Private equity firm Ardian is selling its majority stake in Novacap to two French buyout firms for around £500m March 21, 2016 Paris based private equity firm Ardian is set to offload its majority stake in chemicals and cosmetics company Novacap to French buy out firms, Eurazeo and Mérieux Développement for around £500m. Novacap, maker of everything chemical from sun creams to baking powder, was bought by Ardian in 2011 for a deal that valued it at €240m (£188m). The deal is the latest in a raft of [...]
High net-worth, older UK investors most cautious in Europe, while millenials more likely to invest in riskier assets March 21, 2016 Older UK investors are the most cautious in Europe, with more than a third of their portfolios invested in cash to avoid asset risks from the volatility affecting global markets. Cash made up 36 per cent of the older investors' portfolios, classified as investments owned by those the age of 40. This figure was up from 29 per cent [...]
The Investment Association: FTSE 100 firms told to scrap quarterly reporting March 20, 2016 The investment industry's leading trade body is gearing up to tell Britain's blue-chip companies to scrap quarterly reporting. The Investment Association (IA) will make the move in an attempt to shift companies' focus towards more longer-term goals, a spokesperson confirmed. It's one of a string of measures contained in a landmark report which is due to be released next [...]
Wealth manager Brooks Macdonald’s share price up after delivering 12 per cent funds under management growth in “uncertain markets” March 17, 2016 The share price of Brooks Macdonald rose nearly two per cent today after the investment manager reported a 12 per cent growth in discretionary funds under management (FUM). The figures The company’s results, for the six months to 31 December 2015, showed it increased its FUM value to £7.82bn, up from £6.95bn the year before. [...]
How China is pioneering alternative finance and P2P lending – an analysis of the first ever Asia-Pacific industry report March 16, 2016 The Asia-Pacific alternative finance market grew 323 per cent last year, to $102.8bn. China was responsible for 99 per cent of that, with four-fold growth to $101.7bn in 2015. Yesterday, the first regional report, Harnessing Potential, was released by Judge Business School and the University of Sydney. I spoke to co-author Bryan Zhang of the Cambridge [...]
Budget 2016 predictions: When is it and the key points Chancellor George Osborne will cover in his speech? March 16, 2016 Last year we had three of them. So far we've made it through two months without one, but fear not campers – there's a new Budget in town. This is everything you need to know about this month's fiscal update from the government. When is the Budget 2016 and how to watch live Chancellor George Osborne is [...]
Buy to let tax changes: Why a landlord exodus remains unlikely March 16, 2016 The growth of buy-to-let has been among the defining characteristics of the post-crisis mortgage market. Council of Mortgage Lenders figures released this month show that lending to landlords accounted for 17 per cent of all new loans in the third quarter of 2015. With rising property prices, meanwhile, property consultants Savills estimated last year that [...]
How George Osborne’s Budget could still hit pensions – by cutting tax-free cash and restricting the annual allowance further March 16, 2016 For a long time now, the nature of pensions savings has been that contributions are treated as deferred pay. In other words, you get tax relief on the way in and you are taxed on withdrawals. Public statements by the chancellor suggest that he views pensions differently. For him, the issue is not so much [...]
Tighter pension rules and high taxes are pushing investors into venture capital trusts – but can supply keep up? March 16, 2016 Middle class taxpayers will be hoping for some long overdue good news in today’s Budget after years of measures designed to extract more of their hard-earned cash to help pay down the deficit. Indeed, it is estimated that over the last five years there has been a 32 per cent increase in the number of [...]
From the Personal Savings Allowance and Dividend Allowance to the Help to Buy Isa, how can savers make the most of their Isa this tax year? March 15, 2016 The world of Isas was once a sleepy one. At every Budget, the chancellor would typically increase the amount you could contribute each tax year by some measure of inflation. You had a simple choice between putting that money into a cash or a stocks and shares Isa (or a slightly restrictive combination of the [...]