Fidelity enters fund platform price war with lower charges
INVESTOR group Fidelity yesterday made a bold entrance into the fund price war by undercutting rival Hargreaves Lansdown.
The UK fund company, which was originally spun out of US-based group Fidelity Investments, said it would charge customers a tariff of 0.35 per cent to use its fund supermarket, lower than the 0.45 per cent charge Hargreaves announced last week.
The average cost of its preferred funds was 0.64 per cent, slightly lower than Hargreaves’ 0.65 per cent. Fund supermarkets were forced to charge customers to use their services after new rules were introduced to unbundle the costs associated with investing.
Fidelity’s Mark Till said the new charges would “substantially lower the cost of investing”. Hargreaves shares fell 1.23 per cent.
Meanwhile Fidelity’s asset management boss in the US Ron O’Hanley announced his exit from the firm yesterday. He had held the position for four years.