Money Management articles from April 2008

Money Management archives from April 2008

Q&A with L&G.
April 1, 2008... Jo Dymock asks John Gleadell from L&G whether deferred SIPPs offer the best, or the worst, of both worlds. The SIPPs market boom has seen the rise of a number of new types of SIPP, including the deferred SIPP, which allows the investor to...

Finding the way.
April 1, 2008... SIPPs have become a firmly embedded aspect of the UK pensions arena, but arguments continue over how effective they are for many investors and how the product is evolving. Jo Dymock analyses what is on offer today. The SIPP debate has...

RDR still misses point.
April 1, 2008... Most of the debate surrounding the RDR discussion paper has been about the outline proposals that have emerged, rather than about the problem that the FSA is trying to solve, says insurance consultant Graeme Laws . The problem to which the...

Taking stock - back to basic principles.
April 1, 2008... Bankers have been shocked into remembering the fundamental rules of their trade, says former investment banker Russell Taylor, and that means that the context of investment has changed. Last month I suggested that those concerned with the...

Statistics - April 2008.
April 1, 2008... Click on any of the links below to view this month's statistics in a PDF file. Gareth Shaw UK Registered Investment FundsUK Registered Investment Funds Investment TrustsInvestment Trusts Insurance FundsInsurance Funds ...

SURVIVING THE REGULATORY MINEFIELD.
April 1, 2008... New FSA rules based on more principle based regulation may have slimmed down the rulebook, but they're a the regulatory minefield for advisers and fund houses, warns Ben Goh, secretary of the Compliance Register . In November 2007 the FSA...

Crib Sheet: SIPPs.
April 1, 2008... Self invested personal pensions (SIPPs) are designed to allow individuals to control their pension, using a wide range of investment vehicles and accessing less obvious investments such as commercial property.. Jo Dymock Regulation ...

Which way now?
April 1, 2008... SIPPs have undergone a dramatic transformation since their inception as unregulated products for high net worth individuals, but what developments still lie ahead? Jo Dymock spoke to Merchant Investors to find out. The SIPP industry is a...

Q&A with Standard Life.
April 1, 2008... Jo Dymock asks Alistair Hardie, Alan Ritchie and David Archibald at Standard Life what product developments we will see in the SIPP market over the next few years. Standard Life launched its SIPP in December 2004, and in the three years...

Windsor worries worsen.
April 1, 2008... Administrative debacle following Tomorrow buyout continues. Geordie Clarke EXCLUSIVE Embattled insurer Windsor Life is under fire again after it emerged that it failed to maintain payments to an income drawdown plan following its takeover...

With profits endowments: results.
April 1, 2008... Payouts from with profits endowments continue to slide, with the average for 20 and 25 year policies down once again. But as Geordie Clarke reports, tiddlers and closed funds are giving with profits a glimmer of hope. Small mutuals are...

A sure thing.
April 1, 2008... Egg and National Savings & Investments (NS&I) have both launched guaranteed equity bonds (GEBs), with slightly different growth characteristics.. Jo Dymock The NS&I bond guarantees to return growth that matches the FTSE 100, up to a...

FOS case fees - heads they win, tails you lose.
April 1, 2008... A County Court has declared the FOS to be unreasonable in charging IFAs a case fee when a complaint against them is not upheld. David Severn looks at the judgment and its consequences. "Let right be done." Those stirring words from Terence...

Falling short.
April 1, 2008... 10 year with profits policyholders seeing red. Geordie Clarke EXCLUSIVE More than a quarter of 10 year with profits endowments policies have been outperformed by instant access cash deposit accounts, new research from Money Management...

Quantity and quality.
April 1, 2008... IFA numbers hold the key to good advice. Kylie Harrison Concerns have been raised that the ageing IFA population could lead to a widening of the advice gap. According to the FSA, the average age of the adviser population is 46, with...

