Money Marketing
8 October 2008

  • Health firms form fraud system

    9 Oct 2008

    Eleven of the UK's leading health insurers have united to form a fraud intelligence system to support the Health Insurance Counter Fraud Group's fight against healthcare fraud.

  • £50bn Govt rescue package unveiled plus £200bn liquidity

    8 Oct 2008

    The Government has unveiled details of a £50bn rescue package that will use taxpayer's money to take stakes in banks.

  • 2plan rebrands with £2m wealth management and growth strategy

    8 Oct 2008

    National IFA firm, 2plan has launched a new wealth management brand and growth strategy.

  • 50 to 60 job losses in Origen reshuffle

    10 Oct 2008

    Origen support services director Keith Robinson says that the group’s decision to reshape the business is likely to result in around 50 to 60 redundancies from the firm by the end of Q1 2009.

  • 51 per cent increase in Citizens Advice mortgage and secured loan enquiries

    10 Oct 2008

    Figures released from the Citizens Advice Bureau show a 51 per cent increase in new mortgage and secured loan enquiries and a 10 per cent increase in fuel debts compared to the same period last year.

  • 7IM's Justin Urquhart Stewart - market view - friday 10 October

    10 Oct 2008

    No need to hunt for Red October or Blowing the Dam (and a grossly extended metaphor)

  • A life in funds

    9 Oct 2008

    Having started in the UK financial services industry in the late 1960s, Cofunds communications consultant Richard Eats retired last week and headed to New Zealand. Remembering the inflation-led difficulties of the 1970s, as well as the 1987 crash and its impact on the mood and atmosphere of the City, Eats talks about the evolution of the UK's retail funds industry.

  • A switch in time

    9 Oct 2008

    Over the past few years, the UK financial advice market has witnessed huge growth in the use of platform offerings. This has been fuelled by the impressive number of benefits that platforms offer to both advisers and their clients.

  • A&L faces huge redress bill for PPI missales

    9 Oct 2008

    Alliance & Leicester has been fined £7m for misselling payment protection insurance and has agreed to pay redress to up to 211,000 policyholders.

  • Abbey fails to pass 0.5% base rate cut to new tracker deals

    10 Oct 2008

    Abbey has revealed it is not passing the Bank of England’s 0.5 per cent cut in the base rate on to new business tracker rates.

  • Aberdeen wary on Mena

    9 Oct 2008

    Aberdeen global emerging markets fund manager Mark Gordon-James has questioned the number of investment firms launching Middle East and North Africa funds.

  • ABI welcomes contribution caps on personal accounts

    9 Oct 2008

    The Association of British Insurers has claimed a lobbying victory as the Government has confirmed there will be contribution caps on personal accounts.

  • AIC backs govt proposals on investment trusts

    13 Oct 2008

    The Association of Investment Companies has endorsed HM Treasury proposals to allow investment trust companies to invest tax-efficiently in bonds and other interest producing assets.

  • Aifa backs Tory call for temporary end to forced-annuitisation

    9 Oct 2008

    The Association of Independent Financial Advisers has backed the Conservative's proposal to end forced annuitisation at 75 during the current tubulence.

  • AIG clients could lose up to 25% of enhanced fund

    9 Oct 2008

    AIG Life has warned investors in its £5.5bn enhanced fund that they face losing up to 25 per cent of their capital if they are not prepared to lock away half their investment for three- and-a-half years.

  • AIG to get additional £22bn

    9 Oct 2008

    The US Federal Reserve last night injected another £22bn of liquidity into AIG as it struggled to regain financial stability.

  • AIG underwriter moves to Zurich

    9 Oct 2008

    Zurich Financial Services Group has appointed former AIG chief underwriter Philip Wilson as its chief underwriting officer for global life.

  • 'Alico sell-off would boost stability'

    9 Oct 2008

    AIG's proposed sale of Alico will bring greater security to UK investors in Living Time, it is claimed.

  • All aboard the FTSE rollercoaster

    8 Oct 2008

    Just when investors thought equities had taken all the knocks they could take, the rollercoaster ride started up again this week with renewed vigour.

  • All change

    9 Oct 2008

    If a week is a long time in politics, as remarked by Harold Wilson, a month in today's mortgage market is interminable. Last month I reported some good news on mortgage rates, with the bigger lenders - Halifax, Abbey, Nationwide and Lloyds TSB - reducing fixes and trackers on the back of falling swaps. The situation has now reversed as rising money market rates see lenders hike rates on residential and buy-to-let mortgages.

  • All Heritable and Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander retail deposits protected

    9 Oct 2008

    Approximately 180,000 UK retail deposits in Heritable and Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander have been fully guaranteed by the Treasury and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, after both banks went into default.

  • Allianz in £1.4bn move to shore up Hartford

    9 Oct 2008

    Allianz SE has invested £1.4bn in The Hartford, representing up to a 24 per cent stake, after the US insurance company predicted third-quarter losses of around £1.25bn.

