Financial Advisor back issues from February 2009:
FSA set to fall behind in national IFA review.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Emma Ann Hughes Concerns are mounting that the FSA is already behind schedule in its bid to contact all small intermediary firms to prove no business falls below its radar, just one year into its three-year plan. Back in January last year the City watchdog ...
The smart approach.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Cox Businesses should make sure their marketing approach projects their integrity and loyalty to the customer The activity of marketing is something that happens naturally every day in every walk of life yet, as soon as it is applied in a business ...
Chancellor calls for culture change.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Non-executive directors of banking institutions are more concerned about collecting their fees than about asking searching questions of employed directors, according to Alistair Darling. During a House of Lords economic affairs committee, the ...
Protecting those who matter.(mortgage payment protection)(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Hal Austin Comment Now that the entire country is caught up in the debate about the financial crisis and the collapsing mortgage market, this may be a good time to raise the pressing issue of protection. Like most things, there is good protection ...
Think before you speak.(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Hal Austin Comment As the economic crisis deepens, it seems the government is going round and round in circles in a desperate search for an answer. First, chancellor Alistair Darling, one of the few senior politicians that engage his brain before ...
FSSC gives ifs diploma the nod.(Financial Services Skills Council approves ifs School of Finance's diploma in finance)(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: David Pawsey Approval has been given for the ifs School of Finance's diploma qualification by the Financial Services Skills Council, it was announced last week. Two weeks after the ifs stated it was still confident of obtaining degree awarding powers, the ...
Tories want tougher stance against financial crime.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey George Osborne suggests adopting the US' aggressive stance on regulation Tougher action is required against those whose unnecessarily risky actions led to the near failure of the financial services industry, according to the Conservative party. ...
OFT demands sale and rentback explanations.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Joy Dunbar The Office of Fair Trading has demanded 16 sale and rentback providers substantiate claims made in advertisements. Sale and rentback firms, which buy homes from individuals at a discount and then rent them back to the previous owners, have come ...
Henderson puts GBP115m on the table for New Star deal.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Joy Dunbar Henderson Group has offered GBP115m to by troubled rival New Star and has admitted funds could be merged and a rebrand could be on the cards. The deal, which is subject to FSA approval would make the combined group the fifth largest fund manager, ...
PPI and IP terms in need of clear-up - IPTF.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch The Income Protection Task Force has called on the Association of British Insurers to get clarification on the use of the term income protection for short-term products. Peter Le Beau, co-chair of the IPTF, said the task force wanted the trade ...
Suffolk Life welcomes final salary pension closure.(self invested personal pension industry)(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Joy Dunbar The closure of final salary pension schemes will be good news for the self-invested personal pension industry, according to John Moret, sales and marketing director of Suffolk Life. Mr Moret said reports that final salary schemes would close as a ...
Brokers to ease B&B client transition.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Mortgages for Business, the specialist buy-to-let broker, is confident it will be able to help landlords switch from their Bradford & Bingley mortgage, despite a dearth in the market. Last week, Bradford & Bingley Group announced following the ...
Self-cert failings land broker a GBP17,5k fine.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch The FSA has fined Nottingham-based mortgage adviser Gillen Farrelly Independent Advisers Limited GBP17,500 for advice failings on self-cert mortgages. The regulator said the company failed to ensure it provided suitable advice, exposing more ...
Resolution losses fail to deter strategy.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Resolution Limited has announced a loss of GBP700,000 in its first quarter of trading but the business has maintained its acquisition strategy for 2009. In its preliminary results for the period 9 October to 31 December 2008, the consolidation ...
CII to provide practical financial planning exam.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch The Chartered Insurance Institute has launched a financial planning practice paper for advisers to make best use of their knowledge with their clients. Steve Jenkins, director of financial services for the Chartered Insurance Institute, said ...
Matrix VCT eases buy-outs.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Matrix Private Equity Partners has launched a further share offer on its fund that invests in management buy-outs of privately-owned companies. The fund management company, which said it had been investing in management buy-outs for more than 10 ...
