FTAdviser Podcast

The events of the past 12 months have made many previously mundane things, such as going to the supermarket, more complicated.One thing that was already fairly complex but has been made more complicated is transitioning into retirement.From volatile investment markets to the changing employment opportunities for semi-retirees and the potential for having to support younger members of the family - many things have changed over the course of 2020.In this special edition of the FTAdviser Podcast, sponsored by Canada Life, digital editor Damian Fantato talks to Andrew Tully, technical director at Canada Life, Fiona Tait, technical director at Intelligent Pensions, and Justin King, chartered financial planner at MFP Wealth Management about some of these issues.By listening to this edition of the FTAdviser Podcast and answering the questions below, you can bank 30 minutes of CPD - which you can do by clicking here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak his second Budget as the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine across the UK gives hope of a return to some degree of normality over the summer.Despite unveiling plenty of schemes to demonstrate how much he was investing in the UK economy, Sunak made clear that the bills racked up during the pandemic would soon be coming due.This meant several revenue-raising initiatives were announces, including an increase in corporation tax, frozen thresholds on income tax and capital gains tax and a frozen lifetime allowance on pensions - though the stamp duty holiday will continue for a little while longer as the government encourages more lenders back into the high loan-to-value mortgage market.FTAdviser digital editor Damian Fantato is joined by Claire Trott, head of pensions strategy at Technical Connection, Kevin Roberts, director of the L&G Mortgage Club, and Chris Etherington, private client partner at RSM to establish what this means for advisers.They discuss the various frozen thresholds, what the corporation tax hike might mean for dividends, how the lifetime allowance freeze could affect workers such as doctors and the concerns of boosting housing demand without also boosting supply.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 we approach the end of the tax year, clients inevitably kick-start their tax planning. Perhaps we’d wish them to do this earlier, but let’s face it, tax isn’t the easiest thing for most people to grapple with as a concept.This FTAdviser in Focus podcast explores why tax can be so tricky to tackle. The panel talks to Simoney Kyriakou, senior editor for FTAdviser, about the language of tax reliefs, duties and allowances, and why education needs to start earlier.The panel also discusses how financial services need to be aware of people's vulnerabilities and lack of understanding when it comes to the jargon we use, and make sure we approach every client conversation in plain English.Joining this podcast are Peter Glancy, head of policy, pensions and investments for Scottish Widows; Martin Stewart, co-founder of The Money Group; and Sarah Saunders, manager at RSM. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over the past year working from home as gone from being a niche lifestyle, to something workers up and down the UK are doing every day. Offices across the UK are empty, along with bars, restaurants and other hospitality premises. And on top of this many are shopping from the comfort of their own sofas.But what does this mean for investors in commercial property and for those using it as a diversifier in a portfolio? This week FTAdviser special projects editor David Thorpe discusses this issue with David Jane, multi-asset fund manager at Premier Miton Investors, Rob Burgeman, investment director at Brewin Dolphin, and Rogier Quirijns, head of European real estate at Cohen and Steers.They discuss whether property still has a role to play in portfolios, the impact of the illiquidity of property, why UK property might face particular problems and what impact Brexit could have.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.

FTAdviser In Focus has been looking at all aspects of vulnerability, and one of the biggest ways in which vulnerability has been made manifest is in the rise of scam activity during the Covid-19 pandemic.Across social media, rogue lead generation adverts have popped up, often making outlandish claims about premiums. Meanwhile, calls from outright scammers – as well as lead generators – have targeted people in their homes, claiming to be getting them a better deal on their life insurance. What does this mean for trust in the insurance industry? And how can insurance providers, advisers and all those working in the healthcare protection industry help root out the rogues. Joining Simoney Kyriakou, senior editor of FTAdviser, to discuss these things and more on the latest In Focus podcast is Steve Casey, marketing director of Square Health; Alain Desemir, founder of Contact State; and Kathryn Knowles, managing director of Cura Financial Services Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are many changes caused by the coronavirus crisis that were perhaps predictable at the start of the pandemic — a shift to working from home, a rise in home gym sales and far too many banana breads being baked.But one that was perhaps less easy to forecast was the rise in DIY investing and day trading. Retail platforms have experienced a huge wave of new clients, equity trades have more than doubled, and the recent Gamestop battle between amateur investors and hedge funds caused a trading frenzy.But what does this mean for advisers? How seriously should the advice market take the growth of retail trading, and how might they benefit from the trend?In this episode, reporter Imogen Tew is joined by Greg Davies, head of behavioural science at Oxford Risk, and Martin Bamford, head of client education at Informed Choice to discuss the what it means for advisers.Then, Imogen discusses the Pensions Bill and the rise of vulnerable clients with fellow reporters Rachel Mortimer and Amy Austin.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.

