Financial Advisor articles from July 2004

Financial Advisor archives from July 2004

FSA warns firms over 'bribes' to advisers.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... CHIEF executives have been warned against offering excessive inducements to intermediaries. The bosses of the UK's leading product providers were told by the FSA that pay-offs to intermediaries in exchange for a place on a panel would be...

Sesame sets service hurdles for panel.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Sesame is devising a service standard scheme for providers that want to join its multi-tie panel. The IFA network is introducing the new system after being dogged by complaints from members who said one of the biggest problems they faced...

PI timebomb for advisers.(Professional indemnity)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... A PROFESSIONAL indemnity timebomb is hanging over a number of IFAs who provide insurance but have received PI waivers. According to Collegiate Insurance, a number of IFAs have been exempted from having PI cover by the FSA. However, an...

FOS 'not a regulator' says chairman.(Financial Ombudsman Service)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... THE Financial Ombudsman Service has stressed that it has no regulatory or watchdog role. Chairman Sue Slipman used the FOS's annual report to remind firms that the ombudsman scheme cannot regulate the industry and is not a consumer...

Precipice bonds' new victim.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... material, risk warnings and suitability of advised sales. The FSA has so far undertaken a review of the sales of the 25 largest distributors of precipice bonds. These firms sold AGBP3.2bn of the total AGBP7.3bn invested in the products. The...

Infocomp to release wrap account for British market.
July 1, 2004... AUSTRALIAN wrap provider Infocomp is to launch a UK version of its platform for intermediaries and providers to white label. Infocomp provides software for companies including Merrill Lynch, JP Morgan, Credit Suisse and, more recently, ING...

Letters of approval mean networks can recruit more.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The FSA has started issuing minded-to-approve letters to networks, making it easier for them to recruit members. Both Legal & General and Bankhall have received letters from the regulator telling them that they will be allowed to run...

Signs point to downturn in house prices.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... House price inflation appears to be cooling, according to two house price surveys. Both Hometrack and Nationwide said house price inflation fell during June compared with May. According to Nationwide, mon- thly house price inflation...

Equitable Life annuitants set July deadline for action.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... EQUITABLE Life annuitants are being urged to join a court action against the mutual society before 5 July. Action group Equitable Life Trapped Annuitants has warned people who want to join its action against the society that they must...

New code will guard IFAs against future mis-selling.(Independent Financial Advisers)
July 1, 2004... THE Association of IFAs is drawing up a best practice code to protect advisers against future mis-selling. Aifa is to draw up a code for selling any product so that in 10 or 15 years' time an IFA's actions can be judged against a standard....

Disability Discrimination Act requires website updates.
July 1, 2004... IFA firms are being encouraged to update their websites or risk prosecution under the Disability Discrimination Act. IFA Roberts Clark is one firm that has done just that. The Staffordshire-based IFA is undertaking a complete redesign of...

Exchange gives rise to a war of words.
July 1, 2004... A war of words has broken out between two leading suppliers of mortgage sourcing systems over the Mortgage Trading Exchange. Trigold claims that it tried to take part in the Mortgage Trading Exchange that Mortgage Brain launched last year....

Split caps team may overlook IFAs.(Financial Ombudsman Service)(Independent Financial Advisers)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... LEADING lawyers are concerned that IFAs have been overlooked by the FSA in the split caps investigation. City law firm Reynolds Porter Chamberlain is hoping that the regulator is in tune with the Financial Ombudsman Service. This is...

Firm seeks out smaller packagers.(Oxygen Mortgage Group)(Custom Made Mortgages)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Custom Made Mortgages is in negotiations with a number of smaller packagers about establishing close links. It is about to sign a deal with a company in Northern Ireland and hopes to set up relationships with other packagers. David...

Mutual's rethink results in new-look group pensions.(Standard Life Assurance Co.)
July 1, 2004... STANDARD Life is to rejig its group pensions proposition as part of the insurer's strategic review. From 16 July, commission options available for smaller group pensions business are to be changed and the mutual society will provide...

New criteria will see safer loans from Abbey.(Abbey National PLC)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Abbey National has changed its lending criteria for its fast-track home loans reducing its risks. It is seeking 60 per cent loan-to- value on home loans using the fast-track process. This is down from the 75 per cent that it previously...

Get used to wraps -- they are here to stay.(wrap account)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Wrap accounts will be common in the UK within seven years, according to a key wrap provider. Seven Investment Management introduced its sterling-based wrap account in early 2002 and suggested that these will gradually gather momentum over...

