Financial Advisor articles from November 2002

Financial Advisor archives from November 2002

Providers face loan backlash.
November 8, 2002... By Clare Bettelley LENDERS could generate hostility among existing borrowers by offering first-time buyers special rates, according to an IFA. Tony Moss, a partner of Surrey-based IFA Best Advice, said offering dual rates, for example,...

IFA praises move to reduce admin.(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... IFAS long for a provider able to reduce the administration needed for mortgage applications, claims a Cheshire-based adviser. Carl Devereaux, an IFA for Burton Financial Services, said mortgage administration took up a disproportionate...

Lenders overcharging.
November 8, 2002... MANY mortgage lenders are overcharging clients with repayment mortgages, an IFA claims. According to Michael Lewin, principal of London-based IFA MSL Financial Services, lenders have started to take additional capital from clients even...

Call for phased move to retiring.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... CO-OPERATIVE Insurance has called for the introduction of phased retirement to soften the "cliff edge" of retirement. It said phased retirement would make the transition both psychologically and financially easier. Mike Fairbairn,...

People won't lose over rebate error; Reassurance after clawback of Inland Revenue overpayments.
November 20, 2002... By Susan Butterworth THE Inland Revenue claims individuals will not lose out after it clawed back overpayments of contracted-out rebates last month. The assurance was given to the Association of British Insurers after the Revenue had...

Pensions baffle two out of three.(most people polled could not explan the different plans)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... TWO-THIRDS of people are baffled by pensions, according to research by Halifax. Its survey of 990 adults found 67 per cent of respondents were unable to explain the difference between final salary and money purchase schemes. Keith...

Warning issued over compulsion.(Confederation of British Industry)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... THE Confederation of British Industry has warned unions they risk exacerbating pension problems by backing compulsory contributions for employers. The TUC has urged the government to force employers to contribute to pensions and make their...

Extra News.(meshed briefs)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Plunging returns eat into funds Final salary pension funds posted an average negative return of almost 13 per cent in the quarter to September, according to The WM Company. However, Eric Lambert, executive director of The WM Company, said:...

A way to get things done; A Royal Commission might be a no-no, but commissions are useful for building consensus and taking responsibility.
November 20, 2002... Stewart Ritchie RECENTLY there have been rumours that the government is planning to set up a Royal Commission to look at pensions. Based on past experience of Royal Commissions this sounds like a recipe for procrastination, merely...

Bitter pill for workers to swallow; Raising the retirement age may be unpopular but it does look inevitable as people are living longer and longer.
November 20, 2002... Peter Quinton THE issue of raising the state retirement age came to the fore again recently when the Pensions Policy Institute advised the government that it should be seriously thinking about increasing the pension age for both men and...

Take care not to be misleading; As these cases show, scheme trustees must be careful not to mislead members when exercising a discretionary power.(Industry Overview)
November 20, 2002... Monica Ma THE first case I would like to look at highlights how easy it is for information given to members about an occupational pension scheme to be misleading. It is also a useful illustration of the care that trustees must take...

Implications of Euro-inclined rulings; European Court of Justice and Pensions Ombudsman rulings could have an important impact on pensions provision.
November 20, 2002... Mark Ridler THE European Court of Justice has now ruled in the Danner case concerning cross-border pensions contributions and the availability of tax relief. Dr Danner had pension plans in Germany and Finland. Under Finnish tax law he...

ROUND UP.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Welcome to the monthly FA Pension Extra statistics pages. The charts below have been compiled using The Research Department's Data Numerical Analysis (DNA) scoring system. Each month the top five products in key areas, based on a selection of...

BoE says housing is about to cool off. Bank cites imbalance between internal and external demand.(Industry Overview)
November 20, 2002... By Susan Butterworth HOUSE price inflation is expected to slow soon, according to the Bank of England. Presenting the banks latest inflation report, deputy governor Mervyn King said that beneath the surface of overall stability lay a...

