Banks and alternative finance: Liberum’s Cormac Leech how both industries should act October 29, 2015 Elon Musk once commented that “money is low bandwidth” – it’s highly susceptible to being overhauled by the internet. I was reminded of Musk’s observation by Cormac Leech, director of fintech at Liberum. It’s easy to get those inside the alternative lending industry to talk about how it’ll “change banking forever”. But what does someone [...]
UK pensions: Almost £3bn withdrawn from pension savings pots since April this year, HMRC reveals October 28, 2015 HMRC announced today that 251,000 flexible payments from pensions, totalling £2.7bn, had been made since the pension freedoms rules came into effect in this April. In the last six months, 146,000 people have made a withdrawal from their pension under the new rules. The figures also showed that the number of people taking flexible payments [...]
Doesn’t wanting to become a bank miss the point of fintech? October 28, 2015 You can barely open a newspaper without seeing news of another challenger bank – each with their own vision for how they can serve customers better. This group was dealt a major blow however, when chancellor George Osborne announced that newly established challenger banks would not be exempt from the eight per cent tax that applies to the [...]
Axa Wealth reveals new business jumped by 43 per cent in the third quarter October 27, 2015 Axa Wealth announced its third-quarter results today, revealing that new business had shot up 43 per cent to £578m. Pensions and funds under management for the pensions and investments company also grew by 14 per cent to £30.4bn. Results were also positive for Architas, Axa Wealth’s multi-manager arm, which reported an increase in assets of [...]
One in seven over-55s has been targeted by pension fraudsters October 27, 2015 New pension rules may have given savers more freedom when it comes to what to do with their cash – but it's pricked up the ears of fraudsters, too: new figures have suggested as many as 14 per cent of over-55s in work – that's about one in seven – reckon they've been targeted by a scammer since the new [...]
LV posts 19 per cent growth in sales of retirement products post-pension freedoms October 26, 2015 LV announced a growth in sales of retirement products of 19 per cent to £1.1bn over the last nine months. Protection sales also rose by 35 per cent to £209m for the period, contributing towards a total of 22 per cent growth in sales to £1.3bn for the life and pensions division of the financial services [...]
Burrito restaurant Chilango to raise £1m via crowdfunding platform CrowdCube October 26, 2015 Burrito restaurant Chilango has launched a new fundraising round on crowdfunding platform CrowdCube after tapping retail investors for £2m last year. The Mexican food chain said it aims raise £1m from potential investors in return for a 3.26 per cent stake in the business. Shareholders can put as little as £10 compared with last year’s mini-bond, where investors [...]
UK pension schemes face £62bn rise in liabilities if interest rates stay low – JLT Employee Benefits October 26, 2015 UK private sector pension schemes could find their aggregate liabilities increase by as much as £62bn if an interest rate rise fails to materialise one year after market expectations, research by JLT Employee Benefits has revealed. If the pension consultancy firm’s predictions are correct, employers might have to find an extra £2m on average to [...]
Businesses call on government to create more stability around pensions regulation October 26, 2015 Most businesses feel pensions regulation stability should be a priority for government, a report by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and Mercer has revealed. In a survey released today of more than 160 corporate leaders, who between them are responsible for £115bn worth of assets invested in pensions, 79 per cent thought that the [...]
Is a peer-to-peer borrowing bubble on the cards? There’s just one question would-be lenders need to ask before taking the plunge October 22, 2015 People are talking about a bubble in the peer-to-peer (P2P) lending sector, and there are definitely elements of this I agree with, which may be surprising since I am co-founder of a P2P platform. Rather than getting carried away, now is the time for would-be P2P lenders to do their homework before parting with their [...]