Is this an ESG backlash? Consultancy the Lang Cat says the investment industry is set to repeat the same ESG blunders if it doesn’t address a range of important issues.
As FTAdviser reports: “Advisers and analysts have criticised the responsible investment sector for its confusing and conflated terminology, a lack of clarity around weightings, greenwashing fears and “woolly” responses, as warning bells are sounded that lingering issues could cause further problems.”
Ouch.
Advisers must embrace digital tech, just like their clients have, argues Pete Coleman, chief commercial officer at Wealth Wizards. He says the future of advice will be reshaped by the pandemic and such new technology.
One question I would have asked is what will the model look like? I sense this is still up for debate. I understand how planning can be made more efficient, but what sits alongside it still seem a moot point.
Maybe tech could be applied to the following issue.
Millions of public sector workers may need financial advice to guide them through their pension options as the Government decides how to respond to the McCloud judgment on age discrimination says pension consultant LCP.
Graham Bentley examines the unspectacular progress of UK equities in Money Marketing, noting the better performance of small caps, the FTSE 100 laggards, but ponders the lack of a vehicle to directly access them.
He also notes the bias to the UK from UK multi-asset funds.
Merion has lost £1bn in assets since Jupiter completed the acquisition earlier this year though it still has more than £15bn.
An M&A specialist Giles Dunning from law firm Stephens Scown says that advisers wishing to sell should seriously think about doing so before the 2021 budget as the tax situation is likely to become less generous.
