SECCL TAKES UP RESIDENCE IN OCTOPUS’S GARDEN; SHADE STATUS UNCLEAR
A few quick thoughts on the announcement from Octopus today that it will acquire Seccl for £10m subject to regulatory approval. Normally I’d do these in the Wednesday Update, but it’s Thursday today and it’s only just been announced. Why are people so inconsiderate? Anyway, Seccl is a really interesting business, run by Hugo Thorman […]
SJP ate my hamster
Assess THIS: our thoughts on the FCA’s Asset Management Market Study paper PS18/08
Today is a significant day for asset management in the UK. The Asset Management Market Study has taken a big step towards its conclusion with the publication of the first set of final rules, addressing most of the main issues highlighted in the first report. The process started in Nov 2015 with the publication of […]
JOB AD – WE NEED A CONSULTANT AND WE NEED ONE NOW
This is a job advertisement from the lang cat. Hello. We’re the lang cat and as well as a digital marketing manager we’re expanding the consulting side of our business, which in the main helps platforms, asset managers and larger adviser firms design better stuff and take it to market in a way that doesn’t […]
JOB AD – WE NEED A DIGITAL SWISS ARMY KNIFE
This is a job advert from the lang cat. Hello. We’re the lang cat and we’re on the hunt for someone who can help us: develop and run our digital marketing presence manage our mailing lists better manage some social media stuff (for clients too) keep us visible on search engines, which are things that […]
HMRC kill superclean funds?
Today’s announcement that, in the view of Judge Thomas Scott, HMRC have been incorrectly treating fund rebates as taxable could well be one of the most significant changes to platform and asset management land this year. You can read full details of the judgement here. If you are a fan of platforms you’ll understand and […]
STAT ATTACK! The lang cat’s Q4 2017 advised platform market scorecard is out now.
Terry Huddart summarises the lang cat’s findings from the new edition of its advised Platform Market Scorecard A massive period of disruption is underway in the UK advised platform sector, affecting, by our estimate, £464bn (89%) of AUA. By disruption we mean a major business change event such as a technology upgrade/move, floatation or sale […]
Our thoughts on the Standard Life / Phoenix announcement
Well, now. This has been a tricky one. Standard Life Aberdeen’s disposal of its life business to Phoenix, king of the zombie insurers, took me by surprise and to be honest I’m still working out what I think about it and what the consequences will be (of the disposal, not of me thinking; usually the […]
I would have got away with it too if it wasn’t for those meddling KIIDs
The cat is officially out of the bag (not that we condone cats being in bags). One of the changes ushered in at the start of the year by the beast that is MIFID II is the requirement for fund groups to disclose the additional transaction costs that are charged to their funds, on top […]
MIFID reality check
So, happy new year and all that. First full week back. Yay. Whilst everyone was off eating/drinking/bravely battling #manflu (delete as appropriate) the investment industry got on with the small matter of the implementing MIFID II. For a lot of folk this was a huge project, described to us yesterday by someone who had lived […]