  • Alpha force

    9 Oct 2008

    It has been hard to escape the hype surrounding absolute return funds, particularly BlackRock UK absolute alpha. For a number of consecutive months, the sector has been the biggest taker of net new assets and BlackRock's fund has grown to more than £1.5bn. Good luck to it but does it justify the hype?

  • Altmann calls for pensions reform

    13 Oct 2008

    Speaking at the Facing Retirement Forum in London today pensions and investment expert Dr Ros Altmann has called for radical rethinking when it comes to pensions.

  • Altmann slams bailouts

    9 Oct 2008

    Pension reform expert Dr Ros Altmann claims the Government is trying to solve the banking crisis without understanding the problem and says some banks should be allowed to fail.

  • And the band played on

    9 Oct 2008

    The clarification by the Conservatives of their proposal to increase the nil-rate band for inheritance tax to £1m was well reported when made only a few weeks ago. Since then, we have had some more serious issues to consider in the shape of the extreme financial turbulence experienced over the past few weeks and it would be something of an understatement to say that most of us have been too preoccupied by events on both sides of the Atlantic to give too much thought to IHT.

  • August mortgage lending down two thirds

    14 Oct 2008

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders has revealed that mortgage lending for August was down by nearly two thirds on 2007 figures.

  • AWD insists on AA rating for counterparties

    9 Oct 2008

    AWD Chase de Vere has written to structured product providers stipulating that a counterparty credit rating of AA or above is now required for inclusion on its investment panel.

  • Axa to take over Central Line for two weeks

    10 Oct 2008

    Axa is launching a £4m advertising campaign with Saatchi & Saatchi that will see it take over all the internal adverts on Central Line trains for two weeks.

  • Bail-out not the solution yet - Urquhart Stewart

    13 Oct 2008

    Seven Investment Management director Justin Urquhart Stewart believes the Government's £37bn bail-out does not solve the banking crisis in the UK.

  • Bank chiefs Goodwin and Hornby depart

    13 Oct 2008

    The chairmen and chief executives of two of Scotland’s leading banks have announced their intentions to step down this morning following the unveiling of the £37bn bail-out.

  • Banking bosses shares devalue £49m, reveals digitallook.com

    10 Oct 2008

    Executive directors of UK banks have lost over £49m in disclosed shares since January this year, according to research by digitallook.com.

  • Banking crisis

    9 Oct 2008

    Continued from p29Only Paul Warburg spoke out against the "unrestrained speculation" and called for Federal Reserve measures to reel in borrowing levels promptly or face "a general depression involving the entire country".

  • Barclays to raise £6.5bn alone

    13 Oct 2008

    Barclays bank has turned down emergency funding from the government and says it will raise £6.5bn independently from private investors.

  • Big freeze at Icesave

    9 Oct 2008

    The Financial Services Compensation Scheme says it is unclear if Icesave depositors will have to apply both to the Icelandic and UK compensation schemes if the bank becomes insolvent.

  • Blue Sky expands product range

    9 Oct 2008

    Blue Sky Asset Management has added two new plans to its structured product range.

  • Bond is back

    9 Oct 2008

    With the markets now positively shaken - not just stirred - the new name on the street is bonds, corporate bonds.

  • Broker Talkback

    9 Oct 2008

  • Bush follows Brown’s lead over bank bailout

    14 Oct 2008

    The US Government is set to follow the UK’s lead in buying up shares of its major banks.

  • Call for FSA probe into structured products

    9 Oct 2008

    Conservative Treasury select committee member Philip Dunne says the FSA should look at how structured products were advertised to ensure guarantees were clearly explained.

  • Campaign ball finally rolling

    14 Oct 2008

    Axa is making moves to restore confidence in the insurance industry by launching a £4m advertising campaign with Saatchi & Saatchi.

  • Canada Life introduces one time underwriting process

    9 Oct 2008

    Canada Life is introducing a one time underwriting process for group income protection in a bid to save time for advisers and their clients.

  • Care and care alike

    9 Oct 2008

    I am a member of the Top Trak study group, a pool of 20 IFAs who meet quarterly to share ideas, problems and concepts to assist in the growth of each other's business.

  • Cavanagh 'not complacent' as profits up 23%

    9 Oct 2008

    IFA Cavanagh Group saw profits increase by 23 per cent to £1.078m in the six months to June 30 from £875,000 in the same period last year.

  • Central banks lower rates

    8 Oct 2008

    The Bank of England is one of seven central banks to drop interest rates by 0.5 per cent as further attempts are made to stabilise the global economy.

  • Chancellor says CML "misunderstood" his call for return to 2007 levels

    13 Oct 2008

    The Chancellor Alistair Darling has said the Council of Mortgage Lenders “clearly misunderstood” his comments on a return to 2007 mortgage levels.

  • Chancellor u-turns on board representation

    14 Oct 2008

    The Chancellor has u-turned on his policy of not requiring Government representation on banks’ boards and is to make five independent appointments to the banks receiving Government investment.

