements to protect customers if it does away with the need for suitability letters for primary advice clients, warns Anand Associates financial architect James Brooks.

  • Eclectica Asset Management - CF Eclectica Agriculture Fund

    6 Jul 2007

    Eclectica Asset ManagementCF Eclectica Agriculture Fund

  • Edeus - Income Buy-To Let: Two Year Fixed

    5 Jul 2007

    Edeus Income Buy-To Let: Two YEar Fixed

  • Edeus - Medium Adverse Two-Year Fixed

    5 Jul 2007

    EdeusMedium Adverse Two-Year Fixed

  • Edeus adds five packagers to Premier Packager Panel

    5 Jul 2007

    Edeus has added five packagers to its Premier Packager Panel, including Connect Mortgage Group, em - Financial UK, The Mortgage Operation, Manor Mortgage Services and Clear Group Ltd.

  • Equitable chief Thomson found guilty of misconduct

    9 Jul 2007

    Equitable Life chief executive Charles Thomson has been reprimanded by the Faculty of Actuaries and found guilty of bringing the industry into disrepute for faking the character reference from his former employer.

  • Ex-Park Row CE Newman starts own network

    5 Jul 2007

    Former Park Row chief executive Tim Newman has set up a new company, Sense Network.

  • Experience is worth far more than a certificate

    5 Jul 2007

    I feel the need to reply in respect the recent article about 16-year-old Brocha Simon studying for her certified financial planner exam, which is commendable.

  • Failing to see bigger picture

    5 Jul 2007

    I attended the retail distribution review conference last week. If you wanted to precis the set piece in one sentence it would be: "Help, I'm an insurance company, get me out of here."

  • First three brokers awarded corporate chartered status

    5 Jul 2007

    Stuart Alexander, Layton Blackham and Smart & Cook are the first three insurance brokers to be awarded corporate chartered status by the Chartered Insurance Institute.

  • Food for thought

    5 Jul 2007

    Last week felt tired so far as the investment community was concerned. Little emerged in the way of hard news but perhaps it was the absence of City traders as they held their annual pilgrimage to SW19. Fortunately, I was subjected to some positive comments as the week progressed. Even so, it was a week when you felt obliged to reassess your views on markets as a whole.

  • FSA is right to focus on qualifications

    5 Jul 2007

    Overall, I think the FSA has made a good effort to produce proposals that could form a workable system, given that the present one had become such a mess that it was no longer possible for the public to know what type of advice they were receiving.

  • FSA publishes findings on mortgages into retirement and interest-only mortgages

    4 Jul 2007

    The FSA has found that more than a quarter of 22 lenders have failed to comply completely with responsible lending requirements in its review of mortgages into retirement.

  • FSA reiterates market failings of IFAs

    5 Jul 2007

    The FSA has reiterated its claims that the personal investment advice market is failing, in its capital adequacy discussion paper released today, and admits that current regulation is inadequate.

  • FSA says some advisers would rather pay out than stop misselling

    5 Jul 2007

    The FSA has suggested some personal investment firms are holding more capital resources than required because they would rather pay claims than stop misselling, in its discussion paper on capital adequacy.

  • FSA should not act on cap ad without evidence

    9 Jul 2007

    A leading compliance consultant has answered the FSA’s discussion paper on capital adequacy arguing the FSA should not act until it finds evidence the amount of capital adequacy and level of misselling are related.

  • FSA starts enforcement action against five sub-prime mortgage firms as it publishes review on market

    4 Jul 2007

    The FSA has found poor practice by intermediaries and lenders within the sub-prime market and has, as a result, started enforcement action against five firms.

  • FSA suggests raising Cap Ad in major overhaul of market

    5 Jul 2007

    The FSA has set out its first discussion proposals for significantly increasing capital adequacy levels saying it wants firms to pay claims out of their own resources rather than falling on the FSCS.

  • Generation text

    5 Jul 2007

    With the FSA now having shared its thinking on the future of distribution with the world, the industry can engage fully in the debate. At this point, I think it is important to ask who advice is designed to serve.

  • 'Get the rules straight and stop wasting time'

    5 Jul 2007

    A leading compliance consultant has issued the first detailed critique of the retail distribution review slating it for being poorly thought out, badly written and for including some surprising errors.

  • Going is set to stay soft for PI cover

    5 Jul 2007

    The retail distribution review is not expected to have a significant impact on the professional indemnity insur ance market until the market hardens.

  • Graphic effect

    5 Jul 2007

    It is not often that bond yields make headline news but such was the scale of the recent bond sell-off that the sudden rise in Treasury yields actually made it on to the BBC's 10 o'clock news.

