Cashflow planning software provider CashCalc is planning to launch a new pension transfer tool ahead of new regulations from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) coming into the market in October.
To develop the new service, the provider teamed up with former FCA technical specialist Rory Percival, who now runs his own consultancy firm.
The tool will be compliant with the transfer value comparator (TVC) and appropriate pension transfer analysis (APTA) reports, which will come into force on 1 October.
Earlier this year, the regulator confirmed that the existing transfer value analysis (TVAS), which focus on the ‘critical yield’ needed to match a guaranteed income, will be replaced.
Instead the TVC will show, in graphical form, the cash equivalent transfer value (CETV) offered by the defined benefit (DB) scheme, plus the estimated value needed to replace the client’s DB income in a defined contribution pension, assuming investment returns consistent with a client’s attitude to investment risk and that they purchase an annuity.
CashCalc users will be able to sign up to the new tool on its own or as part of their regular subscription, and financial advisers will be able to use the tool to do their cashflow planning with their existing provider, the firm said.
Mr Percival said: “CashCalc is particularly well-placed to create a user-friendly and client-friendly tool to help advisers meet the forthcoming FCA requirements for DB transfers."
Ray Adams, CashCalc director and chartered financial planner, who helped creating the tool, argued a key element of the new service is that it “is available to all planners, no matter who they choose as their cash flow planning software provider”.
He said: “I fully believe that it's the responsibility of software providers to make information available to each other if it's in the interests of our users and their clients.”
Alan Chan, director and chartered financial planner at London-based IFS Wealth & Pensions, said that the new tool "is a great offering as Rory Percival has been involved in the development of it to ensure compliance".
He added: "We already use Cashcalc’s cashflow modelling software and it works really well - simple but effective. If that’s anything to go by then I’m pretty certain we won’t be disappointed with the new pension transfer tool, and all advisers or paraplanners should be using it if they are involved in the pension transfer market."
maria.espadinha@ft.com