Accord is the arm to watch.(Yorkshire Building Society's division has a new name)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... YORKSHIRE Building Society has picked the name Accord for its new intermediary business. The separate arm, being launched at the end of March, reflects the differences in demands between IFAs and member clients, according to Yorkshire. ...

Packager debate rages on.(BM Solutions)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... THE packager debate is heating up in the wake of allegations made by the Finance Centre against BM Solutions. The packager claimed BM Solutions had failed to vet packagers receiving its sign of approval in its campaign to raise standards....

Extra News.(meshed briefs)
November 20, 2002... L&G revamps IFA Centre extranet Legal & General has revamped its IFA Centre extranet, which includes a new link for L&Gs mortgage club. The link has been designed to access the range of mortgage deals negotiated by the company with...

MCCB issues warning on regulation loopholes; Mortgage board concerned over potential effect of lighter touch regulation.
November 20, 2002... By Clare Bettelley The Mortgage Code Compliance Board has proposed to turn the FSAs approach to risk on its head. Responding to CP146, the MCCB has also warned that the new regulatory regime could lead to advisers taking advantage of...

Leading IFA joins CII in mis-selling caution.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... A leading IFA has joined the Chartered Insurance Institute in warning that CP146 could lead to mis-selling. Mark Loydall, director of Cambourne Financial Planning, said: "It is definitely a backward step. We are going back to the days...

IFAs divided on impact of affluence.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... IFAs are divided on the implications of less affluence in the City for the mortgage market. Independent mortgage specialist Mark Chilton has warned that less affluence in the City will severely dent the mortgage market, but Nigel Spiers,...

Mortgageforce hopes to exploit market with Jim White.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Mortgageforce and Jim Whites Mortgage Solutions hope to exploit a growing market with a new deal. Bournemouth-based Jim Whites Mortgage Solutions, which already supplies mortgages to the non-conforming market both online and over the...

Chelsea makes three corporate appointments.
November 20, 2002... Chelsea Building Society has made three appointments. Tim Taylor has been appointed as telesales controller. Mr Taylor was previously involved in corporate account management for the Society following a period of responsibility for mortgage...

Owners must not be mugged; The booming equity release market needs careful regulation if past mistakes are to be redeemed in the public eye, and barriers put up against them repeating.
November 20, 2002... THIS year is drawing to a close from the point of view of new mortgage applications, although there is still a lot of work left to do. Applications have still to be processed in time to achieve year-end completions, many of these dates...

Prepare for the gale of change; The mortgage market is changing as never before there are challenging times ahead for the whole industry.
November 20, 2002... Graeme Hartop The winds of change are blowing through the housing market winds that could soon become gale force. The market has never experienced a level of change such as that due in the coming years. As if the introduction of...

A bright star in a beleaguered market.(mortgages in the financial services market)
November 20, 2002... The mortgage market, of recent years a bright star in an otherwise beleaguered financial services industry, is facing some grey clouds of its own. Key industry bodies and some IFAs have expressed reservations regarding aspects of CP146,...

Contrasts in the regions; Four London boroughs have recorded the average price of a detached house at more than GBP1m.
November 20, 2002... Barry Naisbitt The latest news on the housing market is that prices continue to head upwards rapidly. According to the Land Registry, the average price of a semi-detached house in Greater London is now GBP275,000, up 16 per cent on a...

Speaking up on mortgage regulation; It is important that brokers and packagers stand up and put their views forward on Consultation Paper 146.
November 20, 2002... Stuart Aitken By the time this article is published, the consultation period for CP146 will have closed and all replies and responses will be in the hands of the FSA. I have always been well aware that brokers and packagers need to...

The banks balancing act; Mortgage banks tend to hedge their liabilities on fixed-rate loans through rate swaps on the money markets.
November 20, 2002... Laurence Sanders An interest rate swap is an exchange of commitments. Unlike a fixed-rate loan, there is no exchange of principal. A typical mortgage swap is an exchange of fixed and floating interest rate commitments. Mortgage lenders...