  • Half of advisers stick with Sipp providers despite regulation

    6 Jul 2007

    Almost half of adviser firms are planning to stick with their chosen Sipp provider despite Sipp regulation being introduced in April.

  • Half of IFAs will cling to indemnity commission

    5 Jul 2007

    Fees make up only a small part of remuneration for most IFAs and over half say they have no intention of moving away from indemnity commission in the next 12 months.

  • Head underwriter retires at Swiss Re

    5 Jul 2007

    Swiss Re head of underwriting Jerry Brown is retiring at the end of the month. Jeff Cook, Swiss Re's regional innovation and growth leader for UK, Ireland and Africa, will assume the role.

  • Hidden agenda

    5 Jul 2007

    At the same time as New Star is launching its innovative international property fund, there are other funds in its stable which are also excellent.

  • High LTV mortgages more popular says Spicerhaart survey

    6 Jul 2007

    A survey by Spicerhaart Financial Services has found that high loan to value mortgages have risen dramatically.

  • HSBC finally opening up mortgages to brokers

    5 Jul 2007

    HSBC is to launch an intermediary mortgage arm, becoming the last big bank to open up its mortgages to brokers.

  • IFAP clashes with FSA on independent fears

    5 Jul 2007

    IFA Promotion is at loggerheads with the FSA over the value that consumers place on the term independent.

  • I'm not loving it

    5 Jul 2007

    Two days after the FSA published its retail distribution review discussion paper, the Office of National Statistics issued its quarterly national accounts showing that the household saving ratio was only 2.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2007 - the lowest in 47 years.

  • IMA urges EC to improve cross-border fund marketing

    5 Jul 2007

    The Investment Management Association is urging the European Commission to break down the barriers to the cross-border marketing of investment funds to professional investors who do not need the same protections as retail investors.

  • Inadequate remedies

    5 Jul 2007

    The RDR does not tackle conflicts of interest and could be counter-productive.

  • Jayne-Anne Gadhia

    5 Jul 2007

    Virgin Money's new managing director is back home at the company she helped to develop and the key to her plans for growth is widening distribution by opening up the firm's products, including a new mortgage, to the intermediary market. Interview by Gregor Watt.

  • JP Morgan has RDR in sights with shake-up for fund costs

    5 Jul 2007

    JP Morgan Asset Management is reshaping the pricing structure of its fund range in a move it says will help advisers comply with proposals in the retail distribution review.

  • JPM paves the way in cost shake-up

    5 Jul 2007

    Chris Salih on JP Morgan's move to a more transparent pricing structure.

  • Lance a lotta IFAs

    5 Jul 2007

    I assume the FSA, egged on by Gordon the Brown, is just looking for excuses to buy more pins to put in its voodoo dolls of IFAs. After all, to mix my metaphors, when you have gone out and bought all the best ducking stools that someone else's money can buy, you want to make sure you burn all your witches as publicly as possible to justify your final-salary pension scheme paid for by the scapegoats. That's showbusiness.

  • Layers of advice will leave public confused

    5 Jul 2007

    The retail distribution review has fallen short of my hopes and expectations. The FSA has a statutory duty to protect the consumer and I believe, in the area of defining advice levels, it has not.

  • Leeds BS offers 3-year fixed rate bond

    10 Jul 2007

    Leeds Building Society is launching a new three-year fixed rate account to compliment its existing range of fixed rate bonds.

  • Lewis Hamilton fronts James Hay Sipp campaign

    9 Jul 2007

    Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton is to front a new James Hay Sipp advertising campaign to advisers.

  • Luckraft fund reopens

    5 Jul 2007

    Axa Framlington has reopened George Luckraft's £1.1bn equity income fund two years after soft-closing it to new investment.

  • Lyxor unleashes commodity ETFs

    5 Jul 2007

    Lyxor Asset Management, a subsidiary of Societe Generale, has brought two commodity exchange traded funds to the UK market.

  • Melton Mowbray Building Society launches sub-prime lending arm

    6 Jul 2007

    The Melton Mowbray Building Society has launched a new lending arm which will specialise in the sub-prime market.

  • Meteor Asset Management - Prima Growth Plan 2 - dollar version

    5 Jul 2007

    Meteor Asset ManagementPrima Growth Plan 2 - dollar version

  • Million dollar man

    5 Jul 2007

    Adviser is re-energised by the annual Million Dollar Round Table meeting.

  • Money to be made from retirement marketing

    5 Jul 2007

    Financial advisers could be missing out on a major business opportunity if they do not keep up to speed with the retirement market, according to Living Time.