Experts to work out a Citizen's Pension.(Pensions Policy Institute)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... A WORKABLE path from means- testing towards a Citizen's Pension looks set to be fleshed out by pension fund managers. The National Association of Pensions Funds has set up a working group to look at implementing a flat rate, universal state...

Mortgage approvals rise as rates increase.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Mortgage approvals rose in May, quashing fears that homeowners were being put off by interest rate rises. According to the British Bankers' Association (BBA), loans agreed but not made rose 5 per cent on April's figures. Altogether...

GE Life targets well-off in drawdown plan.(GE Life and Annuity Assurance Co.)(Discretionary Pension Portfolio)
July 1, 2004... GE Life has launched a phased drawdown plan and improved the terms on its entire drawdown range. The new plan is designed for clients who require income, but not one-off cash lump sums, and want flexibility over their future income. A...

Industry winners recognised.(pensions industry)(Worldwide Financial Planning)
July 1, 2004... THE cream of the life and pensions industry headed to Westminster on Friday to Financial Adviser's Life and Pensions Awards. More than 200 advisers and product providers packed out One Great George Street, just a stone's throw away from the...

Family adviser firms may be hit by back tax.(Arctic Systems)(Inland Revenue)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... FAMILY adviser firms could face a considerable tax hike should the Inland Revenue win a test case going through the courts. The case concerns Arctic Systems, a small IT consultancy owned by Geoff and Diana Jones, which has been issued with...

Fugitive applied for FSA approval.(Target Asset Management Limited)(Target International Funds Limited)(Financial Services Authority)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... A fugitive from the FBI tried to dupe UK regulators by applying to run an asset management firm. Sendjer Shefket, who is wanted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, applied to the FSA to become director and chief executive of the...

HBoS warns of looming slowdown in house prices.(Council of Mortgage Lenders)(HBOS Capital Funding L.P.)
July 1, 2004... HBOS has gone bearish on the housing market, warning that it will slow over the next six months. In its bi-annual assessment of economic and housing market prospects, the UK's biggest lender said it expected the sector to falter in the...

Tenet announces new images for networks.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Tenet has announced a facelift for two of its networks just weeks after one was heavily fined by the FSA. Tenet, which has 2500 members, said it had decided to rebrand M&E and Interdependence in order to acknowledge the individuality of...

Online aid to help with life after depolarisation.(Multi-tie Solution Software)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The Exchange has revealed plans for a multi-tie solution for intermediaries post-depolarisation. Although the rules for depolarisation are not yet finalised, the IFA portal has gone ahead with launching a software package to help companies...

Regulator aims at smaller Sipps.(Pension Protection Fund)(Henry Stewart Self-invested Personal Pensions)
July 1, 2004... UNDERFUNDED pension schemes have been warned they could face the brunt of the new regulator's powers. Robin Ellison, a partner with Pinsents, said that while the new pensions regulator would not have new people or different offices, it did...

Underfunding is no threat to sponsors.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... MOST company pensions are not underfunded to the point where they threaten the sponsoring employer, according to Aon Consulting. A survey of the UK's top companies by the human resources consultancy revealed the typical pension deficit was...

No-fees membership 'just a silly gimmick'.
July 1, 2004... A leading broker has dismissed fees-free network membership as a "gimmick". Keith Jarman, a director of Hughes Carne of Fareham, said that anyone looking to go down the appointed representative route should look far beyond a three- month...

Pilot shows meters can cut SMEs' utility bills by 25%.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... ADVISERS could reduce their total utility bills by more than a quarter, according to a survey from the Carbon Trust. The savings stem from the use of advanced metering equipment, which is currently being piloted at more than 300 small...

Retire in style with a free web service.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... ALEXANDER Forbes Financial Services has launched a website showing consumers their full retirement income prospects. The Croydon-based IFA's online service, called Retire on Target, looks at a consumer's current personal pension savings,...

'Toxic' warning on property pensions.
July 1, 2004... OVER concentration of pension fund assets in residential property could prove toxic, according to Suffolk Life. Henry Catchpole, managing director of Suffolk Life, said the strangest concession the government made was changing the rules to...

Francis added to board of Centrica.
July 1, 2004... Mary Francis, director general of the Association of British Insurers, has joined the board of energy supplier Centrica. Ms Francis, who will remain in her post at the ABI, was appointed as a non-executive director of the company that owns...

