Simon Read

Ipswich

Journalist at Financial Planning Today

Owner/Principal at Suffolk Coast Sailing. Yacht charters, RYA training near Ipswich, UK. RYA Yachtmaster Instructor. Love sailing, blues, rugby and Thai food!

Articles

Tax gap falls to 5.3% with £46.8bn unpaid, says HMRC

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

The estimated tax gap in the UK was 5.3% in 2023-24, meaning £46.8bn was unpaid in the year, according to new figures from HMRC. But the gap was down from 5.6%, or £46.4bn in 2022-23. The tax authorities collected £829.2bn during the year, representing 94.7% of all tax due. HMRC said small businesses were responsible for the largest share of the gap. It said small business non-compliance increased to a 60% share, up from 48% five years ago.
Ex Janus Henderson analyst found guilty of £1m insider dealing

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

A former analyst at asset manager Janus Henderson and his sister have been convicted for insider dealing and money laundering which netted them more than £1m. Redinel Korfuzi, 38, worked as a research analyst at Janus Henderson but used confidential, price-sensitive information to deal in shares of at least 13 companies ahead of market announcements.
Adviser handed £150 FCA compensation for Register listing

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

The FCA has handed £150 compensation to an unnamed adviser who said his firm was wrongly listed on the Financial Services Register as an appointed representative for an unnamed firm he had already left and never worked with. The adviser alleged the fact they were listed as an AR to the firm was adversely impacting their business and reputation.
Pension transfer times rose during tax year end

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

Simpler pension transfers took an average of just 11 days to complete in the lead up to the end of the 2024/25 tax year. The figures for the year from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, are slightly above the 10.5 days recorded at the end of last December. But half of all transfers were completed in seven working days or less during the period, according to the latest data from Origo’s Transfer Index.
New digital wealth app targets mass affuent

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

A new digital wealth app has been launched targeting six-figure earners who’ve outgrown basic financial products but don’t have the millions needed to access private banks. Sidekick has been set up by fintech veteran Matt Ford, who previously founded money management app Pariti, which was sold to Tandem Bank in 2018.
Metro Bank executives fined for rule breach

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

Craig Donaldson and David Arden, former CEO and CFO of Metro Bank, have been fined £167,325 and £100,950 respectively for being knowingly concerned in a breach of the listing rules. The FCA’s Upper Tribunal upheld the regulator’s earlier decision. Metro was hit with a £10m fine in 2022 for breaching the Listing Rules by publishing incorrect information to investors. As a company listed on the stock exchange, Metro provided quarterly financial results to the market, the FCA said.
1 in 10 on brink of financial crisis

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

One in 10 of Brits are on the brink of a financial crisis and one in 50 are already in one, according to the latest annual financial resilience report from Royal London. Mid-life adults aged 30 to 49 are the worst affected age group, with 16% either in or close to a financial crisis. Only two-fifths, 41%, of the age group are satisfied with their standard of living.
Shackleton taken over by New York private equity firm

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

Fast-growing Financial Planning firm Shackleton, formerly the Skerritts Group, has been taken over by New York-based private equity firm Lee Equity Partners, which has taken a majority investment in the firm. The amount and terms of the investment have not been revealed and the deal is subject to regulatory approval. Lee Equity will succeed Shackleton’s current private equity investor Sovereign Capital Partners which first invested in Skerritts in March 2021.
1.5m workers can't afford to save into a pension

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

More than 1.5m UK workers say they cannot afford to save into a pension. They are the ‘gig’ workers who have non-traditional roles, such as freelancers and unpaid carers and those on zero-hours contracts. According to new data from retirement specialists PensionBee published today, 57% of the UK’s 2.8m 'temporary economy' workers can’t afford to save into a pension.
Senior financial services women handed honours

1 week ago | financialplanningtoday.co.uk | Simon Read

Four senior women in the financial services industry have been handed senior awards in the King’s Birthday Honours List. Debbie Crosbie, Nationwide chief executive, has been given a damehood for services to the financial sector. Ruth Handcock, chief executive of Octopus Money, has been awarded an OBE for services to financial services and investments.