  • More focus needed on inflation-proofing retirement income, says Hartford

    9 Jul 2007

    Ninety per cent of baby boomers are worried about the effect of inflation on future retirement income yet 60 per cent have no plans in place to counter any effects, says Hartford Life.

  • Mortgage brokers slam Darling proposals

    10 Jul 2007

    The mortgage industry has responded scathingly to newly appointed Chancellor Alistair Darling’s comments today on his concern that brokers and lenders are offering fixed-rate deals on only a short-term basis to maximise profits.

  • Mortgage lenders should be afraid, very afraid.

    5 Jul 2007

    Mortgage lenders should be afraid, very afraid. Of what you might ask? Further rate rises? A housing market crash? Many lenders will be surprised they were the focus of anger at Glastonbury festival when pop star Lily Allen launched a tirade. She described her song, Everything is Wonderful as about "all those people" who try to ruin people's lives - mortgage lenders, bank managers, politicians and Americans in general..." The Diary wonders where her anger comes from, with it being unlikely ...

  • NetworkData to get express access

    5 Jul 2007

    Network Data, the UK's biggest mortgage network, has signed a deal with LifeQuote to use its Intelligent Protection software.

  • New investment chief for Barings

    5 Jul 2007

    Baring Asset Management chief investment officer Michael Hughes is retiring at the end of the year. He will be replaced by head of fixed income and currency Marino Valensise.

  • New Star launches European value fund

    5 Jul 2007

    New Star has completed the transfer and rebranding of the Tilney European growth fund to launch the New Star European value fund.

  • No Advice No Protection campaign victorious

    10 Jul 2007

    Money Marketing’s No Advice No Protection campaign is revelling in victory. The FSA’s latest Icob review consultation paper, which was released Friday before last, represents a clear win, as long as the FSA sticks to its guns.

  • No one likes revolving doors

    5 Jul 2007

    It was (possibly) a sad day for the pensions industry as secretary of state for work & pensions John Hutton and pensions minister James Purnell were both moved out of the pensions arena as part of Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s cabinet reshuffle.

  • NU removes final MVRs

    5 Jul 2007

    Norwich Union says all its with-profits policies will be free of market value reductions from July 1.

  • Number of accredited energy assessors surge to 1,595

    6 Jul 2007

    There are now 1,595 accredited domestic energy assessors according to Association of Home Information Pack Providers, meaning that the number of DEAs required to produce EPCs for August 1 deadline has been achieved.

  • O'Brien for pension role as Brown picks Chancellor 'clone'

    5 Jul 2007

    By Nicole BlackmorePrime Minister Gordon Brown's Government overhaul has met with a mixed reaction in the industry, with many disappointed at the lack of continuity on pensions.

  • Offshore detectives

    5 Jul 2007

    Our panel say HMRC has acquired a massive amount of data from banks to use in its £1bn disclosure investigation.

  • Open up to closed trusts

    5 Jul 2007

    Brian Tora, principal of The Tora Partnership, says investment trusts and closed-ended funds in general can offer a wide range of advantages for investors.

  • Platform for fund growth

    5 Jul 2007

    More platforms are adding offshore funds to their range, which could see them become mainstream for advisers. Simon Hildrey reports.

  • Platform joins MTE

    10 Jul 2007

    Platform is now live on Mortgage Brain’s portal Mortgage Trading Exchange.

  • Primary colours

    5 Jul 2007

    Nicola York and Nicole Blackmore discuss with some leading industry players the proposals contained in the retail distribution review discussion paper and their chances of being implemented.

  • Proceed with caution

    5 Jul 2007

    With the outlook for inflation uncertain, inflation-linked bonds offer a hedge for wary investors.

  • Professional should find proposals workable

    5 Jul 2007

    It is always the case that the rumours are more colourful than the reality. Looking at what has come out following hours and hours of work, the headlines on the press release look benign for Baigrie Davies.

  • Property giant Macquarie Goodman launches new brand

    5 Jul 2007

    Global property group Macquarie Goodman has launched its new global brand, Goodman, in a consolidation of its international businesses following expansion into the European and UK markets.

  • Pru policyholder advocate in court battle with former employer

    10 Jul 2007

    Prudential's nominated policyholder advocate Peter Bloxham is in a legal dispute with his former employer law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

  • Put record straight

    5 Jul 2007

    The main problems with what is yet another insufferable and moronic document to add to the pileometer are the preconceived ideas from people who have never advised a real person. They have compartmentalised everyone into convenient packages where some have complicated needs and must be advised by a professional person while others will be served by someone sitting behind a potted plant in a bank branch waiting for the nod from their colleagues that there is a punter who might be a candidate ...

