Tag Archives: chris sier

A battle won – not yet the war; FCA demands cost disclosure.

Posted on September 21, 2017 by

    I get worried by premature announcements of victory. The battle to get proper cost disclosure is a long one , hostilities commenced properly with the OFT report on workplace pensions in 2014. This reminded Government that we know … Continue reading →

Posted in auto-enrolment, pensions | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

What do we tell our members?

Posted on September 6, 2017 by

    Yesterday’s keynote speech from David Farrar at the Professional Pension DC Conference contained some important messages. I wasn’t the only person in the room picking up a new tone on disclosure. The quote is a close approximation to … Continue reading →

Posted in pensions | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Fund managers -Norma Cohen is still watching!

Posted on September 1, 2017 by

  The great British financial journalist Norma Cohen rarely publishes in the FT these days, when she does, it is to great effect. This week she published a quiet and thoughtful piece on the impact MIFID II is having on … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, David Pitt-Watson, economics, journalism, pensions | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Britain leading the way (at last)

Posted on August 14, 2017 by

The balance of regulatory geo-politics has changed (did I really write that!) I guess most baby boomers like me grew up thinking that (at least in matters financial), Britain could look to America for progressive policy and practice. This is no … Continue reading →

Posted in advice gap, Big Government, customer service, pensions | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Why employers must understand the value for money of their workplace pension

Posted on August 10, 2017 by

  Among the remedies leading from the FCA’s Asset Management Market Study was a clear recommendation …that both industry and investor representatives agree a standardised template of costs and charges and we propose to ask an independent person to convene … Continue reading →

Posted in actuaries, advice gap, NEST, pensions | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

From Denham to Sier – a 1% world!

Posted on August 3, 2017 by

  You know how sometimes a little fact gets stuck in your head for no apparent reason? Back in 1998, I was reading an article by the then Pensions Minister John Denham. He stated that if we could reduce the … Continue reading →

Posted in accountants, advice gap, pensions | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

“Bill it to the fund”- why the TTF calls for full disclosure.

Posted on January 13, 2017 by

(Brief)case study I didn’t quite know what the smart gentleman meant when he offered me a drink in a first class carriage coming down from Manchester. “It’s ok – we’re billing to the fund”. Then it dawned on me, the … Continue reading →

Posted in pensions | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

PENSIONS TRANSPARENCY REACHES PARLIAMENT

Posted on September 8, 2016 by

Lux in tenebris   The roof leaks, the walls are crumbling but the House of Commons is still the seat of British Government. Andy Agethangelou has used the momentum he and his team have built up to set up a Transparency … Continue reading →

Posted in Bankers, Candy Crunch, pensions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The true cost of pensions; UK vs Netherlands – guest blog from Emma Craig of KAS Bank

Posted on November 19, 2014 by

  Yesterday the Financial Services Consumer Panel released a paper outlining key issues for long term savers created by opacity in the true cost of investing in pensions. As auto-enrolment of workers into (predominantly) Defined Contribution pensions continues apace the … Continue reading →

Posted in CDC, drawdown, DWP, Financial Conduct Authority, Financial Education, First Actuarial, pension playpen | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment