News & Insights

Many British pensioners enjoy healthy private pensions or have built up substantial savings that more than meet their day to day living needs. It is not surprising then to learn that about one in ten elects to gift part of their savings to their grandchildren, with average gifts amounting to £15,000 according to a survey by OneFamily.

As part of our new NEWS WRAP feature we take a look at an industry-related news item which directly affects our business and our clients.

Our new "Spotlight On…" feature focuses on an individual team member, offering an insight into their specialism and why they enjoy doing what they do with Blacktower.

To make the most of the rest of the year, one important wealth management question you should be asking yourself now is how diversified do you need your investment portfolio to be.

You could follow this with more questions: are you invested in a single country or region? What about industry sectors? And how is the mix of your asset types looking?

These questions, and your answers to them, can help you review and build your investing strategy so that you can provide for your retirement objectives. Having an understanding of some of the theory behind a good strategy is a good place to start.

The rules relating to pension transfers and inheritance tax could be set to change after HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) announced that it is to review its guidance on the matter following a number of concerns raised by the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) in a review published on July 5 2019.

One area that the OTS has earmarked for examination involves the rules relating to pension transfers made within two years of a person's death. Such transfers can result in the deceased person's remaining defined contribution pot being subject to 40 per cent inheritance tax unless the estate can prove to HMRC that the pension transfer was made without the intention to deliver gratuitous benefit.

Investment management is the practice of buying, selling, and trading financial assets, with the intention of securing a greater return than the amount paid in. Not everybody is experienced in understanding how investment management works, so it’s important to consult a financial advisor if you’re uncertain.

Good investment management is about looking after your money and will involve finding the investment style to suit your character and risk tolerance as well as your overarching retirement financial goals.

One aspect of this process is finding the right balance of growth stocks v value stocks for your portfolio - but what are they? Below we take a look at the difference between value and growth stocks, and their relevance to successful investment management.

Life is inherently risky: if we did not accept risks as an inevitable part of life, we would never leave our homes or attempt to alter or improve the circumstances which lie ahead. So, we must negotiate a certain amount of risk while avoiding the most obviously dangerous situations.

Investing for retirement in stocks, shares and other commodities is similar; we need to accept the risks. By making calculated decisions we can hopefully avoid making detrimental investment decisions.

Unfortunately, those who don't know how to invest for retirement, or those who receive bad, fraudulent or unregulated retirement investing advice, may be tempted by the promise of so-called "guaranteed" returns or unrealistically high dividends only to find that they have sacrificed their life savings for fool's gold.

After the announcement in January 2018 from the Malta Financial Services Authority, stating the significant pending changes to Maltese pension and MiFid regulations, both companies and advisers alike felt the net tighten around their daily practices.

The statement started one of the most significant shifts for the industry and sparked apprehension around those ill-equipped to provide fully compliant financial advice in light of the revised regulatory standards.