  • Regulation is top concern for NAPF members

    6 Jul 2007

    Almost two-thirds of respondents to an online survey by the National Association of Pension Funds say the regulatory burden is among their top three pension scheme concerns.

  • Resolution poaches Fidelity multi-manager trio to launch fourth boutique

    6 Jul 2007

    Resolution is to launch its fourth boutique in the shape of a multi-manager joint-venture with former Fidelity managers Chris Ralph, Jason Collins and Simon Mungall.

  • Review lost the plot

    5 Jul 2007

    Those of you who have read this column on several occasions will know that I am a keen film fan. Last week, as we attended the retail distribution review conference, it was a bit like being at a movie which had been subject to last-minute editing.

  • RICS members demand EGM to protest at judicial review

    5 Jul 2007

    Disgruntled members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors are trying to force an EGM over its decision to launch a judicial review against the Government on home information packs.

  • Rising concern at impact of new cash rules

    5 Jul 2007

    Aifa fears that the FSA's capital adequacy discussion paper will have a bigger impact on the IFA market than the RDR paper and be implemented at a faster pace.

  • RLAM appoints Derek Mitchell to manage UK special situations trust

    9 Jul 2007

    Royal London Asset Management has hired Derek Mitchell to take on the management of the firms new UK special situations trust.

  • Roll up, roll up

    5 Jul 2007

    Offshore fund series moves on to look at the features of non-distributor funds.

  • ScotEq sets out RDR issues

    5 Jul 2007

    Aegon Scottish Equitable is publishing a series of online factsheets to help advisers understand the key issues that have emerged from the FSA's retail distribution review discussion paper.

  • ScotProv heeds IFA concerns on medicals

    5 Jul 2007

    Scottish Provident has changed its medical service provider after receiving complaints from advisers about previous provider IMS which has since gone into receivership.

  • SEI launches Shariah-compliant Mom equity funds

    10 Jul 2007

    SEI has announced the launch of the first dedicated Islamic manager of managers equity funds.

  • SGAM AI unveils American Ucits III trio

    5 Jul 2007

    SGAM Alternative Investments has made three US equity funds available to UK investors under the Ucits III rules.

  • Sirius shares suspended pending offer completion

    9 Jul 2007

    Sirius shares have been suspended this morning from 7.00am pending cancellation of admission of Sirius shares to trading on Aim expected to be at 7.00am tomorrow - July 10.

  • Skandia launches trusts and IHT guides

    4 Jul 2007

    Skandia has published two free guides to help clients understand the importance of inheritance tax planning as the number of estates hit by IHT doubles.

  • Small adviser firms struggle to make their voice heard

    5 Jul 2007

    Tenet says IFAs struggle to avoid being under-represented in FSA consultations because they lack the resources of banks and larger financial institutions.

  • Solicitor at PI insurer Collegiate, Mark Bates...

    5 Jul 2007

    Solicitor at PI insurer Collegiate, Mark Bates has taken third place in the 2007 Polar Challenge which involved skiing 350 miles across the Arctic in temperatures as low as -50C. He had the benefit of a sparring session with ex-world champion Nigel Benn, during training. The trip, described as "mental torture" by Mark and his two team-mates, took 16 days, eight hours and 55 minutes and helped Mark raise over £5,000 for Cancer Research.

  • Solvency II proposes 'group supervisor' for EU insurers

    10 Jul 2007

    Insurance companies with subsidiaries across Europe will only have to follow rules set by their home regulator, instead of having to meet regulatory requirements in each country, if the European Commission's Solvency II proposals go through.

  • Sour taste of FSA's pick and mix

    5 Jul 2007

    Two weeks ago, Money Marketing warned readers that the FSA was about to make the biggest mistake in its history. Last week, the regulator took the first giant step towards that mistake.

  • Standard Life announces cost cutting on property unit trust

    6 Jul 2007

    Standard Life has cut the unit prices of five of its property fund by 6.7 per cent in the wake of mounting cash flow problems.

  • Standard Life Investments to open Paris office

    5 Jul 2007

    Standard Life Investments has announced the expansion of its continental European property offering with the launch of a Paris office due to open on July 16.

  • Standard Life issues £230m bonus shares

    9 Jul 2007

    Standard Life is issuing £230m worth of bonus shares to the 1.7m people who invested in the insurers stock market flotation a year ago.

  • Stern to be climate adviser for HSBC

    5 Jul 2007

    HSBC has appointed former World Bank chief economist Sir Nicholas Stern as special adviser to the chairman on economic development and climate change.

