FTAdviser Podcast

The highly unusual nature of the economic recession and recovery means there are likely to be a number of “bubbles burst” in the coming years, according to this week's FTAdviser Podcast.As the global economy seeks to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, inflation is making a comeback and central banks are considering whether to increase interest rates.This week FTAdviser's special projects editor David Thorpe is joined by Simon King, chief investment officer at Vermeer Partners, Simon Edelsten, global equity fund manager at Artemis, and Steven Bell, chief economist at BMO Global Asset Management.They discuss whether investors can be confident that economies and asset prices will react as they usually do in periods of economic recovery, given the unusual nature of the pandemic-induced recession. They consider whether inflation is the biggest threat to returns in the next few years and whether the unprecedented monetary and fiscal response to the crisis means investors need to think differently about risk.The FTAdviser Podcast is the weekly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each week, FTAdviser is joined by guests from the industry to discuss the week in news and pressing industry issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In October, the US Securities and Exchange Commission gave the green light to the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF. This is the first US bitcoin futures-based exchange-traded fund, and for many this was seen as a turning point for cryptocurrencies when it began trading at the end of October.But the SEC drew a line in the sand just a few days later, refusing to authorise a leveraged ETF fund tracking a basket of synthetic crypto assets. This suggested the regulator wants to limit new bitcoin-related products to those that provide unleveraged exposure to bitcoin futures contracts, reducing gearing risk on what many see as an already risky emerging asset class - and which some see as pure speculation.Yet with currency trading site Forex Suggest predicting that, by 2024, cryptocurrencies Bitcoin, Etherium and Dai are on track to break into the top 10 best performing assets in terms of market capitalisation, crypto is not something that can be dismissed easily. And this is where exchange-traded funds might come into play: offering a regulated product to a regulated advice market, tracking the rises and falls of this emergent asset class.Joining senior editor Simoney Kyriakou on the latest FTAdviser InFocus podcast to discuss these issues are Rufus Round, chief executive of GlobalBlock, and Jason Guthrie Head of Digital Assets for Wisdom Tree. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rising inflation has prompted concerns that the UK economy is seeing the return of stagflation.Last seen in the 1970s, stagflation is characterised by stagnant growth and high inflation. The supply chain disruptions which led to fuel shortages in September and the looming rising cost of energy saw many draw parallels with the that era.Indeed, the Bank of England's new chief economist, Huw Pill, is predicting inflation is likely to hit, or even exceed 5% next year.This week David Thorpe, special projects editor at FTAdviser, is joined by Alan Higgins, UK chief investment officer at Coutts, Baillie Gifford's James Dow, who jointly runs the £987m Scottish American investment trust, and Fahad Kamal, chief investment officer at Kleinwort Hambros, to discuss what the prospects for stagflation are and what investors should do about it.They discuss how stagflation changes the calculation for income investors, whether there are particular markets which become more attractive in a stagflationary world, and whether this all makes higher interest rates more or less likely.The FTAdviser Podcast is the weekly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each week, FTAdviser is joined by guests from the industry to discuss the week in news and pressing industry issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak hailed his second Budget of 2021 as heralding a "new age of optimism" as the UK seeks to leave the Covid-19 pandemic behind it.Are things that simple? On its surface, the Budget focused on reforming alcohol duty and business rates, and tinkering with air passenger duty, leaving many areas financial advisers might worry about unaddressed.But with rising inflation, a hike in national insurance already in the pipeline and many allowances frozen in Sunak's previous Budget, for the panellists on this week's podcast the chancellor was carrying his own act of "tax avoidance".This week Damian Fantato, FTAdviser's digital editor, is joined by Claire Trott, divisional director for retirement and holistic planning at St James's Place, Chris Etherington, private client tax partner at RSM, and David Battersby, portfolio manager at Sanlam.They discuss why this Budget was more about the things left unsaid, why Sunak's optimism might not necessarily tally with some of the finer details in this week's fiscal statement and whether a solution has finally been found on the net-pay anomaly.The FTAdviser Podcast is the weekly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each week, FTAdviser is joined by guests from the industry to discuss the week in news and pressing industry issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