  • Clerical Medical unveils new investment proposition

    14 Oct 2008

    Clerical Medical has launched Clerical Medical Investment Solutions, a new investment proposition which includes a range of 18 new funds.

  • Clive Cowdery calls on Chancellor to attach social charter to bank rescue

    9 Oct 2008

    Resolution Foundation chairman Clive Cowdery has written to the Chancellor to ask him to attach social commitments to banks in return for the Government’s rescue package.

  • CML calls for rethink of Basel II

    14 Oct 2008

    Council of Mortgage Lenders head of research Bob Pannell has called for regulators to look again at Basel II as he claims it is not achieving its goal of regulating lending.

  • CML says specialist lenders are not helped by rescue package

    8 Oct 2008

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders has welcomed the £50bn rescue package for banks announced by the Government this morning, but has criticised it for excluding specialist lenders.

  • Co-op/Britannia tie-up awaits Treasury go-ahead for Butterfill bill

    13 Oct 2008

    The legislation allowing a merger between Co-op Financial Services and Britannia Building Society is simply awaiting the publication of final legislation from Treasury ministers with political experts expecting this to be speeded up to allow the deal to go through.

  • Cost of Govt rescue equivalent to 7% of GDP, says Fitch

    9 Oct 2008

    Fitch Ratings has estimated the gross fiscal cost of the Government response to the financial crisis is 7 per cent of gross domestic product.

  • Credit Suisse cuts holding in BlackRock

    9 Oct 2008

    Credit Suisse's multi-manager team has lowered its exposure to Mark Lyttleton's BlackRock absolute alpha fund by a third, investing most of the proceeds in a Barclays ishares exchange traded fund.

  • Crisis could be an "economic 9/11", warn Lib Dems

    14 Oct 2008

    Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg has warned that the financial crisis could become an “economic 9/11”.

  • Cross-party support for Govt rescue package

    8 Oct 2008

    The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have given their support to Government measures to stabilise the banking system.

  • Cummings attack on Labour's call for regulation review

    9 Oct 2008

    Aifa has hit out at the Government's call for a review of financial services regulation, claiming it would be "pointless, costly and irrelevant" and doubles up on existing European Commission work.

  • Damage assessment

    9 Oct 2008

    Given the events of the last two weeks, how much blame lies with the ratings agencies which seemed to give Lehman Brothers, AIG, Merrill Lynch and HBOS a relatively clean bill of health?

  • Darling ready to pump more capital into banks

    9 Oct 2008

    The Government is expected to announce a huge package of support for the banking industry following pressure to inject additional capital into banks in exchange for equity stakesChancellor Alistair Darling met the chief executives of Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and Lloyds TSB earlier this week to discuss fund-raising measures after industry concern that Government support was not going far enough.

  • DC pensions funds prove worth

    13 Oct 2008

    Well designed default funds can help against the problems that politicians are seeking to address by reviewing rules on compulsory annuitisation.

  • Deposit-taking firms to pay 450m for B&B's collapse

    9 Oct 2008

    Deposit-taking firms will need to stump up more than 450m in Financial Services Compensation Scheme levies next year following Bradford & Bingley's collapse compared with the 5m they contributed this year.

  • Don't leave researchers hanging on the telephone

    9 Oct 2008

    I read your article, Time to hang up on phone surveys (Money Marketing, September 18), with extreme interest, not least because Defaqto is currently in the middle of a big and very important piece of independent research being conducted with IFAs.

  • Don't panic, IFAs tell clients

    9 Oct 2008

    IFAs are advising investors to maintain long-term strategies rather than rush to sell funds due to the financial crisis.

  • Edeus in administration - Bolton talks to Money Marketing- may buy back business

    8 Oct 2008

    Edeus has gone into administration, the firm's auditors KPMG have confirmed today. The firm's chief executive Michael Bolton takes redundancy from today with other staff remaining for the next few weeks while a buyer is sought.

  • 'Enormous' FSCS levy looms if mid-sized bank collapses

    9 Oct 2008

    The FSA has admitted that Financial Services Compensation Scheme levy payers may see an "enormous" increase in fees if a mid-sized bank fails following last week's increase to the compensation limit.

  • European markets stage rally

    9 Oct 2008

    The FTSE 100 was up almost 3 per cent this morning as numerous European markets rallied on the back of yesterday’s decision by central banks to cut interest rates.

  • F&C launches pooled-investment fund

    9 Oct 2008

    F&C has launched a new pooled-investment fund.

  • Firms wait for ECJ ruling on Heyday

    9 Oct 2008

    UK companies could stop offering insurance benefits to employees if the European Court of Justice rules in favour of the Heyday case, warns Ron Wheatcroft.

  • FSA fines two firms for failures in sales of geared traded endowment policies

    9 Oct 2008

    The Financial Services Authority has fined two firms for failures relating to the sale of geared traded endowment policies.

  • FSA loses human rights defence in bid to stop "Lautro 12" disclosure

    14 Oct 2008

    The FSA has lost part of its appeal against an Information Commissioner's ruling that it must disclose the names of the 12 or more life offices involved in the “Lautro 12” dispute.

