If there has been one takeaway from this week, it's that football is definitely coming home. Or it isn't. Depending on how you interpret England's latest attempt to win the World Cup.
But since today is the first day in more than two weeks without any football, we should probably find some way of keeping ourselves entertains. So here's the week in news.
1) The drawback of drawdown
The clean-up operation of George Osborne's decision in 2014 to give pensioners freedom of access to their savings continues apace.
This week the Financial Conduct Authority published a series of measures aimed at helping retirees put their pension pots to good use, including by nudging them earlier to make a decision about their nest egg, and make pension companies clarify costs in pounds and pence not percentages.
Under the FCA's plans new consumers opting for non-advised drawdown will be offered at least one default investment ‘pathway’ by their pension provider, with a high-level objective and the strategy it will use to achieve it.
The FCA found around 50,000 (33 per cent) non-advised consumers were wholly holding cash, with more than half at risk of losing out on significant returns as a result.
It also found advised drawdown clients were paying more average charges in four out of seven providers, when compared to how much consumers who aren't advised are having to pay.
2) Out with the Old Mutual
This week the much-anticipated separation of Old Mutual Wealth from Old Mutual took place, with the former becoming Quilter.
Quilter floated on the London Stock Exchange with a valuation of around £2.76bn.
The business excludes the single strategy funds operation of which Richard Buxton is chief executive. That business has been sold to a group of private equity investors and the management team, led by Mr Buxton.
The multi-asset fund management division, led by Anthony Gillham, remains part of the Quilter business.
3) FSCS bill born in the USA
Investors in a failed American property scheme could be in for a windfall as lawyers are preparing claims, which they hope will lead to an additional multi-million payout.
Anthony Philip James & Co (APJ) is preparing claims on behalf of 100 investors in Invest US Limited, a failed company which bought up repossessed properties in Detroit, Florida and Chicago following foreclosures after the financial crisis.
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has already paid out £16m in claims against an advice firm entangled in the sale of the investments.
But the lawyers believe a further £7.3m could be unlocked in top-up compensation for those who invested more than the £50,000 statutory limit the FSCS can award from other entities.
4) DB transfers not as easy as PI
Financial advisers performing a high volume of defined benefit (DB) pension transfers are having their level of professional indemnity insurance coverage reduced to £500,000, as insurers are wary of the risks involved in this type of business.
A growing number of financial advice firms are having this £500,000 limit across the life of their policy applied as "a way to avoid exclusion".
Previously, they would have the full limit of professional indemnity insurance cover without any restrictions, of £1.75m.
Julian Brincat, head of IFA practice at professional indemnity insurance broker Protean Risk, said the industry was heading to firms having complete exclusions on defined benefit (DB) transfers, or having these inner claim limits which only gives them relatively small limits of indemnity to cover them for DB advice.
5) Government wins £263bn pension case
The government has won a legal challenge to force some schemes to invest in line with UK foreign and defence policy despite a recent policy paper saying it has no interest in aligning investment decisions with government policy.
Pension experts have warned the contradiction could lead to confusion and higher costs for pension schemes.
On 6 June a Court of Appeal ruling, overturning a previous High Court decision, said the investment decisions of Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) funds in England and Wales, with assets of £263bn in 2017, must not be contrary to UK foreign policy or defence policy.
This month’s win for the government in the Court of Appeal ruling was contradicted by proposed policy to require trustees of pension funds with 100 members or more to show how they are considering environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in their investment decisions.
In the paper the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) states: "For the avoidance of doubt, none of our proposals seek to direct pension scheme trustees to invest in line with… government’s policy objectives."
damian.fantato@ft.com