October 2021 marked the start of regulatory scrutiny over pay gap data reporting. Many companies have already reported, while others are still to unveil their data. Yet even with regulatory pressure to disclose the level of the so-called gender pay gap, many companies still seem unwilling to be as transparent as they could be. It is known that gender pay disparity leads to financial inequality between the sexes, greater financial vulnerability for women and poorer pension outcomes. So how can pay gap reporting and greater diversity and inclusion in financial services help lead towards a fairer financial outcome for both men and women?Joining Simoney Kyriakou, senior editor of FTAdviser, to talk through these issues is Fiona Hathorn, chief executive of Women on Boards UK.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the stamp duty holiday at an end and the Budget taking place next week, what does the future hold for stamp duty?Regularly referred to as the UK's "worst tax", stamp duty is regularly seen as in need of reform. But did the Covid-19 stamp duty holiday, which ended this month and saw receipts increase to £12.3bn, make reform any likelier?Hosted by Damian Fantato, digital editor at FTAdviser, this week's podcast explores what the future of the stamp duty land tax looks like, and how its future could impact the housing market. He is joined by Mark Hayward, chief policy advisor at Propertymark, and David Hollingworth, associate director of communications at L&C Mortgages.They discuss whether the stamp duty holiday has demonstrated this tax is in need of reform, how the end of the holiday will affect the housing market, and whether the government might tie stamp duty to environmental standards.The FTAdviser Podcast is the weekly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each week, FTAdviser is joined by guests from the industry to discuss the week in news and pressing industry issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As long as there have been financial advisers, there has been debate about how to plug the advice gap.But research has found that some 39m people have never sought any professional advice or guidance for their finances, and one in five advisers won't serve someone with less than £100,000.So there is clearly a gap to be plugged, but does the plugging of it fall to advisers? What role do providers have? And do the rules around advice and guidance help providers support their clients?This week Damian Fantato, digital editor of FTAdviser, is joined by Jamie Jenkins, director of policy at Royal London, and Prakash Chandramohan, director of strategy at Tisa, to discuss this.They discuss how the boundary between advice and guidance can be improved, how greater personalisation can help support savers who don't necessarily need advice, and why providers err on the side of caution when it comes to supporting their clients.The FTAdviser Podcast is the weekly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each week, FTAdviser is joined by guests from the industry to discuss the week in news and pressing industry issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Breaking up is always difficult. Quite apart from the emotional aspects, the financial aspects are particularly difficult for both parties, with division of assets often needing solicitors and court orders. Although there is a need for professional advice, too often people think they will simply split the assets - the man gets the pension; the woman (especially if she is the primary carer for the children) gets the house. Or the house might be sold and the equity split between the two. But these are not always the best courses of action; and while it may be a stereotype that the woman ends up with the house and the children, it is also true in the majority of cases. And this comes with its own problems on affordability, especially if the partners were not married. Talking to FTAdviser's senior editor, Simoney Kyriakou, about the issues facing women on divorce and separation are Abbie Hookway, managing director of touchstone education; Preeti Ferrier, area director for Just Mortgages; and Catherine Beaumont, independent mortgage adviser at London Money. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the past four months, the rate of inflation has beaten the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target. Despite saying that this rise will be “transitory”, the central bank has warned inflation might soar over 4 per cent before the end of the year - meaning it could reach its highest point in a decade, and so far governor Andrew Bailey has not confirmed that rates will rise in order to tackle this.This week, senior reporter Sally Hickey speaks to Lawrence Cook, head of UK intermediary distribution at Sanlam, and Michael Copeland, senior area manager at Wesleyan, about how advisers should be planning for high inflation.They discuss whether inflation will continue to rise, how advisers should plan for it and which assets they should and shouldn’t hold.The FTAdviser Podcast is the weekly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each week, FTAdviser is joined by guests from the industry to discuss the week in news and pressing industry issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Markets have been going through a turbulent period in recent weeks and, in part, this has been down to events taking place in China.Chinese equities have lost 11 per cent over the past three months because of concerns about an ongoing regulatory crackdown in the country. But these worries have been exacerbated by the liquidity crisis facing property giant Evergrande. Both of these developments have combined and rippled through global markets.What does this mean for investors, emerging markets and portfolios?This week FTAdviser special projects editor David Thorpe is joined by Mark Williams, manager of the Somerset Asia Income fund, and Abhi Chatterjee, chief investment strategist at Dynamic Planner.They discuss whether the turmoil represents a 'new normal', what lessons investors can take from this episode about China in particular and emerging markets in general, and whether the events of the past few months will have any long-term impact on portfolios.The FTAdviser Podcast is the weekly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each week, FTAdviser is joined by guests from the industry to discuss the week in news and pressing industry issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.