  • FSA may waive fines as Gabriel hit by glitches

    9 Oct 2008

    SimplyBiz is calling on the FSA to give leeway to advisers who fail to meet its reporting deadline due to problems with new filing system Gabriel.

  • FSA warns on investment bank bonuses as it sets out review plans

    13 Oct 2008

    The FSA is to publish a general review on remuneration structures of the London market after reiterating concerns over bonuses being paid.

  • FSA's 28k fine for TBO Investments

    9 Oct 2008

    The FSA has fined TBO Investments Limited 28,000 for failing to clearly document the explanations it gave to clients concerning the risks of their transactions.

  • FTSE 100 rebounds 5 per cent

    13 Oct 2008

    The FTSE 100 has lifted by over 200 points, rising to 4,311 in early trades this morning following a pledge by the government to bolster the UK banking system.

  • FTSE closes 20% lower on last week- worst week since 87 crash

    10 Oct 2008

    The FTSE 100 index has finished 20 per cent lower on last week's close, falling by over 1000 basis points to 3,974 from 4,980 last Friday.

  • FTSE falls on recession fears

    8 Oct 2008

    Energy stocks tumbled at start of trade today, dragging the benchmark FTSE 100 index by 4.23 per cent to 4,410 despite confirmation of a £50bn government bail out.

  • FTSE rally continues after govt bail out

    14 Oct 2008

    UK stocks on the FTSE 100 rallied in opening trades today, gaining on yesterday’s close of 4256,90 to open at 4,301.53 after a strong overnight performance on Wall Street.

  • Further FTSE falls as Labour 'dithers'

    9 Oct 2008

    Banking fears continued to drag on the FTSE 100 this week following reports that retail banks were pushing the Government to rush through additional funding for the sector.

  • Gartmore postpones absolute return fund

    10 Oct 2008

    Gartmore has postponed the launch of its European absolute return fund following turbulent market conditions.

  • Giving payment protection a bad name

    9 Oct 2008

    I find the headline 'Bye Bye PPI' (Money Marketing, 1 October) and much of the subsequent article highly misleading and in danger of tainting a very valuable insurance cover, namely mortgage payment protection insurance.

  • Global authorities finally act in co-ordinated fashion -Urquhart Stewart

    14 Oct 2008

    The seriousness of the situation capital markets face has been acknowledged with co-ordinated and decisive action, a major and necessary step forward from the piecemeal, case-by-case actions seen in recent months. Details of rescue and stabilisation plans have emerged, and continue to do so, from Australia and New Zealand and across Europe.

  • Govt protects savers in UK arm of Icelandic Kaupthing

    8 Oct 2008

    The Government has pledged to protect the retail deposits of savers in the UK subsidiary of Icelandic bank Kaupthing.

  • Govt refuses to rule out temporary suspension of forced annuitisation at 75

    9 Oct 2008

    The new pensions minister Rosie Winterton has refused to rule out a Conservative proposal to temporarily suspend forced annuitisation at 75 due to the current market crisis.

  • Govt to launch banking liaison group

    10 Oct 2008

    The Government is launching a banking liaison group to help prepare the special resolution regime.

  • Govt unveils £37bn bail-out of RBS, Lloyds TSB and HBOS

    13 Oct 2008

    The Government has unveiled details of a £37bn capital injection into Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB and HBOS in return for shares.

  • GuestInvest may hit Aegon Sipp clients

    9 Oct 2008

    Aegon says a small number of clients that invested in GuestInvest hotel rooms through its Sipp could be affected by the company filing for administration.

  • Hartford has £143m exposure to Lehman

    9 Oct 2008

    The Hartford Financial Serv-ices Group has announced it has exposure of £143m in Lehman Brothers and £8.5m in AIG as at September 16.

  • Henderson chief says market is ripe for bonds despite a miserable month

    9 Oct 2008

    Henderson director of fixed income John Pattullo says the months leading up to Christmas is the right time for investors to be bullish on bonds in the wake of the financial crisis.

  • Henderson Group issues profits warning

    9 Oct 2008

    Henderson Group has released a profits warning to the market after admitting that it will not meet its 2008 target of £90m.

  • Heritable confirms administration

    9 Oct 2008

    Heritable Bank has confirmed it is in administration after its Icelandic parent Landsbanki was taken into state control.

  • Home to roost

    9 Oct 2008

    The deaths of most mortgage products have been heralded over the last few weeks as deals are withdrawn and more lenders leave the table. Last week, Moneyfacts revealed there are only 3,469 products left in the UK, down from more than 13,000 in August 2007. But are all the mortgage sectors still breathing and what can we expect in the future? Money Marketing asked advisers and mortgage providers for their thoughts on the current state of mortgage products.

  • House prices drop 1.3 per cent in September

    9 Oct 2008

    House prices dropped by 1.3 per cent in September making it the smallest monthly fall for seven months, according to the Halifax House Price Index.

