Standard Life

A-Day and demutualisation Standard Life to lose £100m from its life and pensions pre-tax operating profit, according to its half-year figures.

UK financial services may need to review its business model as the savings sector is regarded as a "middle-classed market", suggest panellists attending a Labour Party Conference fringe meeting.

Hundreds of staff at Scottish Widows faced an uncertain future last night after the company announced it was to consolidate back office jobs in Chatham, Kent, reports the Scotsman .

A quarter of advisers will only use pension term assurance for higher rate taxpayers, according to research from Standard Life.

Insurers have condemned government plans to regulate their claims departments under new rules designed to curb "ambulance chasers" who encourage spurious personal injury claims, reports the Times .

The Financial Services Authority's proposal to free-up capital across the life insurance industry has led some providers to suggest there could be reduced premiums and greater innovation across the protection industry.

The bad news is it still looks likely any number of additional wrap propositions could come to market, while the good news is existing platforms are beginning to differentiate themselves on a feedback basis.

HBOS has announced a drive on further costcutting which is expected to make annual costsavings of £300m by the end of 2009, reports the Scotsman .

The ASP hoo-ha that developed following Ed Balls' comments in July at last seems to be dying down. Attention has now turned to the much more important topic of personal accounts.

The idea of personal accounts are ‘ridiculous' when pension credit means 60% of people would not be safe in going into personal accounts, says Standard Life.