One in ten 70-74 year-olds in employment, DWP finds
The employment gap between those at the cusp of retirement and the main working group has reduced 7.9% over the past 20 years with older people increasingly working longer, latest figures from the...
View ArticleFCA: Twice as many retirement pots moved into drawdown than annuities
The number of annuities purchased fell by more than a fifth while the drawdown market grew 4% in the six months to March, latest data from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has shown. The FCA’s...
View ArticleFinance Bill confirms retrospective MPAA reduction
The government has confirmed it will implement the reduction of the money purchase annual allowance (MPAA), originally due to take effect from April, retrospectively. In the second version of the 2017...
View ArticleFCA: All SIPP providers but one meeting cap ad rules
Almost all self-invested personal pension (SIPP) providers are meeting the capital adequacy rules introduced 12 months ago, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said. In response to a Freedom of...
View ArticleAdrian Boulding: How to bring the self-employed into AE
Cash-free business transacting combined with HMRC’s ‘Making Tax Digital ‘initiative could solve the self-employed pension savings gap, asserts Adrian Boulding. Auto-enrolment (AE) has been a great...
View ArticleTom Selby: Is Brexit-induced government coma good for savings policy?
A theory currently doing the rounds is that the political carnage created in the aftermath of the EU referendum could actually benefit UK pensions policy, writes Tom Selby. Most in the financial...
View ArticleMartin Tilley: Capital adequacy – one year on
When it comes to survival of SIPP operators, writes Martin Tilley, financial fitness and the ability to adapt to the changing regulatory requirements has been essential. The coining of the phrase...
View ArticleSeven curious facts for Pensions Awareness Day
Today is Pension Awareness Day and, to mark it, Robert Cochran has unearthed seven curious facts to help you convey to potential and existing clients the importance of saving for retirement. £40,000...
View ArticleMorgan warns of ‘cliff-edge’ Brexit threat to ex-pat pensions
Treasury Committee chair Nicky Morgan has written to chancellor of the exchequer Philip Hammond seeking clarity on the treatment of cross-border pensions and insurance contracts written prior to...
View ArticleWhite-label platform Fundment bolts on SIPP service
Automated investment platform Fundment has added self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs) to its white-label service for advisers. The SIPPs will be administered by provider Liberty SIPP, with prices...
View ArticleNEST: Hybrid DC ‘rainy day’ products with early access options can help low...
The National Employment Saving’s Trust (NEST) says hybrid products could help defined contribution (DC) savers on low incomes weather financial shocks better. A paper published today by the master...
View ArticleMike Morrison: Needs and objectives
DB transfers must be a collaborative process between advisers and clients so, says Mike Morrison, it is tough to see how creating a distinction between the latter’s ‘needs’ and ‘objectives’ will help...
View ArticleCISI DB transfer qualification gets FCA approval
The Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment’s (CISI) level 6 defined benefit transfers qualification has been officially approved by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), with first...
View ArticleScam fears prompt new parliamentary inquiry into pension freedom
Concern over the rise in scams is among the reasons prompting a new Work and Pensions Select Committee inquiry into whether the pension freedom reforms have achieved their objectives and if policy...
View ArticleOMW and CII launch DB transfers training programme for advisers
Old Mutual Wealth (OMW) has partnered with the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) to launch a defined benefit (DB) pension transfer training programme, in response to the more rigorous rules proposed...
View ArticleTPAS sees customer costs fall, engagement levels rise
The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) has reported increased demand for its guidance service, while costs per customer have gone down. In its annual review out this week the body said costs per visit...
View ArticleAdrian Boulding: It is up to financial services to stimulate savings
With the government bogged down in Brexit negotiations, Adrian Boulding argues it is left to innovative pension providers to create the tools and portals that could enable people to keep abreast of...
View ArticleMichael Johnson: I did not foresee consequences of Freedom and Choice
The pension freedoms have had unintended consequences which should have been foreseen, Michael Johnson has said. For this reason, he believes the pensions framework needs a radical shake-up with a move...
View ArticleNEST appoints Cardano as external adviser
Cardano’s defined contribution (DC) business has been selected by NEST to provide general investment advice and support fund manager selection exercises. The firm will also advise on the impact of...
View ArticleBrits call for mandatory pension contribution rates
More than two thirds (70%) of Brits would like the government to introduce a compulsory contribution rate as a total percentage of their monthly salary to put into their defined contribution (DC)...
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