You have to wonder if the pandemic has taken more of a toll on professional women than is fully acknowledged.
Female representation at firms signed up to the Women in Finance Charter has flatlined for the first time.
The annual review of signatories to the charter measures the gender balance in the financial services industry at the senior management level
The latest report found the average level of female representation has remained flat, at 33% in 2021 compared to 2020.
My personal view is that for adviser firms in particular, there is an opportunity to get some really well qualified, experienced advisers if they can show understanding and flexibility around working hours.
The current decline in global markets is set to hit platform revenues this year following the “artificial numbers” and “perfectly priced” company shares of last year, according to analysts such as Altus and the Lang Cat. Perhaps not surprising given the AUM model. It will of course mean a lot of advisers will feel the pinch as well.
Maybe it is not all bad news. Stock markets have historically remained positive in months with hikes to interest rates, according to research from investment firm Dimensional, which studied 468 months of US equity market performance between 1983 and 2021, including 70 months in which rates rose and 67 in which they fell.
The FSCS is investigating an IFA that failed to pay FOS compensation.
Wellington Court Financial Services has received 25 upheld Financial Ombudsman Service decisions since March 2021 but has not paid any awards as New Model Adviser reports.
The FCA has stepped in to halt regulated business at a Staffordshire IFA firm Colbourne & Company allegedly taking unauthorised fees totalling over £250,000 from clients, as Financial Planning reports.
Finally, one for pension regulation fans and the issue of small pots. A report by the PLSA’s (formerly the NAPF) ‘Small Pots Cross Industry Co-Ordination Group’ suggests that Pot follows Member (PfM), Multiple Default Consolidators, and Member Exchange models are all potential solutions.
It is not a fan of a single default consolidator and said that a combination of models can be the most efficient approach to eliminate the most inactive small pots, as the experience of Australia demonstrates. Corporate Adviser reports.
