Two sides of the story

'Equitable' has become something of a dirty word in financial services, following the Equitable Life scandals of recent memory. But Scottish Equitable (no relation) has managed to transcend its name to become a significant player among the life insurers. It harbours ambitions to become one of the top three providers in the UK. Scottish Equitable has not been immune to the problems that have hit the life industry over the past few years. Some of its largest and most high profile funds have underperformed. It has had the usual problems with its with-profits business. As with many of the oth...