The 2019-20 ISA season has been a damp squib, with banks disinterested in attracting savers’ cash, rates cut, and the stock market in freefall. However, the emergence of the IFISA means alternatives beckon for those seeking a stable middle ground in terms of risk and reward.
One of the hallmarks of the cash ISA's success following its launch two decades ago was its simplicity, and it has undoubtedly proved a popular choice among UK savers.
When it comes to investing, there are numerous questions that need to be asked, and lots of things which need to be properly understood before committing your hard-earned money
For all the resilience the UK economy has shown, there is no doubt that this year's ISA season is set against a backdrop of uncertainty. Whatever the pros and cons, Brexit, and a lack of clarity on what our future economic relationship with the EU will look like, has left us at a crossroads.
With just over six weeks to go in the 2018/19 tax year, many savers and investors will be turning their attentions to ISA season, with a view to making the most of their £20,000 ISA allowance.
The housing crisis in the UK is widely mentioned in the media, but the extent of it is often underestimated.
Lending Works Blog
Product updates, business news, and current affairs.
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Peer to peer
In a decade of slow recovery, the rapid rise in asset prices has been the standout. But how sustainable has price growth been, and could we be in the midst of a bubble?
It feels like a lifetime ago, but it’s worth remembering that, prior to the 2008 financial crisis, returns on savings accounts of 5 per cent were nothing unusual.
Last week, a controversial landmark was achieved: gender equality in the state pension age. Having spent decades apart, the process of convergence began in 2010 (off the back of legislation passed 15 years prior), at which point the state pension age for women was 60, while for men it was 65.
The housing crisis in the UK needs little introduction, and the statistics say it all. Rates of home ownership plummeted from 73.3 per cent in 2007 to just 63.4 per cent by the end of 2016.
Anyone who keeps an eye on best buy tables may have noticed some encouraging shifts within the savings section.
In personal finance, there are few greater challenges than stashing away enough money to last for the duration of one's retirement.
Investing
Most people consider income tax to be a given, but in the UK it is barely two centuries old. In this article, we look at how this tax has developed over the years, and also why it is set to remain at the core of our tax system for many decades to come.
Open banking celebrated its second birthday last month, but has the ‘revolution for financial services’ that was promised actually come to pass? In this article, we look at the progress the initiative has made so far, and what the future holds in the face of high levels of scepticism.
January tends to be a comedown following the Christmas festivities, and, from a personal finance perspective, a time for many Britons to lick their wounds. In particular, for those who’ve over-extended their credit card, it may feel like the walls have started to close in.
As the good times rolled in the mid-2000s, only a precious few sounded the alarm as lending became increasingly reckless. Northern Rock's infamous 'Together' 125 per cent mortgage epitomised the rush for high loan-to-value (LTV) deals at a time when it was thought that house prices would just keep going up forever.
One of the perceived strengths of the auto-enrolment pension scheme is its simplicity – indeed, it is actually a greater effort for an employee to opt-out of a workplace pension than it is to be enrolled into one. No further actions are required, and the retirement fund grows as the months and years pass by.
The barely-anticipated Autumn Budget, perhaps predictably, fell by the wayside last week, with the country now heading to the polls next month.
Finance
Numerous theories have emerged as to why the UK has endured such a severe productivity problem over the last decade. Growth in productivity of just 2 per cent during that period would typically have been accomplished within a single year prior to the financial crisis, and thus the 'productivity puzzle' continues to confound economists
As an economy, we're a collective of buyers and sellers. One thing both parties have in common is that they want the process of making a payment to be as quick, convenient and safe as possible.
As the world's dependence on technology escalates, so too do the twin threats of fraud and cybercrime. And Brits, in particular, seem to be affected, especially so by the latter.
This week, Bitcoin breached the $12,000 mark for the first time. The total value of all Bitcoins is now approaching $100bn.
Undoubtedly the biggest driver of change over the coming decades will be Artificial Intelligence (AI) – a much-publicised subject, but also one which is often poorly understood.
The word ‘disruption’ is often associated with fintech and sporting a positive connotation to boot.