Best-Buys.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... This month there are three pages of mortgage facts and figures to help you select the best mortgage for your clients. On this page the graphs show the average of all discount, fixed rate, and first and second time buyer fixed and discount rates...

Adviser gloom over Isa season business; Ten leading IFAs foresee lean times ahead for sector in 2003 Isa season.(individual retirement savings account sales)
November 20, 2002... By Simon Falush IFAs are bracing themselves for another lean Isa season this year, a Fund Adviser survey has discovered. Leading IFAs were pessimistic about the prospects for next years sales. Some advisers even questioned whether...

Growing interest shown in ratings.(FT Fund )(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Research carried out for Fund Adviser shows growing interest in FT Fund Ratings. The ratings provide a unique insight into the risks, charges and performance of key funds recommended by IFAs. The latest research, carried out in October...

Norwich Union abandons Cat-marked active funds.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Norwich Union is withdrawing the eight actively-managed funds from its Cat-marked range of Isa products. It said the 1 per cent charging cap made them uneconomic. The three tracker funds will remain Cat-marked, but pay less commission to...

HGI launches its new five-year plan.(Henderson Global Investors mutual fund)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Henderson Global Investors has launched its FTSE 100 Income or Growth Plan. It offers investors the choice between a fixed income of 6.5 per cent a year, a fixed monthly income of 0.52 per cent for five years, or a return of 35 per cent at...

Bryan resigns from Schroders; Fund ranked 26 out of 36 after it falls almost 29 per cent.(Kristine Bryan)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... By Simon Falush Kristine Bryan, manager of the Schroders Medical Discovery fund, has resigned. The fund is to be run by the three analysts on the fund with the lead role taken by the US analyst Allison Larkin. The fund was down 28.9...

Isis hires Bernard from Dresdner.(ISIS Asset Management, Michel Bernard,)(Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... ISIS Asset Managements new director of institutional funds is Michel Bernard. Mr Bernard will head the companys drive to sell its governance and socially responsible investment services to clients across Europe. French-born Mr Bernard...

Rich demand more.(UK Wealth Manegement survey)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... The rich are demanding better services from their investment advisers, according to Datamonitor. The UK Wealth Management 2002 Survey said the number of ultra-high net worth, or very wealthy, clients had grown. There were 1500...

MLIM targets Euro growth stocks.(Merrill Lynch Investment Management)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Merrill Lynch Investment Management has unveiled a new fund focusing on European growth stocks. The European Growth Fund will be run by Olivier Rudigoz and will invest in large and mid cap companies across Europe. Mr Rudigoz will pick...

Movers.(Jarvis Investment Management names John Mackay director)
November 20, 2002... Jarvis takes on MacKay as executive director Jarvis Investment Management has named John Mackay as a non-executive director. Mr Mackay worked as an underwriter for Lloyds before moving into the investment banking industry. He worked first...

Investec pillories fixation on Isa fixed income funds; Provider argues that fixed income products are jumping on a bandwagon that is about to roll over the edge.(Investec)
November 20, 2002... By Simon Falush Investec has criticised the approach of fund management groups focusing on fixed income products going into the Isa season. A survey by Fund Adviser has found that most of the major fund groups will be marketing UK...

Fidelity drops initial charge on five-in-one Isa.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Fidelity Investments has launched a five-in-one investment trust Isa wrapper. Investors can buy into the package with no initial charge until the end of November. Trusts in the wrapper are Fidelity Asian Values, Fidelity Japanese...

Baillie plans for the child.(Childrens Savings Plan)(Baillie Gifford)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... The world-famous Hamleys toyshop in Londons Regent Street will this week host a launch party for the new Childrens Savings Plan from Baillie Gifford. The savings plan is intended to be a simple, low-cost product linked to any of the six...

Saunders slates Sandler over stakeholder.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... IMA chief executive Richard Saunders has criticised Ron Sandlers proposals for a suite of stakeholder investment products as ineffective. He said the plans would not increase sales as they focus exclusively on how products are supplied and...