Axa Winterthur's India back office heads to the UK.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Axa Winterthur bosses said "repeated setbacks" have led to a decision to move India-based back office processing back to the UK. Axa Winterthur Wealth Management announced last week it had decided to repatriate new business processing for Axa ...
Eq Life judge still not in touch with bosses.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Equitable Life bosses have revealed they have yet to be contacted by Sir John Chadwick, who has been appointed to advise on compensation for the society's policyholders. Speaking at a public administration select committee last week Charles ...
Butterfill mergers must deliver results - Cirencester.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Joy Dunbar Mergers between mutuals must deliver tangible benefits to customers, says Cirencester Friendly. Paul Hudson, chief executive of Cirencester Friendly, said he had no plans to buy a mutual as a result of the Butterfill Bill. Mr Hudson said ...
Paragon bucks trend with GBP7m profit last quarter.(Financial report)
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Mortgage lender Paragon has bucked the trend in the final quarter of 2008 by turning a profit of GBP7m, but said the fall in the base rate was likely to affect its performance over the next 12 months. In its interim management statement for 1 ...
Mortgage next strikes Trigold 2-year deal.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Mortgage Next has signed a two-year exclusive deal with Trigold to provide its sourcing system for members. The mortgage network previously offered its members a choice of two systems but felt Trigold offered the superior technology. ...
Unbiased relaunch to reflect RDR.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch IFA website Unbiased.co.uk is backing advisers' move towards professionalism by relaunching as the Professional Adviser website. As well as offering services for users under one portal, the website will also launch sections that will help them ...
CTF contributions stand at GBP12.6m a month - Tisa.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Contributions into child trust funds have continued to increase and now amount to GBP12.6m a month, according to the Tax Incentivised Savings Association. Tisa's most recent survey revealed that fourth quarter monthly direct debit CTF ...
RLAM anticipates market turning point.(Royal London Asset Management)(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: David Pawsey Royal London European Growth Trust has announced a change in strategy as it identifies opportunities in undervalued areas. Kevin Lilley, european equity fund manager for Royal London Asset Management, said indications of a market turning point had ...
Is there a pattern emerging?
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Terry Still Letter of the week Standard Life appears to have angered a number of policyholders yet again, this time with its announcement of their reduction by 5 per cent in the value of their Pension Sterling fund. A fund some GBP2.4bn in size. ...
Privalto Oeic fund gives higher returns instead of cash.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Joy Dunbar The Privalto Stabiliser Protected Oeic fund is one of the first Oeic funds with capital protection available through Cofunds, according to BNP Paribas. Sisou Tran, head of Privalto UK for BNP Paribas, said the Privalto Stabiliser fund was designed ...
L&G reports 3% increase in UK sales.(Financial report)
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Joy Dunbar UK new business sales at Legal & General increased by 3 per cent year-on-year, in the 12 months to December 2008, the life company announced last week. Sales in the UK rose from GBP1.321bn in 2007 to GBP1.367bn last year, but sales of individual ...
Commission terminates PPI sales effective 2010.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch The sale of single premium payment protection insurance has been banned by the Competition Commission with industry experts arguing this is the death knell for this product. The commission published its final 323-page report into the PPI ...
Traversing a minefield.
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Peter McGahan It is interesting to see the virtual death of long-term care plans and I suppose its no real surprise given what they actually cover, or do not. However, I am surprised that private medical cover is not higher on the agenda of staff and ...
Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Darius McDermott Darius McDermott, managing director of Chelsea Financial Services has hit the ground running after his Christmas break, facing a new year that will probably be even tougher than the one he just came out of. But the best way to deal with this for him and ...
Equitable: A right royal mess.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Icki Iqbal The Equitable Life debacle has exposed serious deficiencies in management, supervision and government handling The government has recently responded to a report by the parliamentary ombudsman Ann Abraham on Equitable Life. In order to ...
A game of tug-of-war.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Tim DraysonGeorgina Taylor With the financial landscape constantly changing, battle lines are being redrawn on an almost weekly basis. At the start of a new year, we all hope for better times ahead. 2008 brought misery to equity investors, so has anything ...
Technophobe or workophobe?