  • HSBC injects £750m capital using group funds to meet UK Govt demands

    9 Oct 2008

    HSBC has met its commitment to the Government to recapitalise its UK subsidiary with a £750m equity injection from the group’s own resources.

  • IFADU questions the legality of B&B deal

    9 Oct 2008

    The IFA Defence Union has questioned the legality of Government plans for the Financial Services Compensation Scheme to take on the £14bn loan to cover its Bradford & Bingley intervention.

  • 'IFAs buy into strategies they do not understand'

    9 Oct 2008

    Lawrence House Fund Managers head of investments Alan Stokes is warning that advisers with limited experience are buying into new investment strategies without fully understanding the potential risks.

  • IMLA supports £37bn rescue package

    13 Oct 2008

    The Intermediate Mortgage Lenders Association executive director Peter Williams has welcomed the Government’s dramatic £37bn rescue package of British banks.

  • In the frame to take the blame

    9 Oct 2008

    With the failure/nationalisation of several huge financial services players, all manner of stresses and strains have been placed on products sold by IFAs. To date, this par- ticular blame game has centred on bankers of all three types, investment, high street and central.

  • Industry welcomes Govt bail-out

    13 Oct 2008

    The industry has reacted positively to today's news that the Government is injecting £37bn into Royal Bank of Scotland, HBOS and Lloyds TSB.

  • InfoComp appoints business consultant

    9 Oct 2008

    InfoComp has appointed Eric Welsby as a business consultant. Welsby joins from Adnitor. InfoComp says Welsby's experience of the UK wrap market will help the firm prog- ress its expansion plans in the sector.

  • Into the fray

    9 Oct 2008

    At least the US administration obtained its bailout fund. Whether this will be sufficient to calm investors' collective nerves, only time will tell. Wall Street was suitably cautious in the trading immediately after the vote that delivered the required result took place.

  • IP message is not reaching employees

    9 Oct 2008

    Advisers and employers are failing to take advantage of the group protection market despite it accounting for 70 per cent of income protection business and 40 per cent of life business, says Swiss Re.

  • It's good to talk

    9 Oct 2008

    The UK's inaugural Financial Planning Week (FPW) took place the week before the Lehman Brothers collapse. As reported in Money Marketing, the week itself was a great success but it also highlighted what a huge job there is to do in assisting people with planning their finances and, where appropriate, getting them in front of professionals to help them establish and realise their goals.

  • Jeannie Drake takes over as temporary Pada chairman

    9 Oct 2008

    Jeannie Drake has been appointed as acting chair of the Personal Accounts Delivery Authority today.

  • John Pattullo

    9 Oct 2008

    It is the 30th anniversary of the Henderson preference & bond fund this week and despite an "exceptionally poor" past month, co-manager John Pattullo remains upbeat about the prospects for the bond market.

  • Judging the turn

    9 Oct 2008

    The Resolution Argonaut European alpha fund managed by Barry Norris has an outstanding record. Norris started his career with Baillie Gifford and spent some time with Neptune where he ran the European opportunities fund. He then decided to start Argonaut Capital Partners in 2005 with Oliver Russ.

  • Just cause

    9 Oct 2008

    In a recent study, my organisation identified that the potential market capitalisation of advisers in the retirement market over the next 10 years could be as much as £7.5bn. Given this is many times the entire market capitalisation of the quoted UK IFA sector, it is fair to say this area represents the largest single opportunity for the adviser community today.

  • Lehman chief berated over huge exec bonuses

    9 Oct 2008

    The US House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has attacked Lehman Brothers chief executive Richard Fuld for authorising huge bonuses for departing exec-utives in the run-up to the bank's collapse.

  • Lighthouse to offer Mortgage Intelligence ARs route to investment and pensions advice

    10 Oct 2008

    Mortgage Intelligence is teaming up with Lighthouse to offer its appointed representatives the opportunity to write investment and pensions business under the Lighthouse banner as long as they have the relevant qualifications.

  • Lowes says don't build up hopes over Meteor investments

    9 Oct 2008

    Lowes Financial Management has told clients not to build their hopes up of regaining capital from Meteor direct investments backed by solvent Lehman companies.

  • 'LTC needs a change of attitude, not more exams'

    9 Oct 2008

    Long-term care specialist Symponia has attacked the ifs School of Finance for introducing an LTC qualification which it says fails to address the real issues around care.

  • Made in China

    9 Oct 2008

    Global equity markets have endured painful and dramatic gyrations in recent weeks. At Barings, we had been expecting further failures in the US financial sector for some time and have long been cautious from a top-down perspective on Western financials.

  • Madness in the method

    9 Oct 2008

    The latest Pensions Bill will become law during the autumn Parliamentary session. This makes it the fifth Pensions Act in 10 years. It follows the recommendations of the Pensions Commission in requiring employers to enrol their employees in a pension scheme. This can include a personal account.

