Category Archives: Investment

Investment

Quest CE Launches Compliance Training for Investment Advisers

Quest Continuing Education Solutions (Quest CE) is proud to announce a new product line-up to meet Investment Adviser’s Compliance Training Needs. Since 1986 Quest CE has built a reputation of being the premier provider of Compliance Education Training to the financial services industry including insurance professionals and FINRA regulated Broker/Dealers. Quest is now able to address the regulations and requirements that face the Investment Adviser world.

Quest CE’s comprehensive Investment Adviser Training Program allows advisers to complete essential training through a cost-effective one-stop easy to use program. The Investment Adviser Compliance Training program enhances advisers’ ability to provide investment advice to clients, protecting the client, adviser and firm.

Courses include:

• Anti-Fraud Programs and Controls
• Anti-Money Laundering and the Red Flags Rule
• Investment Adviser Client Suitability
• Information Security Protecting You, Your Clients and Your Firm
• Investment Adviser Code of Ethics

Complete Investment Adviser Compliance Training Packages start at $25.00 with individual courses starting at $10.00.

Content
Our courses are delivered through interesting and interactive self-paced online presentations. All of our courses use images and manageable page lengths to enhance the learning experience and make compliance enjoyable.

Compliance Tracking
Quest also offers a complete suite of compliance tracking tools including:

• Outside Business Activities
• Gifts and Entertainment
• Political Contributions

Professional Designation & Insurance Training
Quest CE is a Nationally Approved Provider of Insurance Continuing Education (Insurance CE). Each year we deliver over 150,000 insurance CE courses. Complete state CE packages start at $29.95 with individual courses starting at $12.95.

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Saxo Bank Releases Quarterly Outlook For Q4 2010

In its economic outlook for the fourth quarter of 2010, Saxo Bank recognises growing optimism in recent months due to a strong earnings season but the state of the US economy still overshadows these results. Saxo Bank, the trading and investment specialist, expects final sales to remain weak in the second half of 2010 and into 2011 and the unemployment rate to continue to hover just below 10% in the fourth quarter.

Commenting on the outlook, David Karsbøl, Saxo Bank’s Chief Economist said: “With the S&P 500 currently trading around the same level as it did at the beginning of the year, and with the lack of investments due to a weak housing market, the ongoing trouble in Southern Europe, and most developed economies, Saxo Bank fears that a cold front will stall, bringing more challenges and adversity going into 2011.”

Equities rely on the notion that the impressive earnings growth rates, recorded in earlier quarters, can be sustained. According to the Bank, the trouble is that earnings growth currently comes almost exclusively from one source: margin expansion, and while productivity gains can only take income to a certain level, sales growth must soon step up to the challenge.

The Bank predicts that spending at state and local levels remains a downward trend as policymakers scramble to balance their budgets. Despite the fact that the recession is generally perceived to have ended in the summer of 2009, it is still very much a reality at state and local levels.

“Double dip fears re-emerged over the summer as the deceleration in the US economy progressed as predicted in our 2010 Yearly Outlook. We expect growth to come to a complete halt in the fourth quarter of 2010 as consumption deleverages, the manufacturing sector will slow down, and investments will be negatively affected by the weak housing market. Unfortunately, the risk of a double dip, within the next few quarters, is substantial in our view.” Karsbøl added.

The Quarterly Outlook Q4 2010 focuses on the following areas: general market comment, macros forecast, FX outlook, equity outlook, commodity outlook and policy rates.

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Saxo Bank Launches New Morning Markets And Trading Notes On TradingFloor.com

Saxo Bank, the specialist in online trading and investment, has launched two new European morning publications entitled the ‘Morning Kickoff @ Saxo Bank’ and the ‘Saxo Bank Charts of the Day’ which will be published through the Tradingfloor.com site.

The trading Morning Kickoff @ Saxo Bank will deliver analysis and trading commentary on both short-term intraday events and the longer-term trends which are important to traders dealing Forex – foreign exchange or equity markets.

The Saxo Bank Charts of the Day, on the other hand, provides a snapshot of key graphical indicators traders should be watching to detect any changes in market trends and sentiment.

