UK pensions: Should you switch from a gold-plated defined benefit plan into a DC scheme? There’s a growing trend as retirees hope to take more cash out of their pots January 19, 2016 Pension savers now have more options at retirement – whether that’s taking a lump sum, buying an annuity, or dipping into it regularly. The flexibility now offered to people on regular defined contribution schemes seems attractive to people on “gold plated” defined benefit pensions, many of whom have considered switching from their secure scheme to the [...]
Fintech revolution? Banks will survive disruption from new technology January 19, 2016 Last week, yet another report was published suggesting banking has reached its digital tipping point. Figures from Javelin Strategy & Research suggest that for the first time ever, US consumers banked on their mobiles more than in branches last year. We’re seeing a similar picture in the UK, as the large banks increase their technology spend [...]
UK pensions: Charges for accessing pensions early to be capped as many who wish to use the pension freedoms face a fee for doing so January 19, 2016 Chancellor George Osborne has today announced that a limit on the amount that people can be charged for accessing their pension pot early will soon be introduced. Speaking in the House of Commons, Osborne said that nearly 700,000 of those who were eligible to use the pension freedoms rules, which came into effect in April last year, to gain access [...]
UK pensions: More than half would favour a move to a flat rate pensions tax relief scheme, but the pensions industry might struggle to adapt, warns pensions company January 19, 2016 More than half of pensions savers are in favour of a shift to flat rate pensions tax relief. A survey released today by pensions company Aegon discovered that 60 per cent of customers would favour a move to a flat rate of 33 per cent for pensions tax relief, which is currently applied at the same rate people [...]
London and Europe are getting a new £500m tech startup VC fund as Chinese-backed Cocoon Networks launches January 19, 2016 London's tech startups are set for a new injection of cash worth as much as half a billion pounds as a new Chinese-backed venture capital fund launches. Private equity firms China Equity Group and Hanxin Capital will launch Cocoon Networks with £500m to invest in UK and European tech companies which show potential for success in China. The wide-ranging fund will span fintech, biotech, medical devices [...]
Struggling pubs will lose a lifeline under new venture capital rules that ban angel investors from rescuing flailing businesses January 19, 2016 Struggling pubs have lost a lifeline under new rules which ban venture capital from investing in existing business. Rules preventing venture capital trusts and enterprise investment schemes from buying out the management of failing businesses or undertaking acquisitions came into effect before Christmas, as part of the Finance Act 2015. They came from the European Union, [...]
FSCS is planning to levy £363m in the next financial year January 19, 2016 The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) is expecting to levy £363m from the City in the next financial year, warning of a rise in pension claims. The final figure for the levy will be announced in April, and the plan is currently under consultation. However, the FSCS has indicated that it expects pensions savers – [...]
There’s nothing fair about burdening future generations with unfunded spending on pensioners January 19, 2016 Words like “fairness” and “justice” are regularly thrown around with little thought to what they mean. Strangely, though, the politicians who use them seem to be unwilling to debate the pressing issue of intergenerational justice relating to the unsustainable government promises being made to future generations. Nonsense, you might say. We often hear ministers and [...]
UK pensions: State pensions statements to go digital potentially as early as April, as service currently in public beta testing, says pensions minister Baroness Ros Altmann January 18, 2016 Pensions minister Baroness Ros Altmann has today said that statements for the state pension could potentially be digital from April onwards. Speaking in front of the Work and Pensions Select Committee regarding its inquiry into understanding the new state pension, Altmann revealed that the new digital system was currently in public beta testing and the Department for Work [...]
Fintech firms falling behind FTSE 100 firms on boardroom diversity with less than one in ten female directors January 18, 2016 Fintech firms may be leading the City when it comes to developing financial innovations, but when it comes to boardroom diversity, they’re falling far behind. The UK’s top 50 fintech firms have just nine per cent women on their boards, research by recruitment firm Astbury Marsden reveals. This makes them three times less diverse than [...]
