FTAdviser

1 day ago | ftadviser.com | Joseph Wilkins

It feels like an opportune time to write this piece now US equities have stormed back above their pre-liberation day levels. The so-called ‘magnificent seven’ have held on to their ‘magnificent’ status (for now), which leaves the US market with the same issue as ever — how to manage a historic level of concentration. Investors have flocked towards strategies that promise attractive returns on US equities without having to rely on the big guns to carry performance.

1 week ago | ftadviser.com | Louise Lewis

Vulnerable adults are often victims of financial abuse, whether by a friend, family member or third party. 70 per cent of UK legal practitioners now note instances of abuse, with more than 40 per cent of those surveyed by the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (Step) reporting that instances of financial abuse have increased in the past two years, and 82 per cent of Step members saying they expect the demand for mental capacity advice to increase as a result.

1 week ago | ftadviser.com | Damian Fantato

For some time investing in global equity funds has been in effect synonymous with investing in US equities — with all the pros and cons associated with that. Indeed global equities had a fairly easy ride for several years, powers by the so-called ‘magnificent seven’ which themselves became all-consuming to the point of comprising around a third of the global market. But since Donald Trump’s ‘liberation day’ has this changed?

2 weeks ago | ftadviser.com | Jeremy Duncombe

There are two main issues facing borrowers, and therefore the mortgage industry, right now: raising the larger required deposits made necessary by high house prices, and proving affordability given these and wider cost challenges. The latter issue was exacerbated, following the disastrous 2022 “mini”-Budget, by rapidly increasing mortgage interest rates. This, plus the withdrawal of the Help to Buy scheme in March 2023, represented an affordability double-whammy for first-time borrowers.

3 weeks ago | ftadviser.com | Melanie Tringham

After much to-ing and fro-ing, the details of the deal between government and industry were finally revealed this week, over the allocation of defined contribution default funds to illiquid assets. The Mansion House Accord, or Mansion House 2, revealed that there was an ambition for — now 17 — providers to allocate 10 per cent of their default funds to private markets by 2030, with at least 5 per cent going to UK private markets.