Investment watch.
April 1, 2008... A round up of investment news in March 2008. Jo Dymock - Regulation of funds of alternative investment funds (FAIFs) has moved a step closer, following announcements by the Treasury and the FSA. The Treasury has announced that it will...

News in brief.
April 1, 2008... - The number of buy to let mortgages increased in 2007 despite uncertain market conditions, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). Its data showed that buy to let mortgages rose from 171,800 in the second half of 2006 to the...

Q&A with Suffolk Life.
April 1, 2008... Jo Dymock asks John Moret from Suffolk Life whether the SIPPs market is splitting off into distinct sectors, and what that means for the consumer. Suffolk Life has been in the SIPPs market since the mid 1990s. It provides a bespoke SIPP,...

Back to the future.
April 1, 2008... Given increasing life expectancy, what features should advisers look for in a SIPP to ensure that it is suitable for their clients at all stages, from fund accumulation through to taking benefits? Neil Marsh, managing director, Hornbuckle...

Record increase.
April 1, 2008... The ifs School of Finance has pointed to record rises in the number of people taking its certificate for financial advisers (CeFA) as a sign that a career in financial advice is becoming more attractive.. Kylie Harrison The number of...

FPoY Awards 2008.
April 1, 2008... Case studies: One month to go. Gareth Shaw Money Management is pleased to reveal its new logo for the annual Financial Planner of the Year Awards. Pick up a copy of MM's May 2008 issue, which will have entry forms and case studies for...

Budget commentary.
April 1, 2008... Few surprises for 2008. Jo Dymock This year's Budget has been one of the least surprising in recent years, with all of the significant changes, such as the changes to income tax and capital gains tax (CGT), announced in the pre-Budget...

Missed the mark.
April 1, 2008... ISA increase not enough, observers say. Geordie Clarke The Government's move to increase the maxi ISA limit by GBP200 this year has met with criticism from fund managers and advisers who say that it is not on par with inflation and will not...

Sesame opens up.
April 1, 2008... IFA network publishes latest provider ratings. Gareth Shaw IFAs have ranked specialist provider Just Retirement as the best for overall service, while Axa was voted the worst for the second time running in a new poll by Sesame, the IFA...

Budget round up.
April 1, 2008... - Small self administered scheme (SSAS) funds can no longer be used to pass on pension funds tax free on death. Any increase in the pension rights of one member following the death of another member - if the two members are family or partners -...

The Continental approach.
April 1, 2008... AIFA calls for level playing field. Kylie Harrison Chris Cummings, director general of the Association of IFAs (AIFA), has raised concerns over regulatory disparities between Europe and the UK, warning that it could put British IFA firms at...

Head of the asset class.
April 1, 2008... CII diploma rejigged to include property. Geordie Clarke The Diploma in Financial Planning is to be revamped to include a section that focuses on property investment. The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), which awards the diploma,...

Pension advice warning.
April 1, 2008... Pension transfers should be left to the specialists. Kylie Harrison IFAs should tread carefully when asked for advice on occupational pension transfers, according to a transfer specialist. Graham Miller director at O&M Systems, has...

Almost perfect.
April 1, 2008... Drawdowns can be more effective than annuities, according to IMA. Jo Dymock The Investment Management Association says that it has proven that non-annuity investment products can provide an income throughout retirement, although it was...

Change the record.
April 1, 2008... FSA publishes new rules on taping conversations. Gareth Shaw The Financial Services Authority (FSA) insists that new measures to record telephone calls and electronic communication are being introduced as a deterrent to market abuse and not...

Living longer.
April 1, 2008... New figures show pension contribution increases. John Chapman EXCLUSIVE New data predicts an alarming rise in the amount of pension contribution that people under 45 will have to make as a result of rising mortality levels, Money...

Multi manager strategies.
April 1, 2008... Multi manager funds were once heralded as the poor man's answer to discretionary portfolio management. With ever more being launched do they still fit this bill or have most become bland replacements for the old with profits funds? Stephen...

