Scottish Widows

Virgin Money has unveiled a new type of limited condition critical illness insurance targeted as individuals seeking financial protection in the event of cancer.

LLOYDS TSB said it would set aside an additional £300m provision this year to partially cover the cost of paying compensation for endowment mis-selling, reports the Times .

Scottish Widows has updated its brand "Widow", in the first phase of its new marketing strategy.

As many as one in five homeowners have no life insurance cover thereby putting their homes at risk, new research indicates.

Scottish Widows has maintained its bonus rates on the majority of with-profits policies but the market value reduction has been cut by an average 3% on the back of improved investment performance.

For a while, the financial services distribution battle seemed to be about product providers feverishly buying up intermediary firms.

Assureweb is now wholly-owned by a consortium of five product providers as Misys has sold Sesame's remaining 60% stake in the IFA portal to its existing shareholders.

Lloyd TSB has announced it is putting aside additional funds to manage bad debt in the second half of 2005.

A panel of product providers, IFA portals and back office software firms has announced plans to set aside commercial pressures and collaborate on the development of IFA technology and support service tools.

Industry speculation suggests Assureweb is close to signing a new shareholder deal with a consortium of life insurance companies.