Legg Mason drops FoF to focus on mutuals.(fund of funds)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Legg Mason is to move out of the managed portfolio and fund of funds business so that it can focus on its mutual funds. The company is to transfer its fund of fund service, run by Sam Liddle, to multi-manager specialist Miton Investments....

Peoples wealth increases in 5 years.(liquid assets)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Nearly a third more people have GBP25,000 in liquid assets than they had five years ago, according to a joint report. Falls in equity markets have been offset by rising house prices according to the finding from the Abbey National division...

Cazenove fund shake-up; Emerging markets desk to shut down and Far East and Japan to follow soon.
November 20, 2002... By Simon Falush Cazenove is to close its regional desks in a shake-up of its fund management capabilities. It has closed its internal emerging markets desk and is seeking to close its Far East and Japan desks according to a former...

Standard to start nationwide roadshows.(Standard Life Investments)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Standard Life Investments is to embark on a nationwide roadshow with presentations looking at the investment environment and how to build a portfolio. The roadshow will call at more than 30 locations with the first being on 20 January in...

SocGen announces new funds and a reshuffle.
November 20, 2002... SG Asset Management is expected to unveiled a UK Special Situations fund by spring 2003. The fund will be an actively managed equity fund investing in growth style companies in the UK. It will focus on recovery and growth stocks. The...

Briefly.(Japan Invesco)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Invesco claims 55% retention for Japan Invesco has announced that 55 per cent of its Tokyo Trust shareholders have chosen to continue investing in Invescos Japanese funds. While the majority of investors chose to invest in either the...

Riding the tidal wave of gloom; While equity markets tumble or exhibit extreme volatility, corporate bond funds are doing rather well. But some are not convinced.(corporate bonds)
November 20, 2002... By Gail Moss As stock markets continued to stumble over the summer months, the corporate bond fund bandwagon continued apace. In September, net sales of these funds were GBP194.3m, compared with GBP149.6m for the UK All Company sector,...

Case study: Threadneedle.(finance)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Threadneedle UK Corporate Bond Fund, managed by the well-regarded Ted Bacon, is one of the sectors top sellers. In September, the funds total net sales were GBP11.3m, with IFAs selling GBP10.8m -- 16 per cent of the total IFA sales for this...

Artemis world traveller; Too few fund managers have a life outside work, but Adrian Paterson, spent over a year in South America and has just returned to run Artemis UK Growth fund.
November 20, 2002... Ten people rate the performance of...Adrian Paterson TONY LANNING, investment director at IFAs Advisory & Brokerage: The Primadona investment trust was one of my first-choice holdings. Hes an excellent fund manager, and added...

Globetrotter gets back in the saddle.(Adrian Paterson)
November 20, 2002... Most star fund managers moving employers spend a few months between jobs on gardening leave. But Adrian Paterson, who ran four funds for Jupiter up till February 2001, took the globetrotting option. He left Jupiter to go travelling and has...

Christmas all year.(Investment companies)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... THE Isa season, generally accepted as falling between January and the end of March, is usually Christmas for fund managers. In years gone by it was the peak selling season when fund managers made merry selling the latest hot funds....

Grabbing a slice of the action; Funds of funds allow managers to take a more risky and therefore potentially more lucrative approach.
November 20, 2002... John Chatfeild-Roberts As a fund of funds investor for more than ten years now, Im pleased to see that what was once a backwater of the investment world is now becoming mainstream, although investors should look very carefully at some of...

The fund manager reshuffle; Both Aberdeen and SocGen have moved senior people. Is this a clever move, or are they just making cosmetic changes?(Aberdeen)
November 20, 2002... Simon Falush The big names have been shifted around at Aberdeen and SocGen in a bid to try and turn around performance and restore faith in poorly performing funds. Both companies have decreased the management responsibilities of...

My favourite funds.
November 20, 2002... European markets have been severely battered over the past couple of years and although some fundamentals are in place, which could spur a degree of recovery, most of the news currently coming out of the region is still negative. The...