The market for providing advice on defined benefit transfers has shrunk by 46% over the past few years, as insurance costs and regulatory changes take their toll - and there are concerns this will be exacerbated by the contingent charging ban, which came into effect in October 2020.So what does it take for a financial advice firm to continue to provide financial advice? This week, reporter Amy Austin talks to two advisers who have remained in the market: Alistair Cunningham of Wingate Financial Planning and Dominic James Murray of Cameron James.They discuss how their firms have managed to remain in the DB transfer market, what impact the contingent charging could have, the role abridged advice could play and what it means for clients if the market continues to shrink.Then, Amy talks to reporters Imogen Tew and Rachel Mortimer about James Hay's decision to buy Nucleus and the Treasury select committee's investigation into the London Capital & Finance scandal.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.

The Financial Conduct Authority is keen to make sure financial services companies are treating customers fairly and paying mind to whether the client is potentially vulnerable. But has Covid made us all fall into this category at some level?This is not just relevant at the time of the initial consultation but also ongoing – are our investments that we chose three years ago still suitable? Are they going to be suitable in three or five or even seven years' time? How does one best assess investment suitability when it comes to advising people who may be in a vulnerable position right now – and how do we best assess their appetite for risk?Talking to Simoney Kyriakou, senior editor of FTAdviser, are three experts from the financial services world: Serena Van Der Meulen, director of Van Der Meulen Associates; Mark Polson, principal and founder of the Lang Cat consultancy, and Myron Jobson, personal finance campaigner for Interactive Investor.The FTAdviser In Focus podcast is the monthly podcast for financial advisers, brought to you by FTAdviser. Each month, Simoney will be joined by guests from the industry to take an in-depth look at some of the issues affecting financial advisers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Attempting to launch a new financial advice firm is tricky at the best of times, but doing it during a global pandemic - amid lockdowns and social distancing - might be another level of challenge. And that's before you take into account the economic uncertainty which 2020 saw.But this week on the FTAdviser Podcast, reporter Rachel Mortimer talks to two advisers who did just that. Joining her to discuss how they launched their firms during 2020 are Alister Gaines, a chartered financial planner at Akrivis Wealth, and Kat Tymon, director of Mansfield Money. They are joined by Heather Hopkins, managing director of research and consultancy firm Next Wealth.They discuss some of the challenges faced by those launching an advice firm during the Covid-19 pandemic and how they were overcome.After that, Rachel is joined by reporters Amy Austin and Imogen Tew to discuss the proliferation of scams and how the continued growth of ESG will affect advisers.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.

Last month the Financial Conduct Authority published its review of the financial advice market post-RDR and FAMR, in which it raised concern about the lack of competitive pressure advisers face, as well as "significant" clustering of fees which, the regulator said, suggested the advice market was not "well-functioning".This week FTAdviser's digital editor Damian Fantato is joined by Tim Fassam, director of government relations and policy at adviser trade body Pimfa, and Alasdair Walker, a chartered financial planner and managing director of HA&W to discuss what this means for advisers.They discuss how advisers can make sure they are offering value for money, whether it is true advisers face little competitive pressure and what advisers should be considering when they set their fees.Then Damian is joined by reporters Amy Austin and Rachel Mortimer to discuss the latest in the British Steel Pension Scheme debacle and the FCA's proposals for the claims management industry.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.