Tag Archives: Actuarial science

The dark hour of the innovator

Access to knowledge remains a stumbling block to financial education in this country. It is extremely difficult to convert information on what we own into knowledge about how we can use it. This is not a problem peculiar to the financial … Continue reading

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Investing for drawdown – How L&G are responding to the challenge

Nigel Wilson, L&G’s CEO- recently ran a hang-out to discuss key issues. My question to him, was a bit technical and I’m glad that easier questions were put on the day! I asked what solutions L&G could come up with … Continue reading

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How did IFAs end up payroll experts?

  In 2011 I started getting interested in payroll. Having read the automatic enrolment regulations it seemed I’d have to if my firm was to help employers. In 2012 and 2013 and 2014 I was named among the top 50 … Continue reading

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Crushed by falling bond yields – great guest blog by Ralph Frank

Mainstream assessments of the state of investment markets tend to focus on the equity market.  The level of the FTSE 100, S&P 500, Dow and/or Nikkei is deemed to be an indicator of the health of savers’ investment portfolios and/or … Continue reading

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All I want is easy access (baby)!

Easy Action When Marc Bolan wrote Solid Gold Easy Action in 1972, it was a smash hit , I was ten and I spent my savings to buy it But I can’t get no satisfaction All I want is easy action, … Continue reading

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Get your BR19 as your first step to being “Pension Wise”

Treasury now in charge of “Pension Wisdom”. Another Monday, another set of pension headlines. The Treasury announce that the Guidance Guarantee is no more and hereafter the delivery mechanism for the help we’ll be getting at retirement will be called … Continue reading

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The future of retirement – Pension PlayPen responds to NEST

  Why Pension PlayPen is responding Pension PlayPen is reluctantly responding to NEST’s consultation; reluctantly as we have been asked these questions before in a number of different guises. The report is long and so is this response. We are … Continue reading

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What’s this about selling your annuity?

Steve Webb’s latest idea that the Government will encourage the sale and purchase of life annuities is not as crazy as it sounds. Indeed the practice is commonplace in the USA where many court awards are granted as an income … Continue reading

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How to pay a consultant.

Why this is on my mind Today I’m speaking at a conference for pension consultants which is supposed to be exploring the opportunities for them and for their clients. Looking at their agenda, there is an obvious issue missing “how … Continue reading

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“I don’t need a new house – I need an extension!”

  I have sympathy with the pension managers of large employers who are being expected to adopt the pension reforms. It is not their job to make Government policies work, rather it is Government’s job to make pensions work- especially … Continue reading

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