Giving the best estimate of risk for your clients funds; Risk profiling is the foundation to FT Fund Ratings system of analysis.
November 20, 2002... Jack Evans A brand new service for IFAs, FT Fund Ratings is a unique tool giving a guide to the risk, charges and performance of the funds advisers recommend to clients. It allows an intermediary to give a better indication of the...

Factoring in the data that really counts.(Performance of investment funds)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Imagine if no one used performance to choose funds. How much incentive would be left for fund managers to achieve good performance? However, there is precious little evidence to suggest that investors can make use of performance information...

FSA denies row with Treasury over equity.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... THE FSA has denied claims that it clashed with the Treasury over equity release regulation. Although admitting dangers of a mis-selling scandal in the equity release market, the FSA denied that it was in conflict with the Treasury over its...

Court rules against former Asprey IFA; IFA firm wins case over diversion of business and breach of contract.(Asprey Harris)
November 20, 2002... By James Mawson IFA Asprey Harris has won its High Court case against a former self-employed IFA for diverting business. Asprey Harris, based in Chesham, Buckinghamshire, said it hoped the case would bring in a standard preventing IFAs...

Misys provides member with PI cover.(professional indemnity)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... MISYS has fixed professional indemnity cover for a member after an existing provider refused to renew his policy. John Pickles, of John Pickles & Partners in London, was worried he would be unable to trade when his existing PI insurer,...

Axa offer period to end on 17 January.(Axas Capital Protected Distribution Bond)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... The offer period for Axas Capital Protected Distribution Bond ends on 17 January. The bond aims to protect the initial capital investment while locking in 80 per cent of investment gains quarterly. Mike Mumford, investment marketing manager of...

CII improves exam support package.(Chartered Insurance Institute)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... The Chartered Insurance Institute has improved its support package for those taking its 2003 examinations. The CII literature will outline details of study and revision materials, entry and order forms and information about the appropriate...

ABI launches code for long-term care.(Association of British Insurers)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... The Association of British Insurers has launched a code of practice for the sale of long-term care insurance. The code requires companies to treat the sale and marketing of long-term care insurance as if it were an investment product. Richard...

Coomber takes on chief executive role.(Swiss Re)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Swiss Re has announced the appointment of John Coomber as chief executive from 1 January. Mr Coomber takes up the post 30 years to the day since joining Swiss Re, where since 1995 he has been head of the life and health business. He...

Moving On.(Datamonitor)
November 20, 2002... Datamonitor has appointed Martin Reynolds as head of financial services consulting. Mr Reynolds new role includes developing the financial services consulting operations and building upon the brand developed in Datamonitors premium business...

Hambros appoints three senior bankers.( SG Hambros )(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... SG Hambros has appointed three senior bankers. Chris Perkins joins SG Hambros from Merrill Lynch, where he was vice-president of the international private client group based in Leeds. He has considerable trust experience and has been the...

Moving On.(Pinnacles investment)
November 20, 2002... Pinnacles investment division has appointed Kathy Byrne as managing director and James Price as product development manager. Ms Byrne, who qualified as an actuary in 1992, started out as product development actuary for Citibank Life, where...

IFAs criticise online products and services.(Online services inadequate for mortgage brokers)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... IFAS are blaming their failure to join the online revolution on the low quality of products they are offered. In a survey conducted by mortgages & loans etc, a Watford-based packager, more than 70 per cent of the 350 mortgage brokers and...

Winterthur to sell flexi-bond via IFAs; Provider to offer bond through IFAS, targeted at high net-worth clients.
November 20, 2002... By Simoney Girard WINTERTHUR Life has launched its Uniquely Flexible investment bond through IFAs. Winterthur has joined a firm of life offices entering the investment bond market, although it claims to be doing it "a different way"....

Half of final salary pension schemes closed to new staff; ACA survey finds employers increasingly reluctant to fund pensions due to falling markets.(Association of Consulting Actuaries)
November 20, 2002... By Simon Falush MORE than half of final salary schemes are closed to new staff. This is according to a survey from the Association of Consulting Actuaries. The trade body is using the findings to support the argument of the need...