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Peter Done The introduction of new technology systems to streamline a firm's workflow might not go down well with all the staff I updated my filing system and decided it was more cost-effective to computerise it. When switching over, I arranged for ...
PSigma warns of European misery.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey PSigma has warned of "further misery" as it reduces its exposure to European equities. Tom Becket, manager of the PSigma Balanced Managed fund of funds, said this reduced exposure was part of its overall strategy of minimising risk in central ...
Don't be a sitting duck.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Louise Randall The introduction of transparency within the private sector in terms of pay may see groups of disgruntled employees bringing pay disparity claims before the employment tribunal The financial services industry - possibly the most regulated UK ...
Look before you leap.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: John Willmott As fraud investigators pour over the books of one of India's top IT outsourcing firms, it pays to know what to look out for when looking to outsource your business offshore The investigation at Satyam Computer Services - the Indian outsourcing ...
Deal or no deal.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Philip Ryley Despite the worrying economic shift downward, there are signs that opportunities are arising for intermediary firms that want to sell their business, buy another one or simply merge with another business. It is difficult to identify whether or not ...
Money Partners suspends new lending.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Money Partners has suspended all new business lending due to the low current demand for its mortgage products. In a statement to advisers the company, which is owned by Goldman Sachs, said it would continue to "monitor and evaluate market ...
McKillop stands down as chairman of RBS.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Sir Tom McKillop, chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group, has announced his immediate retirement from the group. Sir Philip Hampton, currently deputy chairman and chairman-designate, will assume chairmanship of the group from today (3 ...
FSSC backs accreditation of DipFA.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey The Financial Services Skills Council (FSSC) today (30 January) confirmed its support for the accreditation submission for the ifs School of Finance's level 4 Diploma for Financial Advisers (DipFA). The initial stage of the FSA's Retail ...
CII adds practical application assessment to diploma.(Chartered Insurance Institute)(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) has launched a Financial Planning Practice paper aimed at helping advisers to demonstrate their financial planning capabilities. The paper, J08, can be taken as part of the overall Level 4 qualification ...
CML appoints Matthew Wyles as new chairman.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Emma Ann Hughes Matthew Wyles, group distribution director of Nationwide Building Society, has been appointed chairman of the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) for 2009. Martijn van der Heijden, head of mortgages at HSBC, and John Heron, managing director of ...
Adviser fined GBP17,500 for self-cert failings.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined Nottingham-based mortgage adviser Gillen Farrelly Independent Advisers Limited GBP17,500 for advice failings on self-cert mortgages. The regulator said the company failed to ensure it provided ...
Two funds added to Winterthur Elite FoF range.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Joy Dunbar Two new funds have been added to the Winterthur Elite fund of funds range, the wealth manager said in response to increased demand for cautious investment products. The new funds aim to deliver progressive asset growth with lower volatility, while ...
Axa brings processing of new pensions business back onshore.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Emma Ann Hughes Axa Winterthur Wealth Management has moved its new business processing for Axa pensions from Axa Business Services in India to the UK. Paul Riddell, head of PR for Axa Life, said the move further strengthened the service offering within the ...
CC bans point-of-sale PPI and for seven days afterwards.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Businesses which offer payment protection insurance (PPI) alongside credit face little or no competition when selling PPI to their credit customers, the Competition Commission found. The ruling comes as the commission published its final report ...
Skandia keeps Watch on platform prices.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Online tool will allow advisers to assess the true cost of various fund platforms Skandia has launched a platform price comparison tool it claimed will clear up the confusion about pricing its rivals have created. Peter Jordan, head of ...
FSA bans and fines two executives over mis-selling.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Two former executives of a stockbroking firm have been fined a total of GBP175,000 by the FSA for mis-selling shares. The two executives of North London-based Pacific Continental Securities UK Limited have also been banned following serious ...
Suitor approaches Network Data over buyout.
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Catherine Couch Network Data has confirmed it has been approached by a company interested in buying the business. However, in a statement issued to the London Stock Exchange, the mortgage network's board of directors said it was not yet known whether an offer ...
Intermediaries diversify to survive downturn.(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Joy Dunbar Mortgage intermediaries are turning away from their standard business model and looking to diversify into new fields, according to independent analyst Datamonitor. Intermediaries are moving into advising on or selling other products, particularly ...
