This week saw Gremlins making the headlines in both the consumer and adviser press, with technology systems at several financial services groups going awry.
While consumers were bemoaning banking errors at TSB, advisers had their own problems. Here are the news stories that caught your attention in the last five working days:
1) Huge portfolio loss in latest Aviva glitch
On Tuesday (24 April), Aviva admitted its platform had been erroneously telling advisers of huge losses for clients invested in their discretionary managed portfolio.
Advisers found themselves receiving email updates warning that portfolios had dropped by more than 10 per cent over a thee month period, prompting concerned advisers to contact the insurer.
The company later made efforts to contact affected advisers and removed the alert notices from affected accounts.
2) Failing to stop phoenixing adviser
Treasury minister Robert Jenrick was centre of attention on Tuesday (24 April) when he gave a speech in Parliament urging the FCA to take action on IFAs phoenixing to dodge their Financial Ombudsman Service obligations.
Mr Jenrick outlined plans to work with the FCA to put new rules in place to stamp out the practice.
“Phoenixing in these circumstances is wrong,” he said. “It leaves consumers and taxpayers out of pocket and the reputation of the industry tarnished. These practices can be deeply corrosive to public trust in the system, which in time is passed on to the whole of our economy.
"I will urge the FCA to step up its efforts.”
3) Best and worst auto-enrolment pensions revealed
The industry learnt of the gulf in quality between the best and worst auto-enrolment pension funds in an analysis published by research group Defaqto.
Zurich, Willis Towers Watson and Scottish Widows were found to have the best performing workplace default funds, while Now: Pensions had the worst returns.
Now: Pensions' director Rob Booth queried the research, claiming that the returns quoted were out of date because they were more than six months old.
“Since the beginning of 2017 alone, the fund has produced returns in excess of 10 per cent, which would put it at the top of the tables,” he claimed. "Pension fund performance has to be looked at over the long term and we are confident that the Now: Pensions Diversified Growth fund will provide our members with strong risk adjusted returns.”
Willis Towers Watson’s Drawdown Focused Medium Risk fund, meanwhile, was found to have the best annual return up to September 2017, of 15.9 per cent.
4) Woodford's third biggest holding takes a hit
Eponymous fund manager Neil Woodford of Woodford Investment Management found himself at the wrong end of another market movement on Monday (23 April) when Prothena, a biotech firm in which he invests, saw its shares plunge 60 per cent in a day after a drug trial failed.
Prothena - listed on the Nasdaq but headquartered in Ireland - is the third largest holding in the Patient Capital Investment trust, and the sixth largest in the Woodford Equity Income fund.
Mr Woodford defended the investment, saying: "We have always been clear why we have backed Prothena and, given the positive progress throughout the development of this drug, we have been increasingly confident it would be successful.
"Such trial results are symptomatic of early-stage investing, however, and with specific regard to biotech trials outcomes are binary. Nevertheless, the result of this trial is undoubtedly a blow and we will be working with the company and its management team on its strategy– it has options.”
5) Public sector pensioners face cash clawback
On Wednesday (25 April), FTAdviser reported that tens of thousands of public sector pensioners may have to give back part of their pension, if schemes decide to recoup overpayments related to contracting out.
Reporter Maria Espadinha reported that until now, only the Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS), had ruled our recovering excess payments, but said that decisions were being made on a scheme by scheme basis.
Neil Walsh, a pension officer at trade union Prospect, warned the situation would affect dozens of public sector schemes, but said the majority of members will be in five plans: the NHS Pension Scheme, Teacher’s Pension Scheme, Civil Service Pension Scheme, Local Government Pension Scheme, and Armed Forces Pension Scheme.
