Axa Wealth’s platform Elevate is set to launch a ‘flexible’ drawdown service in advance of next year’s at-retirement reforms.
From April 2015, pensions will be far less restrictive following the changes announced in this year’s Budget. This week, the government announced that savers will have three ways to access their pension, of which one way is a ‘flexi-access drawdown’.
Axa Wealth said the platform will also feature options relating to the new uncrystallised fund pension lump sum, which enables savers to withdraw from their pension pot without committing to annuity purchase or drawdown.
David Thompson, managing director of Axa Elevate, said he expects the pension changes coming into force to accelerate flows onto platforms as they allow financial advisers and their clients to spread wealth easily over multiple tax wrappers and offer flexible ways of retrieving and storing income.
He said: “The new flexibility offered by the pension legalisation, along with the existing options Elevate provides for meeting clients income requirements, means it is well placed to provide a comprehensive range of choices for how to generate the income required by the client in the most tax efficient way possible.”
Mr Thompson added that clients can receive a single payment combining income from multiple sources through existing Elevate cash accounts.
He said: “The draft legislation has only been published this week, so we are still working on the exact details.
“Crucially we are planning to make this functionality as an enhancement to the current Elevate drawdown options – where everything is done on platform under the adviser’s direct control which means instructions can be made in real-time without additional paper forms and client signatures.”