David Karsbol, Saxo Bank’s Chief Economist, said, “The creation of these two notes marks our (Saxo Bank / Tradingfloor.com) desire to provide readers with a comprehensive overview of the market drivers without cluttering up an already information-overloaded world.

“We have balanced the need for fundamental information on what has happened, what is about to happen and what could transpire, with a set of charts to help understand the relationships between key instruments and indicators.”

Tradingfloor.com is a website bringing traders insightful commentary, analysis and research to keep them informed on strategies and news in Forex, FX-options, stocks,commodities and CFDs. Some of its key publications and channels include:

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Saxo Bank Releases New Monthly Equity Research On Value Stocks In tradingfloor.com

Saxo Bank, the specialist in online trading and investment, has launched a new monthly equity research publication entitled “Global Value Equity Strategy” focused on highlighting the most undervalued stocks from around the world. It will appear each month on the Equities section of www.tradingfloor.com.

The “Global Value Equity Strategy” will highlight a value portfolio on 30 of the most undervalued stocks from around the world according to a proprietary equity screening model. Each issue of the publication will included back testing results and performance evaluation of the live portfolio.

“One of the many advantages of such a value strategy is that the investment horizon is longer, usually one year or more, eliminating short-term volatility currently prevalent in equity markets,” said Christian Blaabjerg, chief equity strategist at Saxo Bank. “Equity related investment letters are widely distributed on the Internet nowadays. Few of them, however, focus on undervalued securities.”

The “Global Value Equity Strategy” report includes a brief introduction to value stocks, how to recognize them and why investing in them is likely to generate superior returns compared to widely used benchmarks. The phrases “growth stocks” and “value stocks” appear fairly often in financial reports and publications and the “Global Value Equity Strategy” explains that a growth stock is a company, often large and well-known, which has generated high and stable earnings growth over a longer period of time. Investors tend to value such stocks higher as they extrapolate historical growth into the future. The problem is that only few stocks are able to maintain such earnings growth for a long time and competition typically results in a slowdown, eroding margins and market share for growth companies. This seems to explain why they tend to be inferior investments.

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Prudential Reveals 1 In 3 UK Couples Know Nothing About Their Partner’s Finances

Prudential has revealed new research that shows UK couples could be risking poverty in old age because they are failing to talk to one another about financial planning for their retirement.

The study found that nearly a third of couples (32 per cent) aged 40 and above but not yet retired* say they don’t know or understand the details of their partner’s retirement savings, with more than a fifth (22 per cent) saying they have never talked to their partner about financial planning for retirement.

The findings from new research commissioned by Prudential reveal that women are even less likely than men to discuss financial planning for retirement with partners, with almost a quarter of women (24 per cent) saying they have never discussed this, compared to almost one in five men (19 per cent).

And a further 12 per cent of women and 11 per cent of men say they know nothing about their spouse or partner’s finances – and they’re not really interested. This lack of interest could be compounding low levels of financial awareness.

To help people prepare for their retirement, Prudential has produced a decade-by-decade guide to the conversations couples need to have at pru.co.uk/couplesconversations. Suggested subjects include making a will, discussing pensions and how much to save, talking about when to retire, working out retirement income, reviewing total savings, researching annuity options and when to buy, checking National Insurance contributions, talking about housing options, leaving an inheritance, and agreeing on long term care.

Andy Brown, investments director at Prudential, said: “It is incredible that so many people do not know the details of their partner’s retirement savings. Essentially, this could mean millions of UK adults are banking on hope as their core retirement strategy and are approaching what is arguably the most important financial decision without a full understanding of their household financial situation.

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Saxo Bank Announces Half Year Results

Saxo Bank has announced its half year results, with the trading specialist reporting pre-tax profits of DKK 729 million and a net profit of DKK 551 million. The results for the first half of 2010 also revealed the company’s operating income reached DKK 1,992 million and an EBITDA of DKK 881 million. The solvency ratio for Saxo Bank Group was 19.2% (18.9%).