  • Majority choose job based on pension scheme

    13 Oct 2008

    More people are choosing their job based on the pension scheme that is offered to them, according to new research from Alexander Forbes Financial Services 2008 Return on Pension Expenditure Survey.

  • Making a drama out of a crisis

    9 Oct 2008

    A week is a long time in politics and even longer when there's a credit crunch on.

  • Mandelson's return raises eyebrows in mortgage industry

    9 Oct 2008

    Brokers have expressed surprise that Peter Mandelson has returned to the Cabinet with a brief that includes responding to the financial crisis, after he was sacked from the Government for failing to disclose a loan to his mortgage lender.

  • McDonald takes a macro view

    9 Oct 2008

    Cazenove co-head of multi-manager Robin McDonald believes the current market benefits managers with overall market views rather than asset or geographical specialists.

  • Mena streets

    9 Oct 2008

    Mena - Middle East and North Africa - looks set to take over from Bric as the acronym of the moment.

  • Met life, Scots Wid, Zurich and Pru join Portavista

    9 Oct 2008

    Met life, Scottish Widows, Zurich and Prudential are the latest providers to join Bankhall’s Portavista platform.

  • MGM Advantage appoints new head of marketing

    9 Oct 2008

    MGM Advantage has appointed Lynsay Dickinson as its new head of marketing.

  • 'Money Guidance causing confusion'

    9 Oct 2008

    The proposed Money Guidance scheme is causing confusion in the industry as only one-fifth of advisers would sign up to it, according to Aifa research. The trade body says its view is that Money Guidance requires more work before advisers will throw their weight behind it.

  • More investment staff leave Bestinvest

    10 Oct 2008

    Bestinvest has announced a restructuring of its investment management division.

  • Morningstar acquires fund data provider

    9 Oct 2008

    Investment research firm Morningstar has acquired closed-end fund data provider Fundamental Data in an 11m deal.

  • MPs demand answer to Govt 2007 lending contradiction

    14 Oct 2008

    Treasury Select Committee MP Jim Cousins has challenged why the Government is urging a return to 2007 lending levels for some banks while nationalised Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley are managing their loan books more tightly.

  • 'Multi-asset is the new diversifier'

    9 Oct 2008

    Globalisation has accelerated market correlation but a multi-asset strategy can improve diversification and manage downside in a bear market, says Schroders head of IFA sales Steve Jackson.

  • Myners is City minister

    9 Oct 2008

    Former Gartmore chairman Paul Myners is stepping down from his role as personal accounts delivery authority chairman to take on the newly-created position of financial services secretary.

  • NAPF annual conference – ‘Be careful what you wish for” – Norgrove

    8 Oct 2008

    Pension professionals who say the UK system is too heavily regulated should be careful what they wish for, says David Norgrove, chairman of The Pensions Regulator.

  • NAPF annual conference - BREAKING NEWS – Jeannie Drake to replace Myners at PADA

    9 Oct 2008

    Jeannie Drake, one of the three members of the Pensions Commission that recommended Personal Accounts is to take over as acting chairman of the Personal Accounts Delivery Authority, replacing the departing Paul Myners.

  • NAPF annual conference – Levelling up possible if you offer advice – Standard

    8 Oct 2008

    Levelling down due to auto-enrolment can be reversed provided you properly engage staff with their pensions and offer them information and advice on their funds says Standard Life.

  • NAPF annual conference - Pension Quality Mark to benchmark good schemes launched by NAPF

    8 Oct 2008

    A quality mark designed to promote the value of workplace pension funds is being launched by the National Association of Pension Funds at its annual conference in Glasgow.

  • NAPF annual conference – US ‘shifting from retail to institutional’ – Alliance Bernstein

    8 Oct 2008

    US pension savers are shifting away from retail funds as employers drive them into vehicles closer to UK default options, according to Richard Davies, managing director, defined contribution, Alliance Bernstein the investment manager.

  • Nationwide increases some tracker rates by 0.3 per cent

    13 Oct 2008

    Nationwide is increasing some of its tracker deals for new customers by up to 0.3 per cent despite last week’s cut in the Bank of England base rate of 0.5 per cent.

  • Nationwide to raise £500m through "normal channels"

    13 Oct 2008

    Nationwide has pledged to increase capital by £500m through normal market channels.

  • NDFA investor appeals to Ussher over guarantees

    9 Oct 2008

    An investor who fears losing a big chunk of the £50,000 he invested in a Lehman-backed NDFA structured product has written to the Government calling for greater transparency on capital guarantees.

  • 'New pension chief has little time to get up to speed'

    9 Oct 2008

    Advisers have expressed disappointment that the Government has chosen to replace yet another pensions minister with many important decisions regarding personal accounts still up in the air.

  • Novia wrap to launch by end of month

    10 Oct 2008

    Novia chief executive Bill Vasilieff has revealed his wrap proposition will launch with a group of around a dozen IFAs by the end of this month.

  • Openwork advisers put £30m in Omnis

    9 Oct 2008

    Omnis head of multi-manager Lothar Mentel says he is delighted with the £30m of assets the group has taken since its launch in July.

