Investment Bonds

Investors who are being advised to switch out of insurance bonds following the Budget tax changes could be worse off after taking tax and charges into account warns AWD Chase de Vere.

Hartford Gold continues to deliver further peace of mind and investment choice to customers with two new asset classes and seven new funds.

Corporate bonds should bounce back in 2008, after a year of significant underperformance, but a flexible approach will be needed to continue providing investors with a consistent income.

Many people choose to invest their money in cash funds when the market goes through a period of uncertainty.

AEGON Scottish Equitable has launched Investment Control, an onshore bond offering investors a wide choice of funds, control over how the bond is paid for and certainty of money-back guarantees.

Lincoln Financial Group is urging advisers to focus on the IHT and tax planning benefits of investment bonds following the Government’s confirmation in the Budget that the proposed changes to Capital Gains Tax (‘CGT’) of introducing a flat rate of 18% and removing taper relief and indexation allowances, will take place.

Friends Provident, the FTSE 100 life and pensions company, has added a multi-income option to its recently launched FRIENDS Wealth Solutions Bond, as part of its plans to boost its investment bond offering.

Investors who switch from bonds into other types of investment product for tax advantage are likely to be no better off in most cases - and may actually be worse off in some instances - according to research by Standard Life.

A key announcement in Alistair Darling’s budget speech was that the rules regarding Capital Gains Tax (CGT) for collectives will change from April 2008.

NS& I (National Savings and Investments) is to launch a new issue of its Guaranteed Equity Bond on 12 March 2008. This will offer a gross return that matches FTSE 100 Index growth, up to a maximum return of 70%, over the five year term of the Bond, without any risk to investors' capital.

Winterthur announces its entry into the offshore market. Winterthur International, the new offshore Winterthur business, launches this week with the International Investment Bond provided by AXA Isle of Man.

Fidelity FundsNetwork is set to launch its Investment Bond Spring Sale with a double special offer for advisers and their clients to take advantage of.

Barclays is launching a new investment plan paying an annual income of 7.25 per cent as IFA demand for products with quantifiable risk / return profiles continues to mount.

In its latest report, “Unit Linked Bonds in the UK 2007”, Defaqto examines the pressures that are undermining these saving instruments and how they will affect their appeal to investors.

Friends Provident, the FTSE 100 life and pensions company, has added a further 18 new funds to its recently launched FRIENDS Wealth Solutions Bond, as part of its plans to boost its wealth management offering.