The results achieved in the first six months of 2010 are rooted in increased market activity as well as decisions and actions taken since shortly before the onset of the financial crisis in the autumn of 2008. Since then The Bank has:
– increased efficiency through IT investments, work process rationalisation, outsourcing and business focus;
– reduced its headcount by approximately 40% from the peak level in September 2008
– completed 10 acquisitions, all of which have lived up to expectations
– launched significant new products within FX, Equities and Commodities
– expanded the business to include asset management
– increased its geographical footprint with new offices in nine countries
– increased its deposits and funds under management significantly
– established IT development centres in India and Ukraine in addition to its Danish IT centre.

During the first six months of 2010, Saxo Bank saw positive developments in key drivers such as the number of clients, number of trades and trading volumes.

The Bank’s clients’ collateral deposits increased by approximately DKK 11 billion to DKK 26.6 billion including clients’ collateral deposits from the Nordic activities of E*Trade, which Saxo Bank acquired in April 2010. Saxo Asset Management, Saxo Bank’s legally segregated asset management division increased its assets under management from DKK 21 billion to 28.8 billion including DKK 4.2 billion from Saxo Bank A/S during the first six months of 2010.

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Saxo Bank Joins SunGard As Co-Title Sponsor In 2011

It has been announced that Saxobank, the trading and investment specialist, is to become a co-title sponsor with SunGard, one of the world’s leading software and technology services companies.

Following the announcement during the Tour de France that SunGard had agreed to become co-title sponsor for the next two years, Bjarne Riis, owner and manager of Riis Cycling A/S, revealed at a press conference in Copenhagen that Saxo Bank will be the other co-title sponsor in 2011. The Team will be called “Saxo Bank-SunGard Professional Cycling Team”.

Bjarne Riis said: “I am very happy to announce Saxo Bank and SunGard as future partners. With these two companies committed to the team, we have a solid financial foundation for the future. Saxo Bank and SunGard have ensured that the Team can continue its essential role within the world of cycling and will be able to maintain competing at the highest level. With Saxo Bank and SunGard as two strong backers, our future looks very bright. I am grateful for their commitment and I am confident that this will be mutually beneficial to all involved.”

Based on the prospects presented by the Team for 2011, Saxo Bank has taken a strategic decision to sponsor the Team for one more year. Saxo Bank has sponsored the Team since 2008 but took over as main title sponsor on 1 January 2009. According to the Bank, the sponsorship has already achieved great branding results and increased Saxo Bank’s name recognition around the world. Saxo Bank’s decision to continue the sponsorship for yet another year is based on a genuine wish to support the Team but also a commercial decision to further build on the advantages that Saxo Bank believes is extended through this additional commitment to the Team. The new, unnamed sponsor, announced during the Tour de France, was willing to step aside in order for the Team’s new plans to materialize.

In a joint statement, Kim Fournais and Lars Seier Christensen, Co-CEOs and co-founders of Saxo Bank, said: “Bjarne Riis has delivered excellent results over the past couple of years and has an impressive plan for 2011.We believe it’s important to recognize an unprecedented opportunity when you see one and therefore, we have decided to continue our sponsorship for one more year. In Saxo Bank, we always aim for the top and we believe Bjarne Riis and his Team can reach that goal next year. While our past collaboration with Bjarne Riis has been fantastic, we also know and trust the new co-title sponsor, SunGard, and that has made this strategic decision an even easier one to make.”

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Saxo Bank Re-Launches ForexTrading.com

Saxo Bank, the specialist in online trading and investment, has re-launched its website www.ForexTrading.com to provide a simple entry point to anyone looking to become a forex trader and to be a useful resource for foreign exchange traders, or others, interested in the trading of currencies.

The redesigned ForexTrading.com website will focus on providing visitors with all the information necessary for traders like topical forex market information, news and analysis from Saxo Bank and third parties, and on forex education using Saxo Bank’s TradeMentor program and comprehensive financial glossary. The ever-popular free forex charting widget will also remain on the website too.

“ForexTrading.com is already a successful domain, attracting large numbers of new and returning visitors. The new version of ForexTrading.com augments the popular forex trading information and analysis of the old site with much more content from Saxo Bank and third parties,” said Hugh Taggart, head of research & analysis tools at Saxo Bank.”

“Visitors to ForexTrading.com are often there just to learn how to trade forex or to see the latest forex quotes, news and analysis. This version of the website answers those needs concisely and provides a link to opening a trial or live account with Saxo Bank,” he added.

