Don’t force pension funds to buy British, Aviva chief warns ministers Business British pension funds should not be forced to invest in UK assets, the boss of one of London’s biggest insurance firms has said, in a rebuke of the government’s pension reforms plans. The Treasury this week helped seal a voluntary, non-binding agreement by pension funds, dubbed the Mansion House Accord, will see increased investment into [...]
Week in Business: Small glass of champagne for Reeves? Video There was some welcome economic growth in Q1 but it's in the rear view mirror; is there any on the horizon?
Public trust in pensions declines for the first time in five years Economics The government is facing a fresh headache in its pension reform plans as new research shows trust in the industry declined for the first time in five years. Average trust in the industry has dipped to 5.23 out of 10, from a peak of 5.26, according to the fifth Trust and Confidence Index released by [...]
Is Rachel Reeves breaking up with the OBR? May 14, 2025 City AM’s City Editor, Simon Hunt, unpicks the stories that get the Square Mile talking Rachel Reeves will do anything to keep the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) on side. Or so we thought. The chancellor made a number of last-minute changes to her Spring Statement to ensure her fiscal headroom stayed on target, including [...]
‘Cautious welcome’: City bigwigs react to Mansion House Accord May 14, 2025 City analysts and politicians have been probing the ramifications of the Mansion House Accord, a new deal spearheaded by the government that aims to encourage more diverse investments by pension funds. The accord, which was signed by seventeen major pension funds yesterday, is a voluntary commitment to allocate ten per cent of funds to private [...]
Self-employed? Don’t forget to set up a pension May 12, 2025 Self-employment comes with the benefits of being your own boss – you can set your own hours, workload and work from wherever you’d like. However, it also comes with the paperwork that your boss would otherwise handle. While the focus can quickly shift to taxes, it’s crucial not to forget to set up your own [...]
How to shield your pension from Labour’s inheritance tax raid May 6, 2025 According to new analysis by Quilter, just two per cent of estates subject to inheritance tax (IHT) are currently taking advantage of surplus income gifting to reduce their tax liabilities. Based on freedom of information (FOI) requests carried out by the wealth management firm, just 1,490 estates are currently taking advantage of the rules, but Quilter expects [...]
The last thing pension funds need is a state mandated investment strategy April 30, 2025 UK pension funds don’t have the capabilities to deliver a mandated 10 per cent minimum allocation to private assets, says Toby Glaysher By threatening to enforce a 10 per cent minimum allocation to private assets, the government risks turning the Mansion House reforms from a visionary ambition into a blunt instrument. The premise behind the [...]
Should I consolidate my pension pots? March 19, 2025 The UK is reckoning with a proliferation of small pension pots, which is increasing costs for providers and making retirement planning challenging for savers. The cheapest Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) providers According to research from the Institute of Fiscal Studies, in 2024 there were 12.1m defined contribution (DC) pension pots which held less than £1,000 [...]
Phoenix Group shares soar after upgrading outlooks March 17, 2025 Shares in Phoenix Group rallied over six per cent on Monday morning after the firm smashed its cash generation target and upgraded its future guidance. The FTSE 100 company, which owns insurer Standard Life, recorded a 31 per cent increase in operating profit for 2024, which hit £825m. The group met its 2026 target of [...]