Gloomy future for specialists predicted.(Mortgage brokers)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... SMALLER mortgage boutiques will struggle getting through the next six months, warns a leading broker. Despite Halifax reports of record increases in property prices this month the air has completely gone out of the top end of the market,...

Closed-ended fund to invest in care homes; NEW PRODUCT: healthcare fund.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... A closed-ended healthcare fund is being made available to private investors. The Cheney Healthcare fund seeks to raise GBP25m for second tier or mezzanine investment in care home and other healthcare companies. It promises a minimum...

Revenue pledges to refund rebate losses.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... THE Inland Revenue has pledged to pay back thousands of policyholders who have lost out because of rebate clawbacks. As previously reported in Financial Adviser, the Inland Revenue erroneously paid rebates twice to thousands of...

Be prepared now for mortgage regulation.(advice for UK mortgage brokers)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... MORTGAGE brokers must start preparing for statutory regulation or face being left in the cold, Legal & General has warned. According to Stephen Smith, director of housing marketing for Legal & General, brokers must take an active approach...

Isosceles to launch US growth vehicle; Other plans include a hedge fund and pitching for segregated briefs.
November 20, 2002... BY Ashutosh Kumar ISOSCELES Asset Management will launch a US growth fund next February. The company, set up in October by Gary Lowe, a former Fidelity fund manager, also plans to launch a hedge fund in May. In addition, the boutique...

NU gives guarantees; NEW PRODUCT: bond.(Norwich Union PLC debuts new single-premium investment bond)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... NORWICH Union has launched a sequel to its Prosper Income Bond. The second edition of the single-premium investment bond, is aimed at investors wishing a secure guaranteed income. If the Dow Jones EuroStoxx50 does not fall by more than 30...

Four tracker funds to close at Merrill Lynch; Provider to withdraw trackers as funds fail to attract enough interest.(Merrill Lynch Investment Managers)
November 20, 2002... By Simoney Girard MERRILL Lynch Investment Managers is to close four of its tracker funds on Monday next week. The funds are the European, Japanese, Pacific and US equity index-tracker funds Nigel Webb, head of communications for...

Advantage signs sub-prime deal.(Advantage Mortgage Services, First Advice)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... ADVANTAGE Mortgage Services has signed an exclusive deal to provide an intermediary with sub-prime deals. Advantage will work with First Advice to provide the intermediary with suitable products from the sub-prime packagers panel of...

Henderson suffers blow on Asian desk; Firm suffers setback as funds are downgraded by Standard & Poors.(Henderson Investment)
November 20, 2002... By Gabriela Pomeroy Hendersons Asian desk has suffered a blow as three Henderson Asian funds were downgraded by Standard & Poors. The Pacific fund was demoted from AA to A and the Pacific Growth fund and Pacific Equity both had their...

CML raises concerns over European credit directive.(Council of Mortgage Lenders leery of European consumer credit directive)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... The Council of Mortgage Lenders has voiced concern over the impact a European consumer credit directive will have on regulation. While supporting the FSAs plans to regulate mortgages, the CML said it was "unacceptable" for the industry to...

Buy-to-let market continues to boom.(Association of Residential Letting Agents survey)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... Buy-to-let figures have indicated continued strength in the buy-to-let market, claimed a panel of mortgage lenders. According to the latest survey from the Association of Residential Letting Agents panel of mortgage lenders, the average...

BSA chief calls for mortgage shake-up.(Building Societies Association's Graham Stow discusses industry standards)(Brief Article)
November 20, 2002... THE mortgage regulatory environment needs restructuring to build a set of clear standards, according to Graham Stow, chairman of the Building Societies Association. Speaking at the BSAs annual lunch Mr Stow, chairman of the BSA, attacked...

Bank of England says beware house prices; Bank says strength of housing market is not sustainable in the long run.
November 20, 2002... By Bjorn Sodeland THE Bank of England last week warned about the dangers of a "sharp correction to house prices". The warning, which came in the Banks quarterly inflation report, follows its decision to leave the base rate at 4 per...