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Saxo Bank Celebrates Success Of Its Sponsorship During Tour De France

With Andy Schleck as team leader, the Saxo Bank team won four stages, the youth competition and finished in second place overall. Saxo Bank remained front and centre as the cycling drama unfolded, from Fabian Cancellara’s time trial win in the Rotterdam prologue and Andy Schleck’s seventeenth stage victory in the Pyrenees Mountains to the finale on Avenue des Champs-Élysées.

Bringing Saxo Bank fans together to support the team during this year’s Tour de France was an important goal for Saxo Bank in its third season as sponsor of the team. The online bank organised on-site events that let fans and clients experience the race closer than ever before. In Rotterdam, Bruxelles, Avoriaz and Paris, hundreds of guests were given a chance to watch the race as VIPs, meet the riders for autographs and photos and see the mechanics working on the bikes.

Saxo Bank also provided exclusive online coverage on its website, Saxobanktakingthelead.com, including incredible behind-the-scenes looks at Team Saxo Bank’s tactics, training and, of course, the bikes. In addition to the website, Saxo Bank knit the community of cycling enthusiasts and Saxo Bank fans together with real-time race updates and the latest Tour de France developments directly on their computer or mobile phones via Twitter and other social media activities.

Saxo Bank’s Tour de France facts and figures:

– Searches for the Saxo Bank brand on Google doubled over the course of the Tour. – The saxobanktakingthelead.com website had an increase of 459.79% growth in absolute Unique Visitors during the Tour.
– The Saxobank Twitter feed received a record 4,678 followers.

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Saxo Bank Launches New Suite Of Free Forex Widgets

Saxo Bank, the specialist in online trading and investment, is launching a new Forex Content Sharing Program, with a suite of freshly-designed Forex widgets that bring real-time FX prices, charts and commentary, to any website or blog.

Saxo Bank Launches New Suite Of Free Forex Widgets

Forex Trading widgets are ‘mini web pages’ which add live, continually updating FX content to a website. Seven customisable web widgets, including a Forex Quote List, Currency Converter, Forex Ticker, real-time Forex Chart, Economic Calendar, Price Alert and Market Call videos, are now available to webmasters and bloggers who register as Content Sharing Partners. Each widget is based on Flash components, making it simple to add them to any platform, including Facebook, WordPress and Blogger.

“Widgets are becoming increasingly popular as internet tools. Ours allow users to add live Forex content to any website, whether it’s a financial site, an FX trading blog or a travel site offering its customers real-time currency conversions,” said Adrian Coxon, Saxo Bank’s head of Online Marketing.”With our Content Sharing Program, Saxo Bank is making it easier than ever for a variety of websites to add Forex information that will be relevant and useful to their visitors.”

“All of our widgets have been re-designed for today’s blogs and websites,” Coxon added, “And we’re particularly excited to be adding streaming video with Market Call, which delivers video updates from Saxo Bank’s renowned Forex analysts directly to our Partner’s websites.”

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The Children’s Mutual Reveals Dads Are Number One Hero For Kids

The Children’s Mutual has revealed that Dads, and not footballers or pop stars, are the number one hero for kids aged between five and seven for the second year running.

The annual UK poll by The Children’s Mutual has revealed that although Dads have topped the list of heroes, mums will be disappointed as they have fallen from the number two spot last year, to number three in 2010.

However if Dads want to top the list again next year, they can’t afford to rest on their laurels just yet. They face strong competition from fictional characters such as Ben 10, Spiderman and Hannah Montana. Interestingly, there are four new entries in the top 10 this year, with teachers coming in at number five, the ever-popular Cheryl Cole at number six and Granddad at number nine. Those to fall out of favour in 2010’s top 10 include Gabriella from High School Musical, Power Rangers, Dora the Explorer and Sporticus.

Tony Anderson, Marketing Director at The Children’s Mutual, said: “Since last year, Dads have continued to inspire their children and have held on to the top spot to be their number one hero. Dads have beaten off stiff competition from great fictional characters such as Doctor Who and Ben 10 which is a huge achievement.”