  • Our man in Moscow

    9 Oct 2008

    The Neptune Russia & Greater Russia fund is down sharply over recent months amid falls in the Russian market. Fund manager Robin Geffen has recently come back from visiting companies in Moscow and I have spoken to him on several occasions, so this is an opportune time to update you.

  • Paul Lothian to replace Robert Reid as PFS president

    13 Oct 2008

    Paul Lothian is to replace Robert Reid as president of the Personal Finance Society from November 11.

  • Pensioners to reap rewards of rise of Basic State Pension

    14 Oct 2008

  • Perfect partner

    9 Oct 2008

    In my opinion, a wrap is more useful to a financial planning practice than it is to a client. The problem, as I see it, is the cost of the wrap against the value added for the client.

  • Personal Assets Trust MD dies

    13 Oct 2008

    Personal Assets Trust managing director Ian Rushbrook died yesterday following a short period of illness.

  • Personal attention

    9 Oct 2008

    The Government is committed to launching personal accounts in 2012 to complement workplace private pensions.

  • Pioneer enhances protection plan

    9 Oct 2008

    Pioneer has unveiled its plans to enhance its professional income protection plan by increasing the maximum benefit and allowing customers to choose between underwriting on acceptance or at claim.

  • Playing it safe

    9 Oct 2008

    This financial crisis has redefined our perception of risk and trust. In the past when stockmarkets wobbled, you could switch some of your assets to corporate bonds if you wanted an asset that performed contra-cyclically, or you could choose shares and dabble in some commercial property.

  • Plum users now able to give clients access to amend details

    10 Oct 2008

    Plum Software users can now give clients access to the software provider’s facilities from their own computer.

  • PM says irresponsible bankers should be punished

    9 Oct 2008

    The Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said that bankers and financiers who take irresponsible risks should be punished for their actions.

  • Poor data security is biggest financial crime risk, says FSA

    8 Oct 2008

    The FSA has revealed that poor data security is currently the biggest risk to the FSA’s financial crime objectives.

  • Positive attitude

    9 Oct 2008

    Investors will be painfully aware that most equity markets have fallen this year and it would be a brave man who suggests that we are now through the worst.

  • Proposal principles for long-term future of pension protection levy revealed

    10 Oct 2008

    The principles which will underpin proposals for the long-term future of the pension protection levy have been revealed.

  • Protection at a premium

    9 Oct 2008

    With redundancy rates rising thanks to Lehman Brothers, Bradford & Bingley, Lloyds/HBOS et al, questions are being asked of those providers offering protection against unemployment. Are they offering enough advice on the product? How well positioned are insurance firms to deal with the imminent influx of redundancies? And will providers start cherrypicking a client base, swerving to avoid those working in the financial sector?

  • Prudential to slash equity release LTVs by 5%

    10 Oct 2008

    Prudential is slashing the maximum LTV on its lump sum lifetime mortgages by 5 per cent due to predictions of falling house prices.

  • Public given chance to grill Chancellor on banking crisis

    14 Oct 2008

    The Treasury Select Committee is giving the public the opportunity to grill the Chancellor on the financial rescue package by submitting email questions.

  • Rating agency says Lloyds HBOS safer after bailout

    14 Oct 2008

    Moody’s rating agency is confident that the £17bn Lloyds TSB HBOS bailout will protect against any further market downturns.

  • Rating for answers

    9 Oct 2008

    What is the point of a rating agency that cannot predict when a company, bank or fund is not fit for difficult times? That is a question which I think the big global agencies should be answering themselves.

  • RDR could hinder sales

    9 Oct 2008

    If protection sales are included in the retail distribution review, it could hinder sales and increase the existing £2.3tn protection gap, warns Swiss Re Life and Health technical manager Ron Wheatcroft.

  • Respect the consumer's choice of distributor

    9 Oct 2008

    In recent letters to the trade press regarding the proposals contained within the retail distribution review, I have been challenging our industry on a number of points but on two particular key issues.

  • Rochussen takes on CEO role at JOHCM with Pease moving to deputy

    9 Oct 2008

    J O Hambro Capital Management has announced the appointment of Gavin Rochussen as chief executive officer.

  • Schroders chief urges patience

    9 Oct 2008

    Schroders head of UK equities Richard Buxton says there are plenty of opportunities in the market for UK investors provided that they stay patient.

  • Selling protection could ease mortgage pain

    9 Oct 2008

    The future looks grim for mortgage brokers as £150bn of lending falls out of the market over the coming year, says Premier Mortgage Service managing director John Malone.

  • Shah goes overweight in financials

    9 Oct 2008

    Fidelity UK special situations fund manager Sanjeev Shah believes the financial crisis has created fantastic buying opportunities.

  • Short story

    9 Oct 2008

    What challenging and interesting times we live in. Many of my IFA clients of old who have time to follow the rather excitable press ask me in rather dramatic terms if we are "approaching the end of the world". I try not to get on my soap box and point out the more pertinent issues that may seal the world's demise such as climate change and lack of sustainability. But for the purposes of this analysis, let's stick to financial matters.