Global dismay over chances of pension security.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... THE worldwide economic recovery failed to lift workers' optimism about being financially secure in retirement, according to Principal Financial Group. The group's third annual Global Financial Well-Being Study revealed workers worldwide...

PWC warns wealth managers on ranges.(Pricewaterhouse-Coopers)
July 1, 2004... WEALTH managers are underestimating the potentially damaging effects of offering a large range of products from different providers. A report by Pricewaterhouse-Coopers warns that moves to open product architecture -- whereby products are...

AGBP2.5m limit may prove too much.(Independant Financial Advisors)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... STRETCHING the pension scheme lifetime limit to AGBP2.5m could prove near impossible, according to IFAs. The Treasury has revealed the lifetime limit is to remain at AGBP1.5m at April 2006, but those within a money purchase pension scheme...

'Back door' tax plan change is criticised.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Plans to tax lump sums payable on death during income drawdown have been criticised for being "slipped in through the back door". Current pension rules allow the spouse or dependant of a person who has died before purchasing an annuity and...

Charcol exec signs up with new broker.
July 1, 2004... Savills Private Finance founder Mark Chilton has lured a senior executive from Charcol to help him launch a broker service. Colin Bell left Charcol about a month ago, having been one rung below board level and involved with operations. ...

Record numbers paid NI in 2000.(National Insurance)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... MORE people qualified for the state pension at the end of the 20th century than at any other time. According to Department for Work and Pensions research, more people than ever before paid National Insurance contributions between April...

Abbey signs ad man Russell to push innovative brand strategy.
July 1, 2004... general Mark Russell is the new head of brand for Abbey. Mr Russell will be responsible for developing and communicating the firm's brand strategy as well as seeing through the completion of the rebranding process. He previously...

Fund established to aid start-up and fast-growing businesses.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... FLEDGLING IFAs could benefit from a new AGBP10m fund targeted at providing finance for start-up and fast-growth businesses. Called the Accelerator Fund, the initiative offers financial assistance of up to AGBP100,000 for early-stage growth...

Gooding moves on from Ami.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... CHARLES Gooding, chairman of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, will not seek re-election to the board. Mr Gooding said: "It has been an honour and a privilege to work with the Ami board. I decided to step down as chairman once I...

Two different charges for protection fund.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... TWO different charging systems for the Pension Protection Fund are expected to be introduced. Andrew Young, head of the Government Actuary's Department, which provides advice on social security and occupational pensions, said there were...

Focussing on the positive to enjoy those mutual benefits.(Independent Financial Advisers)(Interview)
July 1, 2004... FINANCIAL ADVISER: You recently axed nearly 400 of your direct salesforce staff. Direct business represented 7 per cent of the group's new business last year so how do you envisage compensating for that loss of business? MIKE YARDLEY: We...

Tiner draws up map for EU-wide market.(Europeon Union)
July 1, 2004... THE FSA chief executive has told European regulation bosses how to create a single market for retail financial services. John Tiner told a European Commission conference that it was impossible to wave a regulatory magic wand and create an...

New fee cap fails to it consumers and IFAs.(Independent Financial Advisers)
July 1, 2004... A few months ago, writing about the Treasury's review of stakeholder charges, I wondered whether the outcome might not end up being the worst of all options available to ministers. And lo it came to pass: the outcome truly is the worst...

Two years' work and promise pays out in platitudes.(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... WHILE on the subject of solutions to deep-rooted problems, it must be terrible to beaver away for two years, burning the midnight oil and calling on the services of a 20-strong team of specialists, including business leaders and government...

Nose not tweaked and no anguish.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... I FEAR that I may have been misunderstood by Lucian Camp, one of the financial services industry's great communicators. Lucian wrote to Financial Adviser last week making the suggestion that Jeff Prestridge and I had given an "anguished...

Packing everything in before a holiday.(Calendar)
July 1, 2004... MONDAY 6.45am: I munch on a bowl of porridge while I log on to my laptop to check e-mails and review meeting notes for my 10am meeting. It is hard to get going this morning as the cloud of depression following England's injury time defeat...

Unborn child is a grazer.(Association of Independent Financial Advisers)(Tracey Mullins)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... AIFA'S Tracey Mullins is taking full advantage of the 'eating for two concept' as she enters the fourth month of pregnancy with her second child. An office source revealed the biscuit budget had taken a bashing of late as a resullt of her...