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Prudential Reports Over A Third Of Women Face Retirement Poverty

Prudential has revealed new research that shows more than a third of women (35 per cent) planning to retire in 2010 will receive an income which is below the poverty line* – £14,000 a year or less – according to the latest findings** from Prudential’s Class of 2010 retirement survey.

Prudential Reports Over A Third Of Women Face Retirement Poverty

By comparison 29 per cent of men will face their retirement on an income of less than £14,000 a year.

The gender gap becomes even starker over the age of 65 where 42 per cent of women over 65 will have incomes below the poverty line compared with 33 per cent of men. According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, a single person in Britain needs to earn at least £13,900 a year before tax** in order to afford a basic, but acceptable standard of living.

Overall nearly a third (32 per cent) of people planning to retire in 2010 will have an income that falls below the poverty line.

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The Children’s Mutual Reveals Cost Of Top Career Aspirations Set To Soar

The Children’s Mutual, the leading Child Trust Fund provider, has revealed new research* that suggests parents could be facing a bill in excess of £100,000 if their children grow up to fulfil their career ambitions.

The annual ‘What I Want to Be’ poll revealed that among five, six and seven year-olds, becoming a teacher, doctor or vet are the jobs of choice. The Children’s Mutual warned parents to start saving now as the latter two could cost £116,000 and £117,000 respectively in 18 years time.

Tony Anderson, Marketing Director of The Children’s Mutual, said: “Parents tell us their young children are highly ambitious and that they, as parents, fully intend to help them fund their futures. But the sums of money the top careers command could cause financial nightmares for families who don’t plan ahead. While the Coalition Government has announced its plan to significantly reduce payments into Child Trust Funds from 1 August 2010 and to abolish the scheme altogether for new babies born from 1 January 2011, the reality is that the cost of children’s futures hasn’t changed. We believe that the only way for parents to financially manage these costs is by saving regularly over the long term and are urging them to continue doing so.”

The Children’s Mutual questioned over a thousand parents about what their children said they wanted to be when they grew up and found that the majority of today’s children are looking for a career which requires further training and education. The top careers of doctor, teacher and vet have featured in the ‘What I Want to Be’ poll for the last three years, demonstrating that children consistently aspire to careers that will need higher education.

According to The Children’s Mutual, 93% of parents of today’s young adults are still funding their children, and the expert in long-term savings for children does not anticipate this changing. The Children’s Mutual is urging parents to continue saving regularly over the long term rather than having to face finding such large sums of money in the future.

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Saxo Bank Launches Forex Education Programme On Facebook

Saxo Bank has announced the addition of a Forex Trading Education tab to its Saxo Forex fan page on Facebook, allowing traders of all experience levels to enhance their Forex trading knowledge and gain new insights into the psychology of trading.

Facebook has over 400 million users worldwide, and a growing number of companies are moving to the platform to educate and communicate with customers. The Saxo Forex Facebook page has seen a rapid growth in number of ‘fans’, Facebook’s term for users who show interest in the company and automatically receive all updates of the page. Since its launch in February the page has attracted over 5,500 fans, a large percentage of whom read new posts and follow discussions on a daily basis. The page enables users to participate in Forex trading discussions and stay informed of upcoming events, such as seminars.

Many Facebook users with little trading background discovered the page as well, and asked for ways to improve their Forex Trading knowledge. Saxo Bank formulated an education application that is useful for traders of all experience levels. The programme consists of beginner, intermediate, advanced and expert sections. The application will soon be recieving an update, giving visitors the opportunity to test their knowledge beforehand in order to help them decide at which level to start learning. The update will also give users the option to post their progress in the education section on their wall, which will be visible to this person’s contacts.

Educating clients has always been one of Saxo Bank’s strengths. TradeMentor, its existing education programme, offers online and offline course materials on both Forex Trading and CFD Trading and the company aims to reach a broader audience with the Facebook application, giving users the opportunity to discuss the topics with other traders.

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The Children’s Mutual Finds Parents Of Younger Children Being Warned To Start Saving

According to research by The Children’s Mutual, a leading Child Trust Fund provider, parents of 18 to 30-year-olds are warning families of younger children to start saving now to fund the future, with nearly a 28% saying that they have either remortgaged or are planning to remortgage to fund their child’s adulthood. The research also revealed that many parents of adult children said that if they had their time again they would have saved more.