  • Skandia to launch five US funds

    13 Oct 2008

    Skandia is expanding its fund range with the launch of five US funds in the UK.

  • 'Smaller IFAs will march on after the RDR'

    9 Oct 2008

    Outgoing Bankhall chief executive Peter Mann is predicting a 20 per cent fall in the number of small and medium-sized IFAs by 2015.

  • Solution4 launches Senro Version 3

    10 Oct 2008

    Software provider Solution4 has enhanced its Senro proposition to include a client record management system to handle multiple applications with multiple loan accounts and securities.

  • Stamping out and stepping up

    8 Oct 2008

    This week 11 of the UK’s leading health insurers united to form a fraud intelligence system to support the Health Insurance Counter Fraud Group's fight against healthcare fraud.

  • Stroud keeps advisers in the mortgage loop

    9 Oct 2008

    Stroud & Swindon has revealed that its online intermediary arm will be called ITL Mortgages.

  • Take that to the bank

    9 Oct 2008

    The news that B&B needs rescuing by the Government makes me wonder if the FSA would not have been better dealing with properly inspecting the banks pre-crisis and truly understanding what they were up to.

  • The duellists

    9 Oct 2008

    Jim Reeve chief executive officer, Positive Solutions"Brown did well to put himself across as the man with the experience to bring back stability. What will be critical is to rebuild consumer confidence in the financial system and prevent money moving to Ireland."

  • The lessons of two evils

    9 Oct 2008

    "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it," said philosopher and essayist George Santayana.

  • The state we're in

    9 Oct 2008

    I am 28 and do not have a pension plan. Is it sensible for me to start saving towards a pension or should I just rely on the state?

  • The winds of change

    9 Oct 2008

    While the credit crisis is rightly taking centre stage in everyone’s thoughts it would be wrong to ignore the vital arguments around pension reform that are taking place.

  • Threadneedle picks global chief

    9 Oct 2008

    Threadneedle has appointed Nick Ring as global head of product. Ring joins from Northern Trust International Wealth Management, where he was head of the company.

  • To lend or not to lend - is that the question?

    10 Oct 2008

    I am tempted to wonder if we’ll need a Minister for Mortgages alongside the Minister for the City if the “stakes in banks” plan actually has to be implemented. Heavyweight HSBC and the safer than houses Santander can probably do it on their own. But others will almost certainly need to call on the Government.

  • Tories call for temporary end to forced annuitisation due to market turmoil

    9 Oct 2008

    The Conservatives have called on the Government to temporarily end forced annuitisation at 75 due to the current market turmoil.

  • Tory MP calls for RDR to relax boundaries

    9 Oct 2008

    Conservative Shadow Financial Secretary to the Treasury Mark Hoban is warning that the retail distribution review's definitions of sales and advice may be too strict.

  • Tracker fees treble in 2008

    14 Oct 2008

    The average fees charged on tracker mortgages have trebled from £239 to over £750 in the last year.

  • UK economy will not get better any time soon, says Artemis

    9 Oct 2008

    Artemis anticipates further volatility in the UK economy as a ‘riot’ continues to plague the global markets.

  • UK interest rates to drop to 3.5% by end 2009, says Schroders’ chief economist

    8 Oct 2008

    Interest rates will drop to 3.5 per cent by the end of 2009 and are likely to fall and stay lower for “a considerable point of time”, says Schroders chief economist Keith Wade.

  • UK moves to protect Icesave accounts

    8 Oct 2008

    The British Government has stepped in to protect Icesave deposits held by UK savers with estimates that around 300,000 people had accounts with the UK operation of Icelandic bank Landsbanki.

  • UK pensions regulation out of step with the rest

    10 Oct 2008

    The National Association of Pension Funds has revealed there are four areas where UK pensions regulation is out of synch with international practice.

  • When life throws you lemmings

    9 Oct 2008

    "Why the long face?" I asked the managing director of Huxley Epsilon, the self-proclaimed future of financial advice, as I walked into his office. "I mean, of course, beyond the obvious horridness of world markets and the general uncertainty of whether every major bank we've ever heard of is, on a day-by-day basis, going to stick, nationalise or fold."

  • Which way does the wind blow?

    9 Oct 2008

    It became one of the biggest investment themes of 2007 but will climate change funds lose their appeal as the economic climate gets more hostile?

  • Woodford points to market low

    9 Oct 2008

    Invesco Perpetual income guru Neil Woodford believes that the credit crisis is nearing its lowest point and that there a number of opportunities appearing in the market.

  • 'You can treat clients fairly and still make money'

    9 Oct 2008

    Advisers must recognise that TCF means treating customers fairly, not treating customers equally, says Bankhall senior area manager Adrian Evans.

  • Zurich appoints David Etherington as chief growth officer

    9 Oct 2008

    Zurich has appointed David Etherington as chief growth officer to drive forward its expansion plans.

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