The Sunday Times reveals that savers in the closed Woodford Equity Income fund have lost more than a quarter of their money — about £1 billion — since it was controversially frozen by its administrators, Link Fund Solutions. A further article identifies another baddie in this case: the City regulator, the FCA.
The paper has uncovered a series of failings meaning the 300,000 savers trapped in the fund face the prospect of a second scandal over the mismanagement of their money. They have lost out on tens of millions of pounds because of the fire sale of assets by Link as it tried to quickly wind down the fund.
Elsewhere, they report that low earners and retired female teachers have been thrown a lifeline after the Treasury last week agreed that rules in the Teachers’ Pension Scheme should be changed. At the same time, a parliamentary select committee highlighted the so-called net pay anomaly, which costs low-paid workers £63 a year in missed pension contributions.
They also warn that if your clients (or you) are planning to work from a villa in the Tuscan hills this summer be warned: it could land them with a molto grande tax bill.
The Mail on Sunday fumes that the FCA has given banks the green light to deny mortgages to customers who have taken loan holidays during the Covid-19 pandemic. More than 1.8million people who took payment breaks were told by the Government that it would not affect their credit records. But the FCA is allowing banks to inspect account data to work out if someone took a payment break.
There’s an article revealing that dividends for the second quarter of this year declined by 57 per cent compared with the same time last year. The paper suggests how to best position a portfolio for income and find a cash oasis in the dividend desert.
They also speculate as to why shares won’t follow as the economy takes a fall.
Thousands of small firms are being blocked from Covid loans as banks close their doors to new customers, reports The Sunday Telegraph.
However, it seems mortgage searches have risen by a third following the stamp duty tax giveaway; buyers can enjoy lower property taxes until March 31.
The paper also identifies its pick of the best British funds for cautious and aggressive investors.
“It’s not how much money you make, but how much money you keep, how hard it works for you, and how many generations you keep it for” (Robert Kiyosaki)
I wish…
Keep safe, all, and don’t lower your guard. Or your mask in the supermarket.
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