  • Stick to whole truth for IFAs, says Tiner

    5 Jul 2007

    Outgoing FSA chief executive John Tiner believes the FSA should have stuck to its guns on depolarisation and has contradicted retail distribution review proposals over the use of the term independent.

  • Tenet updates member client reward scheme

    6 Jul 2007

    Tenet has updated its member client reward scheme and provides an online calculator, to give firms an estimated monetary value of what their entitlement may be worth in the event of flotation or sale.

  • The woes of the sub-prime world

    6 Jul 2007

    It's been a fairly eventful week for the mortgage industry what with another rise in interest rates and the news that the FSA had started enforcement action against five brokers for poor practices following its review of the sub-prime market. Who would have thought we had just entered the usually quiet month of July?

  • Thoresen says generic advice could provide portal into primary advice

    5 Jul 2007

    Aegon Scottish Equitable chief executive Otto Thoresen has announced some of the concepts being considered in his review of generic financial advice, including a "partnership approach", at a conference in London today and said generic advice may provide a portal into the 'primary advice' service, proposed in the Retail Distribution Review.

  • Threadneedle sets sights on global equity income

    5 Jul 2007

    Threadneedle Investments has expanded its equity income fund range with the introduction of the global equity income fund.

  • Threesixty calls for wrap providers to help or vet firms

    5 Jul 2007

    threesixty is calling on wrap providers to either support IFAs using their platforms, or vet them to ensure they understand the compliance requirements they must meet.

  • To boldly go…

    5 Jul 2007

    A client asks for explanation of the modern portfolio theory for assessing returns in relation to risk taken.

  • Transact adds onshore bond to range of wrappers

    9 Jul 2007

    Transact is adding an onshore bond tax wrapper to its platform, offering advisers access to any UK domiciled collective investments as well as investment trusts and exchange traded funds.

  • Trevor Matthews to stand for CII deputy president

    6 Jul 2007

    Standard Life chief executive Trevor Matthews is to stand as a candidate for deputy president of the Chartered Insurance Institute at its annual general meeting later this month.

  • Two-way trail for define line

    5 Jul 2007

    Detailed definitions of the purpose of renewal commission would need to be introduced if consumers are to be given the right to switch off advisers' trail, says Royal London Group chief executive Mike Yardley.

  • UBS Asset Management - US 130/30 Equity Fund

    6 Jul 2007

    UBS Asset ManagementUS 130/30 Equity Fund

  • Up close and personal

    5 Jul 2007

    In the run-up to personal accounts, employers must be encouraged to maintain existing provision.

  • Virgin putting IFAs at heart of expansion plan with mortgage launch

    5 Jul 2007

    Virgin Money is planning to launch a mortgage to be sold through intermediaries.

  • Watch out for liability on home inspectors

    5 Jul 2007

    It is quite conceivable that our new Prime Minister may decide to call time on the ill-fated home information pack scheme.

  • Why supermarket price isn't right for comparison

    5 Jul 2007

    Price comparison between platforms is going to become vital in less than five months time as the FSA looks to push advisers to better understand the costs and charges these services incur as part of the best execution rules. The problem is that comparisons at this stage are complicated and any changes to the existing system, especially when they involve technology, are not easy to implement in a short time frame.

  • Woolwich comes up trumps

    5 Jul 2007

    Interest rates are now 1 per cent higher than a year ago and the prospect of further increases mean that fixed-rate mortgages have been attracting the bulk of business in recent months. Swap rates are also rising, putting further pressure on fixed-rate pricing.

  • Yiu adds quantitative skills to New Star alpha fund

    5 Jul 2007

    New Star has bolstered its UK equity team by recruiting Hargreaves Lansdown fund manager Stephen Yiu.

  • Yorkshire Building Society welcomes Darling proposals with confirmation of a new product in the pipeline

    10 Jul 2007

    Yorkshire Building Society has welcomed Alistair Darling’s comments today on longer-term fixed rate mortgages, stating that it is currently working on a new proposal.

  • Zurich adds 3 new fund groups to offering

    5 Jul 2007

    Zurich has appointed of three new fund management groups - Midas Capital, Neptune Investment Management and Resolution Asset Argonaut - and has also introduced 18 new fund links to its investment and pension propositions.

  • Zurich introduces factory gate pricing on pensions

    5 Jul 2007

    Zurich is introducing factory gate pricing on its pension products which it says is in response to growing demand from advisers and their clients. The new pricing structure will be introduced on all its pre and post retirement pension products in a bid to offer greater choice and control to advisers and consumers.

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