Royal Liver's Progress adds to income protection plan.(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Joy Dunbar Online protection provider Progress has added a number of product enhancements to its income protection plan. Some enhancements by Royal Liver - the mutual insurer parent company of Progress - include removing all standard exclusions, increasing ...
China moving up in the world of opportunities.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Pressure on the Chinese government to invest in infrastructure makes this nation one of the greatest opportunities for growth this century, according to Premier Asset Management. Russell Cleveland, director of Texan-based boutique Renaissance ...
Inflation threatens retirement pots.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch People saving for their retirement need to take into account the effect of inflation on their income, according to Metlife Europe Limited. Analysis from Metlife showed four out of seven tax breaks had failed to keep up with rising prices. ...
Auditors' independence 'a soft target', says Prof Power.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Questioning bank auditors' independence in the midst of the financial crisis is a "red herring", the Treasury select committee has been told. Last week auditing firms came under the spotlight as MPs continued their investigation into the causes ...
Small funds will disappear: F&C.
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Joy Dunbar Many funds that have less than GBP30m assets under management will struggle to survive in this climate, according to Dean Cheeseman, head of retail multi-management for F&C. According to Mr Cheeseman there are more than 2200 IMA funds and 38 per ...
Terrorism a clear and present danger for firms.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Girlie Garduce Firms should gear up for potential terrorist threats by seeking insurance guidance, says the IISS. With potential terrorist threats acting as a key concern globally, UK businesses can prepare by looking to the insurance industry, according to a ...
Exweb tool offers 'payment flexibility' for advisers.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch 1st - The Exchange has launched a product research tool offering advisers various payment options. Exweb Product Research is available to all users of the portal service and aims to provide advisers with an easily accessible cost-effective ...
Standard Life upbeat despite sales decline.(Financial report)
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: David Pawsey Despite falling sales Standard Life has reported a "solid" set of business results for the year ending 31 December 2008. UK and life pensions sales for the Edinburgh-based provider fell by 9 per cent, from GBP16.5bn in 2007 to GBP15.6bn in 2008. ...
Business Link helps cost-cutting.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Girlie Garduce Business Link launch efficiency guide for firms. An easy-to-follow guide to help businesses cut costs at work is now offered by Business Link. The free business and information service aims to improve firms and their cashflow during ...
Individual stocks, not the stock market, should occupy fund managers, says SVM.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Catherine Couch Fund managers should be concentrating on individual stocks and not the stock market, according to Colin McLean, managing director of SVM Asset Management. Mr McLean said many managers had been caught out in the last 12 to 18 months by trying ...
Rate cuts leave tracker buyers exposed.(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: Catherine Couch Customers looking at taking on a tracker mortgage should tread carefully, according to Moneysupermarket.com. Louise Cuming, head of mortgages for the price comparison website, said while customers who took out a tracker mortgage last October ...
Rescue specialist to protect property portfolios.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Girlie Garduce Property recovery company aims to inject life into struggling firms. A lifeline for businesses has been offered in the launch of a property recovery specialist. Property Portfolio Rescue Ltd aims to aid small businesses, buy-to-let ...
Legal & General gets kick-out triple figure growth plan.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Girlie Garduce A growth kick-out investment plan aims to return 100 per cent growth based on the FTSE 100 Index, says L&G. Triple-figure returns and a kick-out combination mark the benefits of a growth investment plan launched by Legal & General. ...
Leeds launches guaranteed capital account.
Feb 05, 2009 ... Byline: Girlie Garduce Product review Leeds Building Society Type: Guaranteed Capital Account Description: Leeds Building Society has launched its guaranteed capital account. Conditions: The account has a minimum investment of ...
Frontier gets onshore counterpart to multi-asset platform.(Frontier Capital Management Co.)(Brief article)
Feb 05, 2009; ... Byline: David Pawsey Frontier Capital Management has announced the launch of an onshore version of its multi-asset investment strategy. Frontier said the launch has come in response to strong demand from UK-based intermediaries and wealth managers. The ...