Know your stuff: Five things everyone needs to hear about pensions October 2, 2015 Charges and not taking enough risk can massively dent your long-term savings. Seismic shifts have taken place in the pensions world in recent years – and there may be more to come. Generous employer pension schemes have all but disappeared, and new freedoms brought in by the government this year aim to offer savers [...]
Ladies who don’t lunch: Ingrid talks people power, performance, and rising to the top October 2, 2015 Maike Currie talks to Ingrid Waterfield about taking the road less travelled When I arrive at One Lombard Street, a favourite haunt of City-types just a stone’s throw from the Bank of England, Ingrid Waterfield is already seated and waiting. I am not late but I am slightly flustered. She, on the other hand, [...]
Should you invest in India? Inside the last major emerging market left standing October 1, 2015 Shifting fortunes in emerging markets mean India is now standing out as more investable than the rest. The last two years have seemed like a new dawn for investors in India. The country elected reformist candidate Narendra Modi as its new Prime Minister in May last year and experts around the world cheered his [...]
All that glitters: Should you buy diamonds as an investment? October 1, 2015 Diamonds have fascinated humans for millennia, and their cultural importance as symbols of wealth, endurance and love is almost unshakeable. Wealthy people the world over desire diamonds. And they have historically been good investments too. Between the start of 2006 and 2011, one carat diamonds increased in value by 46 per cent, according to the [...]
Brewdog sets record with £10m crowdfunding campaign October 1, 2015 Brewdog, one of the UK's first craft beer brewers, has raised £10m through a crowdfunding initiative, the company said today – setting a world record for the biggest equity crowdfunded project in the world. That surpasses the previous record of $6m (£4m) by more than 50 per cent. This isn't the first time the company, [...]
Who backs crowdfunding campaigns? Investors are male, young and have university degrees October 1, 2015 The average crowdfunder is a university-educated man in his late twenties, according to alternative finance specialist Choice Loans, which has crunched the numbers on where crowdfunding investors are coming from and what they back. Crowdfunding is booming, no question about that. Campaigns grew by a staggering 420 per cent last year. But who’s backing them, [...]
Crowdfunding: Enter the disruptive finance revolution October 1, 2015 The funding situation for British startups has changed irrevocably since the global financial crisis. Equity crowdfunding has quickly become an important funding mechanism for many small businesses and is now a major part of the UK’s entrepreneurial finance landscape. Currently valued at £146m in 2015, this is almost double the figure for 2014, and [...]
Pension lobby calls for flat rate tax changes October 1, 2015 Pensions savers could soon see a single rate of tax relief if industry proposals come into force. Last night, the government closed its consultation on how pensions should be taxed, after providers were invited to put forward their concerns. Pensions experts have called for a single level of tax to replace the current, tiered [...]
UK fintech needs more than just London: Manchester and Northern Powerhouse cities are the next hubs September 30, 2015 By some accounts the UK already leads the world in fintech – technology for the financial services sector. Much of this stems from the fact that London has always been one of the world’s leading financial centres, is home to 300 of the world’s banks and counts more than 130,000 knowledge workers in its financial [...]
McKinsey warns banks that fintech startups and alternative finance pose threat to traditional banking’s profits September 30, 2015 McKinsey has warned banks that fintech startups are a threat to traditional banking’s profits, giving them a choice: fight them or join them. London’s fintech hubs are booming, with over 12,000 startups disrupting financial services with products that are often cheaper for customers. This poses a real threat to banks' profits, according to a report [...]