Not so proud after split.(Steven Proud)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... WHO said financial services wasn't rock 'n' roll? Certainly not Steven Proud, who recently enjoyed seeing world famous American rocker the Red Hot Chilli Peppers perform in London's Hyde Park. In fact, Mr Proud, PR contact for The...

Porker hits buffet table.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... AS THE industry works to raise standards across the IFA community, one adviser could not resist trying to single-handedly let the side down. The adviser in question was spotted making a crafty detour to the buffet table on his departure...

Addiction manageable.(Channel Four Big Brother Programme)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... ONE senior executive at a City law firm has been having the time of his life at work of late. The corporate development manager has been enjoying the shenanigans of Channel's Four's Big Brother programme from the comfort of his own desk,...

A hint of a slowdown.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... THE latest figures from the British Bankers' Association hint at a slowdown in the mortgage market (see page 20). Other recent evidence from lenders, including surveys on London house prices, suggest some confidence is ebbing away from...

Awards success.(Life and Pensions Awards)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... financial Adviser's first Life and Pensions Awards, which took place on Friday, was gratifyingly well supported by the industry despite these challenging times. On the IFA side, the judges were impressed by the quality of many candidates, and...

Unreliable trains and bad inancial brains.(Titanic Investment Club)
July 1, 2004... IT IS not often that a busy personal finance journalist living on the edge of a nervous breakdown five days a week has the opportunity to read in one go, from start to finish, a 121-page report on restoring trust in the UK's investment...

Treasury and FSA consult on abuse.(Independent Financial Advisers)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... THE Treasury and the FSA have released a consultation on regulations aimed at stopping market abuse. The joint consultation paper on the European Market Abuse Directive is designed to give a transparent marketplace for investors. It...

Risky business needs wise heads.
July 1, 2004... I note from the various trade press that Hargreaves Lansdown has had the misfortune to have been fined by the FSA in relation to their Secure Growth Portfolio which I understand was invested in a range of zero dividend preference shares. ...

Mortgages remain buoyant despite fears.
July 1, 2004... Latest figures suggest the housing market lost some of its fizz in May. But experts say it is too early to conclude a slowdown is under way. Figures from the British Bankers' Association (BBA) showed mortgage lending rose by AGBP4.9bn --...

Reporting rules will impact the industry.(Inland Revenue)(Event Reporting Requirements)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... RULES requiring pension schemes to report events to the Inland Revenue look set to impact on the entire industry. This is according to Les Shaw, customer relations and learning team leader for the Inland Revenue, who said event reporting...

Truly a young, developing market.
July 1, 2004... Rising house prices and university fees are prompting providers to target the children's savings market. But parents need to tread carefully when it comes to their offspring's financial future. The cost of raising a family has always been...

Fixed-rate deposit accounts are a 'con'.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... IFA Frank Cochran has called for fixed-rate deposit accounts to be avoided in a rising interest rate environment. Mr Cochran, managing director of FSC Investment Services in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, said deposit accounts offered poor...

Property unit trust offered by Britannic.(property pension fund)
July 1, 2004... IFAs have welcomed the launch of a property unit trust from Britannic despite fears that the market may have peaked. Details of the fund, which is expected to be launched in October, have not yet been confirmed, although Gavin Stewart,...

BIM's range competitive despite hike in fixed rates.(BANK of Ireland Mortgages)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... BANK of Ireland Mortgages has launched its new mortgage range following the latest interest rate rises. The group had revised the rates across its range of products, including first-time buyer packages, remortgages and buy-to-let, as a...

B&W simplifies criteria of BTL, tracker rate cut.(BRISTOL & West Mortgages)(buy-to-let)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... BRISTOL & West Mortgages has revamped its buy-to-let criteria, allowing borrowers to expand their portfolios to total AGBP1.5m. The lender has made a raft of changes to its BTL criteria as part of a plan to simplify its offering and slashed...

Cambridge offers new rates with local focus.(Cambridge Building Society)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... REGIONAL building societies lose intermediary support due to a lack of competitiveness and "quirky" criteria, according to broker John Apicella. Mr Apicella, a broker with Mortgages4You in Newbury, criticised regional societies for setting...

Choosing the right staff is no easy task.
July 1, 2004... QI am looking to take on a new employee for an important role within the company. I have advertised the job and have started to receive many responses from potential candidates. I am desperate to carry out the interview process fairly and in a...