The Children's Mutual Finds Parents Of Younger Children Being Warned To Start Saving

As the coalition Government threatens to cut the Child Trust Fund (CTF), The Children’s Mutual is urging parents whose children are eligible for the accounts to make the most of them while they can.

David White, Chief Executive of The Children’s Mutual, said: “Saving for your child is a ‘necessity’ not a ‘nice-to-have’. Parents of today’s 18 to 30-year-olds are having to find an average of £30,000 to fund their adult children the hard way – by remortgaging or borrowing further. We believe the only way that most families will be able to help fund children to fulfil their potential going forward is by saving regularly over the long term.”

Parents of CTF holding children should not be disheartened or confused by the coalition’s proposal. The Government has confirmed that for existing customers, the accounts will remain as they are; meaning that the families of the five million CTF holding children across the UK can continue to save up to £1,200 a year tax efficiently to help give their child a much needed springboard into adulthood.

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The Children’s Mutual Reports Saving For Children Is Still Crucial

The Children’s Mutual, a leading Child Trust Fund provider, reports that saving for children is crucial and urges the 5 million families whose children hold Child Trust Fund (CTF) accounts to continue saving for their children into CTFs.

The Children's Mutual Reports Saving For Children Is Still Crucial

David White, Chief Executive of The Children’s Mutual, said: “The CTF has changed the nation’s savings habits and we congratulate families across the UK for recognising the critical importance of saving for their children’s futures.”

According to The Children’s Mutual, today’s parents are paying out an average of£30,000 to fund their children between the ages of 18 to 30 and these costs are only expected to rise for families of tomorrow.

The Children’s Mutual urges families to not be disheartened by the Government’s announcement to stop all payments to Child Trust Funds by January 2011, but to continue to help their children fulfil their future potential by saving regularly over the long term. CTF holding children now have a unique asset that others will not.

The Children’s Mutual also revealed that the Child Trust Fund is the single most successful savings policy to date and that this sort of short term cut does not address the pressing need for families to save or recognise the significant benefit to society that the CTF will bring from 2020 as maturing funds return an anticipated £2.96bn each year to the economy.

David White continued: “We also reassure our current and existing customers that having been in existence for the last 129 years, we have been providing long-term savings accounts for children and helping support families throughout our history. We are committed to continuing to do so in the future.”

Launched in 2005, Child Trust Funds were designed to provide a tax efficient, long term savings vehicle for all eligible children. Newborn children (born on or after 1 September 2002) received a £250 Child Trust Fund voucher (£500 for low income families) from the government when their parents registered for Child Benefit. The government then makes a second contribution of £250 (£500 for low income families) when the child reaches seven. Parents, family and friends can all then add to this account up to a maximum value of £1,200 each year. The proposed changes to the CTF will mean that for existing customers the accounts remain as before, with an annual tax-efficient top up allowance of £1,200, albeit without government’s additional contributions from 1 August 2010.

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Prudential Research Shows Advisers Turn To With-Profits Investments

New research* from Prudential shows that up to a third of advisers expect to recommend with-profits products to clients this year with bonds the most popular.

Prudential Research Shows Advisers Turn To With-Profits Investments

30 per cent of financial advisers expect to advise clients to invest in with-profits products during 2010. Of those, 63 per cent say with-profits bonds are the most popular with clients, followed by with-profits pensions and then with-profits annuities.

Prudential, whose with-profits fund returned 18.9 per cent in 2009** and paid out £2 billion to policyholders, believes with-profits are increasing in popularity as advisers look for investment products which aim to deliver long-term and steady returns.

The research went on to show 82 per cent of advisers believe long-term performance is the most important attribute when recommending investment products which reflects the growing concern about stock market volatility – just 40 per cent of advisers say the majority of their clients are happy to be subject to market volatility when making investment decisions. Around 22 per cent of advisers say only a minority of their clients are now happy to be exposed to market volatility following recent stock market peaks and troughs.

