Latest Blogs
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Lisa Webster: Charity giving from pensions
I’m sure many of you reading this on SIPPs Professional will have had more than a few conversations with clients about estate planning – especially considering the news that pensions are to be included in the value of the estate for IHT purposes from April 2027.
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Tilley: Will IHT reforms really threaten pension saving?
The Government’s decision to bring most unused pension funds and lump sum death benefits within the scope of inheritance tax (IHT) from 6 April 2027 has provoked widespread criticism from across the pensions industry. Providers, advisers and trade bodies have warned that the change risks undermining confidence in pension saving and damaging long term retirement provision.
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Lisa Webster: Salary sacrifice cap will hit some hard
The headline story from Budget 2025 - in the pension world at least - was the plan to cap National Insurance relief for pension contributions paid through salary sacrifice at £2,000 a year.
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Alltrust launches sophisticated investor SIPP
Pension trustee and administration specialist Alltrust has launched a premium self-invested pension designed for high-net-worth individuals, experienced investors and the IFAs and wealth managers who advise them.
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Female SIPP millionaires up by 31% in one year
The number of female SIPP millionaires at platform and investment provider Hargreaves Lansdown rose by 31% in 2025 compared to a 16% rise for male investors.
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Sheffield wealth manager fails after pension claims
Sheffield wealth manager Green Wealth Management Limited (FRN: 729066) has been declared in default by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme after being unable to meet claims against it.
Pension consultant Willis Towers Watson has warned that pension schemes could be forced to top up 100,000 historic pension transfer payments following a High Court ruling.
Pensions and investment planning software firm Selectapension has unveiled 'Quote & Apply' - a new tool for advisers to speed up the application process - and has signed up Aegon as the first provider.
The number of pension withdrawals in August and September increase dramatically, according to new data.
Nearly three-quarters (72%) of people surveyed say they would not pay for financial advice, according to new research.
Women are more likely to miss out on entitlement to free guidance despite having the most to gain, according to a new report.
Nearly nine in 10 (88%) women aged 45-54 surveyed by retirement specialist Just Group did not know they were entitled to free, independent and impartial pension guidance.
The 12% who said they were aware was nearly half the 20% of men aged 45-54 who knew about the service.
The FCA has abandoned plans to ban platform exit fees.
In a regulatory update today the watchdog said the move was no longer necessary as a number of platforms had dropped exit fees after the regulator highlighted the issue.
The FCA criticised exit fees as a barrier to investors moving platforms.
The FCA’s Investment Platforms Market study (2018/19) found that while the platform market “works well overall, there were areas where it could work better.”
One of the areas highlighted was the barrier to moving platforms created by exit fees levied by a number of platforms.
The FCA said in Policy Statement 19/29 it would consult on restricting platform exit fees in Q1 2020.
Due to the Coronavirus pandemic the FCA then delayed the move to Spring 2021.
It now says: “We have now decided to stop work on this consultation.
“Since expressing our concerns in the 2018 Interim Report, there has been a marked shift in the market away from exit fees, with at least two major platforms announcing that they would no longer be charging exit fees.
“The FCA welcomes the direction of travel by the investment platforms sector in phasing out the use of exit fees.”
The regulator added that while it has dropped the Exit Fees Consultation it will be closely monitoring the situation and has hinted it will shake up the sector if new barriers to moving platform or any other consumer detriment emerges.
The move to drop an exit fee ban has been criticised by some.
Richard Wilson, chief executive of interactive investor, said: “We are saddened to see this news snuck out on the afternoon of Friday 13th. Exit fees are a recipe for rip offs and a genuine barrier to consumers seeking better value for money - they should have been banned.
“The FCA rightly points out that the direction of travel in the industry has been away from exit fees, in large part because interactive investor and Hargreaves Lansdown have done away with them. But there are still platforms out there that have grown far too complacent, relying on customer inertia and hefty penalties."
“There is no reason to turn off the heat - quite the opposite. Scrutiny on exit fees needs to be extended to life companies, asset and wealth managers, life insurers and beyond. We are completely bewildered by the FCA’s announcement and today is a sad day for consumers.”