Protection spotlight - Will Thoresen fill the gap?
April 1, 2008... The Thoresen review seeks to get people thinking about their financial needs and acting upon those needs. Could it be the catalyst for IFAs to generate more protection business, or be a threat? Stephanie Spicer reports. Remember the...

Pensions spotlight - The high costs of living longer.
April 1, 2008... Mortality improvements could raise pension costs by 30%, reports John Chapman. In his February 2008 consultation the Pension Regulator illustrated that allowing for higher improvements in mortality could raise the cost of an annuity for a...

Mortgage spotlight - Equity release perspectives.
April 1, 2008... With the mortgage market in upheaval and house prices slowing, how is equity release likely to fare? Laverne Hadaway asked a lender and an adviser. So far the equity release market appears to have been relatively unruffled by the sub...

Residence and domicile.
April 1, 2008... When Gordon Brown, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced a review of residence and domicile rules in his 2003 Budget, we didn't realise it would take so long. Nick Williams of Clerical Medical looks at the new rules, which should apply...

FSA appeal on LAUTRO 12.
April 1, 2008... he FSA appeal against the IC ruling to name the LAUTRO 12 finally came to Tribunal. Janet Walford OBE went along to hear what they had to say. This story has been rumbling on for 20 years. It started back in April 1988 when the then...

Growing pains.
April 1, 2008... Child trust funds were launched three years ago with great fanfare to help tackle child poverty, but have they been a success? Kylie Harrison investigates.. At first glance child trust funds (CTFs) seem like an excellent idea, offering new...

Looking after the afterlife.
April 1, 2008... Sorting out the complexities of an estate after a death can often be a complicated and lengthy process. Gareth Shaw explores the role of the executor and the intricacies of dealing with an estate. An essential part of proper financial...

The unlucky generation.
April 1, 2008... When the Thoresen Review announced its plan to implement a nationwide free 'money guidance' service, receiving immediate support from the Treasury, it seemed noone had a bad word to say. . Alice Ross (The term 'generic financial advice'...

Right time, right product?
April 1, 2008... Structured products have had a bad press, but is it warranted? . Kylie Harrison Upheaval in the market has left advisers and investors pessimistic about the future, but there is one sector that is seeing a surge in interest. Until...

Protected income.
April 1, 2008... Meteor Asset Management has launched a structured product that provides an income of 10% pa.. Geordie Clarke Meteor Asset Management and Blue Sky Asset Management are taking advantage of market instability with a pair of structured...

Good as green.
April 1, 2008... Solutions to environmental problems are at the top of the agenda for Impax Asset Management's latest fund offering.. Geordie Clarke Solutions to environmental problems are at the top of the agenda for Impax Asset Management's latest fund...

Everyone's a winner.
April 1, 2008... Unum's new group income protection (GIP) product is designed to provide a financial benefit to both employer and employee if an employee suffers from a long term illness.. Jo Dymock The product is aimed at companies with between three and...

A good distribution.
April 1, 2008... Distribution funds offer a relatively safe way of taking regular income from investments in times of market turbulence. Alice Ross examines fund performance and also looks at the option of investing through a distribution bond. With equity...

First in lifetime.
April 1, 2008... Godiva offers option of no early repayment charge. Kylie Harrison The first lifetime mortgage products with the option to sidestep early redemption charges (ERC) have been launched by Godiva Mortgages. The launch includes two product...

Reward for low risk.
April 1, 2008... Astra Mortgages launches new range. Kylie Harrison Norwich & Peterborough Building Society (N&P) has launched a new range of mortgages offering low risk customers better rates through its Astra Mortgages brand. The new rates are...

Q&A with David North.(Interview)
April 1, 2008... Alice Ross talks to David North, lead fund manager of the L&G Distribution Fund range, about his investment strategy and his views on the hot spots for investment this year. Q: Can you tell me a bit about the fund you manage? DN: It's...