Mercer dispels fears over savings disparity.
July 1, 2004... SAVERS with defined contribution schemes will soon enjoy benefits valued on the same basis as those in defined benefit arrangements. Mercer Human Resources has made the clarification following confusion within the industry that the...

Changes may put IFAs off stakeholder.(Independent Financial Advisers)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... TILLINGHAST-Towers Perrin has warned that changes to the charging caps on stakeholder products could further deter advisers from recommending the products. The actuarial and management consultancy claimed this was because the 60 per cent...

Launch of two support packages before A-Day.(ABBEY, Dunstan Thomas)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... ABBEY for Intermediaries and Dunstan Thomas have launched separate support packages to help advisers prepare for A-Day. Abbey has produced a package of guides to pensions simplification, while Dunstan Thomas has developed new pensions...

Precipice bonds claim latest scalp.
July 1, 2004... Leading IFA Whitechurch has become the latest mis-selling casualty after being forced to close its precipice bond-selling arm. Whitechurch Investment Services, the company's direct sales division, will go into liquidation from 9 July after...

Regulation may worsen insurance gap.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... REGULATION will worsen the ever-widening life insurance gap, according to Kevin Carr. Mr Carr, head of strategic relations for protection specialist LifeSearch, said: "I fear regulation could be detrimental in the long run because,...

Project aims to rid insurers of bias over HIV issues.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... IFA Chris Morgan has welcomed the creation of a working party to guide the industry on issues relating to HIV and insurance. Mr Morgan, director of London-based Compass Independent Financial Advisers and editor of Pinkfinance.com, has been...

Advice at work on the way.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... THE Treasury has revealed plans to consult on offering financial advice in the workplace. Ruth Kelly, financial secretary to the Treasury, told a committee of MPs that workplace advice would be fully developed within 10 years. She...

'Elite rotator' deemed too complicated.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... KLEINWORT Benson's new 'elite rotator' has been greeted with scepticism by IFA Bruce Jamieson. Mr Jamieson, principal of Jamieson Financial Management, said the product was too complex to market to the average investor. He said: "Even...

Positive Japanese equity reports herald fund.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... NEW positive equity reports from Japan have been heralded as good news for Asian funds, by Robert Guy. Mr Guy, director of London-based IFA Timothy James & Partners, said: "Japan has been such a bad story for so long that it makes sense to...

Care of longer-living is now a real priority.
July 1, 2004... PROBLEMS caused by an ageing population have made long-term care a low priority, according to Owain Wright. Mr Wright, head of the Care Funding Bureau, said: "The issue of long-term care is a low priority for the government compared to...

Retail unit trust net sales blow.
July 1, 2004... THE retail unit trust industry suffered a blow in May as net sales plummeted and investors quit some sectors. The Investment Management Association reported that while gross retail sales rose, net retail investment fell to its lowest...

Rumours of MBO at Charcol.(Charcol Insurance Brokers)(Management buy-out)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... A potential management buy-out of Charcol has received a lift from venture capitalists who have approached the company's bosses. When asked if he had received any advances from potential financial backers, Ricky Okey, Charcol's managing...

McAinsh is top of his class.(Angus McAnish)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... TOP marks helped Angus McAinsh of Marsh Financial Services pick up a prize from Scottish Equitable. Mr McAinsh, a practice leader for Marsh Financial Services, was the fourth winner of the Scottish Equitable Retirement Options Merit Award...

Brokers warn of liability and costs with KFI system.(Key Facts Illustrations)
July 8, 2004... The new system of producing Key Facts Illustrations could lose some brokers business and leave others vulnerable to disciplinary action. According to Peter Gladdy, group compliance director of Spicerhaart and its broker Mortgages Direct,...

Life sentence for IFA who murdered to conceal theft.(Independent Financial Adviser)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... An IFA has been jailed for life for stealing from an elderly client and murdering her when she demanded her money back. Peter Crittenden, 64, seduced spinster Joan Beddeson and persuaded her to hand over nearly AGBP300,000 before smothering...

New gadgets 'will put First Active on the road to success'.(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... First Active has insisted it will become profitable by using the latest processing technology to streamline mortgage applications. The brand, which has a strong presence in Ireland, was launched in the UK in June to tackle the fiercely...

Rule changes are leading to confusion.(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... CHANGES to borrowing rules for pension funds are causing confusion, according to AJ Bell. Andy Bell, managing director of the self-invested personal pension provider, said the Finance Bill left pension investors baffled about how much cash...