Monthly Archives: February 2015
As clear as a frosted window – the IA on charges (again)
The Investment Association (IA) have published another paper as their contribution to the ongoing debate on what the public and their fiduciaries should know about their funds. The paper fails on a number of levels 1. It ignores the fact that … Continue reading
Posted in accountants, advice gap, Fiduciary Management, Financial Conduct Authority, investment, ISA, pension playpen, pensions
Tagged The Investment Management Association, charges, costs, DGF, IMA, Investment Management Association, Transaction costs, transactional costs, Transactions, Value for Money
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Independence just got that little bit more valuable.
Standard Life have announced that they are setting up a salesforce offering restricted advice . Apparently it demonstrates the insurer’s commitment to the advisory sector. I suspect it is a recognition that the experiment providing mass market independent advice is all but … Continue reading
Posted in pensions
Tagged advice, Business, dc pensions, Financial services, Government, Guidance, Guidance Framework, IFA, Independent, Positive Solutions, SBG, Standard Life
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5 reasons why payroll must get smarter at pensions.
Recently I was talking with someone who used to be pension manager to one of our large retailers. She wrote to me over the weekend. She’d realised that the people doing payroll for the 1.2m employers still to stage auto-enrolment aren’t … Continue reading
Posted in pensions
Tagged Agents, Bond, Bureaux, Choose a Pension, IRIS, Payroll, payroll software, pension, pensions, Sage, salary sacrifice
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Distributing workplace pensions to a mass market.
NEST insight 2015 suggests a shift in the way employers take decisions about the pension they will offer to their staff. 88% of employers staging with NEST in 2014 relied on payroll software to do so. The majority of employers … Continue reading
Posted in pensions
Tagged independent guidance, payroll bureau, payroll software, pensions
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Hyenas on the savannah
My friend is angry. For his whole life he’s worked for the Treasury, retiring this year. He managed the national insurance fund, helped set up the pension protection fund. Much about what is good about the state pension is down … Continue reading
Good news from the Regulators
It has been an important week for the regulation of workplace pensions. Not only have the DWP published the rules that govern workplace pensions qualifying to be used for auto-enrolment, but the FCA published – … Continue reading
Posted in pensions
Tagged Business, corporate governance, corporate risk, dc pensions, Employment, FCA, fiduciaries, Financial Conduct Authority, Financial services, Financial Services Authority, fund managers, Government, Independent Governance Committees, Insurance, Investing, Investment, Investment management, National Employment Savings Trust, pensions, Pensions Regulator, Retirement, Steve Webb
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“Beware the mastertrust my son!” 6 reasons to be careful
Ok. It may not have jaws that bite or claws that clutch or be quite as frightful as the Jubjub bird, but the mastertrust may be no friendlier than Lewis Carroll’s Jabberwock. This is not a trendy thing to … Continue reading
Posted in Guidance, Payroll, pension playpen, pensions, Pensions Regulator
Tagged DC pension, DWP, jabberwock, Jabberwocky, master trust, master trusts, Mastertrust, NEST, Professional Pesnions, TPR, Value for Money, workplace pensin
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Are workplace pensions “risk-free” to employers?
If you think workplace savings plans are “risk free” to employers – think again; “value for money” changes that Continue reading
Posted in advice gap, Bankers, consultant, dc pensions, Fiduciary Management, First Actuarial, pension playpen, pensions, Retail Distribution Review, Retirement
Tagged Business, Business and Economy, Canada, CDC, Colin Ripsman, corporate governance, corporate risk, dc, dc pensions, de-risking, decumulation, Defined benefit pension plan, Defined Contribution, Eckler Ltd, Employment, Financial services, Pension new, pension playpen, pensions, Plan sponsors, Retirement, retirement income, Steve Webb, workplace Pensions
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Can we afford financial services in times of austerity?
Thomas Philippon , the celebrated economist, gave a lecture on Tuesday Morning as part of London University’s Leading Minds series. The gist of his talk is that the cost of financial services (the collective name for everyone who is an … Continue reading
Posted in FCA, Fiduciary Management, Financial Conduct Authority, Politics
Tagged austerity, Business, corporate risk, DWP, Employment, FCA, financial service, Financial services, Financial Services Authority, financial services industry, Human Resources, Insurance, intermediaries, intermediation, Investing, Investment, Investment management, John Kay, pensions, Retirement, Thomas Philippon, TPR
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“Free money”- why do those eligible for it- not want it; guest blog from Ralph Frank
NEST has recently published its latest annual ‘insight’, a study that looks at the behaviours and attitudes of members enrolled into workplace pensions. The ‘insight’ finds that older workers have significantly higher opt-out rates from auto-enrolment than younger workers – … Continue reading
Posted in CDC, pensions
Tagged Business, dc pensions, employer contribution, employer contributions, Employment, Financial services, free money, Free money. auto-enrolment, National Employment Savings Trust, pension, Pension new, pension playpen, pensions, Ralph Frank, Retirement, tax relief
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