Technology
Wednesday’s Budget speech, coupled with the cut to Bank of England rates, represented a decisive response to the coronavirus. Here we analyse the impact it will have on mitigating disruption from Covid-19, along with the long-term implications of this significant fiscal stimulus.
Rumblings from the Treasury ahead of next week's Budget suggest tax grabs will be needed to fund increased spending, and it appears UK enterprise could be in the firing line. Here we articulate why targeting entrepreneurs and small business is ill advised.
On the face of it, a 'broken' energy market needed fixing, and the price caps introduced in early 2019 were heralded as the solution. But, one year later, have they actually helped consumers save?
Last week, the Office for National Statistics surprised economists by announcing that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) had sunk to 1.3 per cent for December – a full 20 basis points lower than City expectations, and also the November equivalent.
A new year, and indeed a new decade has dawned. Reflecting on 2019, what seemed to have got lost in the noise and political hysteria was the fact that the UK economy actually held up remarkably well.
For those with an eye on the economy, 'GDP day' is always one to mark off in the calendar each month. And it's been a hot topic for the UK in 2019, with the latest update showing zero growth for the period from August to October.
Economy
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With the retail sector enduring its fair share of challenges, companies are looking at new ways to attract customers, and drive conversion. In an overcrowded, dog-eat-dog marketplace, with behemoths such as Amazon flexing their muscle, it’s easier said than done.
While it has held up better than expected over the past year or two, the UK economy and its macroeconomic indicators make for anaemic reading.
It’s no exaggeration to say that the global financial system as a whole is predicated on the ability to buy something now, and pay for it later. Barely anyone would be able to make a substantial purchase such as a house without an instrument like a mortgage.
In a difficult climate, customer acquisition and lead generation present stern challenges for UK retailers, and a great deal of marketing spend invariably gets directed towards getting feet through the door.
There is a variety of literature and research illustrating the importance of building brand loyalty, albeit with some degree of variance.
Retail finance
Eighteen months ago, you could barely open the finance section of a newspaper without seeing headlines about Bitcoin.
The starting gun has been fired to seek out Mark Carney's successor as Governor of the Bank of England (BoE), but he will nevertheless remain in his post until January 2020.
Britons' obsession with home ownership is somewhat unique, and it is fair to say that many of our friends on the Continent are left perplexed by the importance we attribute to making the step up onto the housing ladder.
There are a number of statistics which emphasise the growing generational wealth divide in the UK; such as the projection that so-called millennials will be the first in modern history to be poorer than their parents.
Current affairs
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In line with our risk management framework, today we published our Q4 2019 performance update.
As a platform, we take great pride in all that we've achieved since opening our doors for business nearly six years ago. We’ve
Featured
Wednesday’s Budget speech, coupled with the cut to Bank of England rates, represented a decisive response to the coronavirus. Here we analyse the impact it will have on mitigating disruption from Covid-19, along with the long-term implications of this significant fiscal stimulus.
Rumblings from the Treasury ahead of next week's Budget suggest tax grabs will be needed to fund increased spending, and it appears UK enterprise could be in the firing line. Here we articulate why targeting entrepreneurs and small business is ill advised.
In a difficult climate, customer acquisition and lead generation present stern challenges for UK retailers, and a great deal of marketing spend invariably gets directed towards getting feet through the door.
There is a variety of literature and research illustrating the importance of building brand loyalty, albeit with some degree of variance.
Over the last decade, there can be little dispute that the reputation of mainstream banks – and particularly the so-called ‘Big Four’ (HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds and RBS) – is at its lowest ebb.
The idea of peer-to-peer (P2P) lending is a simple one; you lend money to those who wish to borrow, with a view to receiving a great return for doing so.
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The 2019-20 ISA season has been a damp squib, with banks disinterested in attracting savers’ cash, rates cut, and the stock market in freefall. However, the emergence of the IFISA means alternatives beckon for those seeking a stable middle ground in terms of risk and reward.
In a decade of slow recovery, the rapid rise in asset prices has been the standout. But how sustainable has price growth been, and could we be in the midst of a bubble?
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