Editorial: Assureweb deal is a shrewd move by insurers

Now, attention has turned to distribution tools, and providers are buying stakes in fund supermarkets and IFA portals to secure their own product distribution. Fidelity launched the FundsNetwork supermarket, CoFunds is backed by asset managers and insurance giants such as L&G, while Assureweb is now owned by five providers – Aegon, Clerical Medical, Friends Provident, Norwich Union and Scottish Widows, and there has been recent talk of another consortium of providers discussing the prospect of buying The Exchange. It has already been suggested the purchase of distribution platforms is...