Financial advice industry grew in 2019 despite rising costs and regulation April 20, 2020 The financial advice industry grew last year despite rising costs and widening regulation, research published today showed. The sector’s growth has been driven by ever more complex financial needs, low growth in DIY investing and a lack of alternatives to spending time with a professional adviser, the survey from fund data provider FE fundinfo found. [...]
Pessimism & reluctance April 17, 2020 | City Talk A moment of nostalgia for sterling and relief for the euro. Sterling was not unduly worried this week, having a surprisingly successful week. Over the eight-day week it strengthened by an average of 0.5%, losing out only to the puzzlingly mismatched Australian dollar and Japanese yen. It added one euro cent and one and one [...]
Coronavirus: £7bn wiped off Brewin Dolphin funds April 17, 2020 Wealth management firm Brewin Dolphin took a £7.1bn hit on the funds it manages in its latest quarter due to the coronavirus pandemic. Brewin Dolphin’s total funds decreased by 14.6 per cent to £41.4bn in the second quarter, down from £48.5bn, with discretionary funds down 14.6 per cent to £35.7bn from £41.8bn. The MSCI WMA [...]
FCA pushes car finance firms to halt repossessions amid coronavirus April 17, 2020 The UK’s financial watchdog has proposed a freeze on car finance repayments, ruling out repossessions of vehicles during the coronavirus crisis. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) told car leasing firms today to offer three-month repayment pauses for customers in financial difficulty as a result of coronavirus. “We are very aware of the continued struggle people [...]
Coronavirus: Blackrock reports sharp drop in income and assets April 16, 2020 US asset management giant Blackrock suffered a sharp drop in income and assets under management in the first quarter as the coronavirus outbreak sparked turmoil in global markets. Blackrock’s net income fell to $806m, or $5.15 per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, from $1.05bn, or $6.61 per share, a year earlier. Assets [...]
Coronavirus: Schroders boss donates to Covid-19 charities as firm posts AUM loss April 16, 2020 The chief executive of Schroders will donate 25 per cent of his salary to charities fighting the coronavirus outbreak, the firm said this morning as it reported a drop in assets under management (AUM). Group chief executive Peter Harrison said today that executive directors will donate their 2020 long-term incentive plan awards and 25 per [...]
London fintech firm Previse secures $11m in funding round April 16, 2020 London-based fintech startup Previse has secured $11m (£8.8m) in fresh funding as the invoice payment platform defied wider economic gloom sparked by the coronavirus crisis. Previse, which was founded in 2016, uses artificial intelligence to help suppliers get invoices paid instantly when no manual intervention is needed. The King’s Cross-headquartered firm currently processes more than [...]
Downturns this deep can take a long time to recover from, financially and mentally April 16, 2020 | City Talk The stock market has declined by 25% or more on 11 occasions since 1871. The median recovery time from this point has been 1.8 years. Investors who shifted to cash after the 1929 crash faced a 34-year wait to break even, compared with 15 years for those who remained invested and less than 7 years [...]
Coronavirus: Keeping company culture a top priority will pay off April 16, 2020 Small business owners across the nation are, understandably, concerned right now. Daily news reports show the economy coming to a halt, businesses shutting up shop and an ever increasing death toll. SMEs, arguably more than any other group, are equipped to weather this storm. Our connected economy and cloud-based services enable us to continue – in [...]
Which stock markets sold off the most over Q1 and how do valuations look? April 15, 2020 | City Talk It’s been an incredibly tough start to the year for investors, with some market veterans describing it as one of the most challenging situations they’ve ever experienced. While markets have staged a recovery since late March, it was a crushing quarter as coronavirus (Covid-19) effectively shuttered the global economy, not to forget the immeasurable human [...]