Andy Brown, Director of Investment Funds at Prudential, said: “With-profits sales have strengthened in the past 18 months as investors have looked for more cautious alternatives to pure equity investment and the growing interest looks set to continue into 2010 despite the strong recovery in the stock market.

“Clearly not all advisers are convinced by the with-profits investment story, however not all with-profits funds are the same and it’s important that investors are not misled by generalisations about the performance of these products. Our consistent approach to smoothing and bonus setting has served our policyholders well, protecting them from the full impact of volatile investment conditions while giving them the confidence of knowing that their savings are invested in a financially strong and well-managed Fund.”

Of those advisers who would recommend with-profits to their clients, 53 per cent said that financial strength was the most important factor when considering a with-profits provider.

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Principle First Highlights Budget Plans To Make Venture Capital Trusts More Attractive

Principle First has registered extremely strong demand for Venture Capital Trust (VCT) investments driven on the one hand by the VCT’s numerous tax advantages, but also by proposed positive changes in VCT legislation which were announced in this year’s budget, which if passed should allow VCTs to invest in a wider range of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with up to 250 employees, and market capitalisation up to £15m.

Principle First Highlights Budget Plans To Make Venture Capital Trusts More Attractive

Gareth Flanagan, managing director of Principle First, said: “VCTs offer an unbeatable 30% tax relief and there are now very innovative VCT models available which have very effectively minimised risk. As the top tax bracket has now risen to 50%, VCTs are a more attractive investment than ever, particularly for high earners.”

Principle First believes the recent increased demand is due to the market conditions which have made VCT investments extremely favourable at present. In the current economic environment, where bank lending to SMEs is relatively difficult to obtain, the UK’s most dynamic companies are looking around for alternative sources of finance – and see VCTs as an attractive option. Consequently, VCT managers have never had such a range of good deals coming across their desks, and the quality and standard of companies where they invest has never been so good. VCT investments offer a 30% upfront income tax relief on investments of £3,000 – £200,000.

According to Principle First, the Octopus VCT, which minimises investment risk, and Alternative Investment Market (AIM) VCTs have also benefited. AIMs work best when investing in companies with capitalisation towards £15m, and as such are poised to benefit strongly from the budget proposals to relax investment rules.

VCTs are a valuable and highly tax-efficient strategic investment which can be used in conjunction with Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) and a personal pension, as part of a rounded, balanced and tax-streamlined financial plan.

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Prudential Reveals Just One In Five Seek Financial Advice In Run Up To Retirement

According to Prudential research, people approaching retirement could be missing out on valuable guidance by choosing to shun the services of a professional financial adviser. The survey found that only 19 per cent who said they were planning to retire in 2010 got their pre-retirement advice from a financial adviser.

Prudential Reveals Just One In Five Seek Financial Advice In Run Up To Retirement

Prudential’s Class of 2010 report has also found that 35 per cent got their financial advice from friends, 10 per cent from family and 25 per cent newspapers, magazines and the internet, however fewer than one in 10 people (9 per cent) who had done their own research from newspapers, magazines or the internet then went on to seek professional financial advice regarding their retirement planning.

Vince Smith-Hughes, head of retirement income at Prudential, said: “There’s no doubt that the internet and all the various personal finance magazines and newspapers provide a wealth of useful information for people planning their retirement. But if people rely solely on this information to make a financial decision, it could lead to serious misdiagnosis and people could end up making irreversible decisions which leave them financially disadvantaged.

“The low take-up of financial advice could also be a wake-up call for the industry and regulators. The fact that relatively few consumers appear to take financial advice highlights the need to develop advice services which can address the issue of consumer access, and perhaps the industry could also do more to encourage people approaching retirement to take advantage of the expertise which are already available from advisers.

“I suspect that one reason for low take-up of financial advice is that people are reluctant to pay for it, but I firmly believe there’s no substitute for expert professional financial advice. Like many services which require skill and a detailed knowledge of the market, financial advice does cost money.”

Men are more inclined to consult a financial adviser about an endowment or their pension plan than women according to Prudential’s research (22 per cent compared to 15 per cent), while more women than men tend to seek their advice from friends or family and newspapers, magazines or the internet (38 per cent compared to 32 per cent).

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