3 July 2025
What has beaten out private equity in UK takeovers this year?Private equity companies haven’t been as prolific or successful with UK takeovers this year as their reputation implies. It’s easy to suggest they are behind most bids, yet data tells a different story.
There were more trade buyers than private equity bidders on UK-listed takeovers in the first half of 2025, according to analysis by AJ Bell...
3 July 2025
Can you afford to take time off work?Taking an extended break from work has become increasingly popular in the past few years, whether as a solution for burnout, the chance to make a career shift, or simply to take some time to explore.
But if you’re taking leave from work, it usually means giving up, at least temporarily, the salary that comes with it. This can mean a big hit to your...
30 June 2025
How to tell if gold is getting expensive (or not)Gold bugs will be beside themselves after the precious metal’s 44% gain in dollar terms over the past year, but the more investors who buy in, the more of a consensus position it becomes, and the more of a consensus position it becomes, the fewer incremental buyers there are to drive up the price.
True believers will continue to warn of the dangers...
30 June 2025
Five hacks to generate a £16,000 tax-free incomeFamilies could boost their income by more than £16,000 without handing a penny of it to the taxman, using five simple tax hacks.
Couples with one partner earning less than the personal allowance can benefit from the marriage allowance, while those earning less than £17,570 can benefit from up to £5,000 in tax-free savings income, thanks to the...
26 June 2025
Companies buying bitcoin see big share price gains: what could go wrong?There is a growing number of companies investing in cryptocurrencies, even though it might have no relevance to their day-to-day business. This emerging trend has caught the attention of certain investors, who have bid up shares in many companies to excessive valuations.
One example – a web design agency called The Smarter Web Company – saw its...
20 June 2025
This is when more interest rate cuts might happenThe Bank of England may have kept rates unchanged in June, but this is unlikely to remain the case once we reach Autumn.
Against a backdrop of armed conflict, tariffs and inflationary pressures, it’s little wonder the Bank of England is holding fire on interest rate cuts and kept the cost of borrowing at 4.25% at its latest meeting.
The spike in...
19 June 2025
How to keep your money safe from WhatsApp scams and DeepfakesAll investors know that putting money in the stock market comes with risk attached. Over the long term your investments will tend to rise, but along the way they’ll go up or down. However, there is a risk many of us don’t consider very often, and that’s the possibility of falling prey to an investment scam.
Unfortunately, scamming has become a...
18 June 2025
How much cash do I need for emergencies?Having money saved for a rainy day can be key to making you feel financially secure. But how much savings you should hold, versus when you should start investing, can be difficult to balance.
Generally, advisers recommend holding between three and six months of expenses in cash savings. Many people refer to this pot as an emergency fund. This is...
18 June 2025
Watch out: inheritance tax benefits on AIM stocks to change in AprilInvesting in shares on London’s AIM market is a way to pass down wealth at death without losing money to the taxman. Certain AIM stocks qualify for 100% inheritance tax relief, yet the rules will change from April 2026. Now is an ideal time to understand how the system currently works and what will change in the future.
How the AIM system currently...
13 June 2025
Get ready for a ‘cruel summer of speculation’ ahead of the BudgetThe Spending Review was chancellor Rachel Reeves’ last scheduled foray into the national limelight before the Budget in the autumn, and attention will now turn to what tax rises might be in the post.
It’s not the Spending Review itself which will fan the flames of speculation, but the expansion of the Winter Fuel Allowance, which the government...
11 June 2025
Five ways to reduce your tax billTaxes are one of the certainties of life, but it doesn’t make it feel any better when you see them come out of your income. However, if you’re smart with your money, there are ways to protect your savings and investments from unnecessary taxes, leaving more for you to enjoy down the line.
Often, the key to these savings is to act sooner rather than...
6 June 2025
Does your pension meet the new retirement savings estimates?The amount of money you will need for retirement has ticked up for those aiming for comfortable or moderate lifestyles in later years, according to research by the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA).
A single retiree is now expected to need an income of £31,900 each year for a moderate lifestyle (a £400 increase on the previous...
4 June 2025
Four ways we hold ourselves back from investingIf you read, listen or watch anything about finance, the mantra that ‘markets historically outperform cash’ has likely been engrained into your mind. While you might agree with this statement logically, you also could still be sitting on a pile of cash savings and have little to no investments in the market.
In case you haven’t heard the spiel...
4 June 2025
Should my investments be chosen by a computer or a human?When you choose to invest, one of the first decisions you make is if your money will be invested actively or passively.
But what is the difference between the two? In short:
An active fund means that the investments are hand-selected by a fund manager. A passive fund means that your money will be invested in a fund that follows a specific index...
30 May 2025
Ways to pay your investment fees (and not think about it)Paying fees on your accounts is admittedly not a fun task, but keeping on top of your investment charges is important to ensure your portfolio continues to run smoothly.
If not, there is a chance those fees could be taken out of your investments themselves, which could cost you in the future by having less money in the market. Instead, make sure...
23 May 2025
Your ETF might not hold what you think it does – is that okay?Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are a type of tracker fund and are meant to be a simple way to access a particular part of the market. You buy shares in the ETF and it mirrors the performance of a certain index. Look a bit closer and you’ll find some ETFs are not quite what you think are.
A traditional equity fund contains a portfolio of different...
22 May 2025
Reporting capital gains tax for 2024/25? Make sure you’re not caught outChancellor Rachel Reeves increased the main rates of capital gains tax (CGT) to 18% and 24% in her maiden budget on 30 October 2024. The rate for trustees and personal representatives also rose to 24%.
But the mid-year change means some people filing self-assessment tax returns for 2024/25 risk underreporting and underpaying any tax they owe.
That...
21 May 2025
Who should I trust for information about money and investing?If you do a quick search on the internet of how to invest your money, you will likely end up with millions of answers and many that seem to contradict each other.
In short, no one can tell you with certainty what investment will give you the best returns. But if you have specific questions about your finances, or are looking for where to start...
16 May 2025
How to protect yourself from pension and investment scamsFinancial scams are depressingly common, particularly following a period of high inflation and rising interest rates which stretched millions of household budgets to breaking point. Economic turmoil is like blood in the water to scammers, who are using increasingly sophisticated tactics to fleece people of their hard-earned pensions and investments...
15 May 2025
How much time do I need to spend researching and monitoring investments?How you choose to invest your money is an important decision, but it doesn’t need to be a time consuming one.
While choosing individual stocks can mean close monitoring to decide when to buy or sell, many other types of investments offer a much more hands-off approach at minimal costs.
In fact, choosing your investments and then giving them time to...
9 May 2025
Should I opt out of my workplace pension and think about retirement savings later in life?Workplace pensions can be incredibly powerful savings vehicles. Your contributions are topped up by additional money from your employer and the government that can double the value of what you put in before it’s invested.
It’s also probably the simplest way to invest. If you work at a company, are aged 22 or older, and earn over £10,000 per year...
8 May 2025
What the second UK interest rate cut of the year means for investments, savings and mortgagesThe Bank of England has cut UK interest rates to 4.25% and this has a major impact on personal finances. It is the lowest level for rates in two years.
The cut is good news for anyone looking to buy a house or flat as mortgage rates should come down, although many rates have already fallen in anticipation of Bank of England base rate cuts.
Investor...
6 May 2025
Are you adding to the £280bn cash in accounts paying no interest?If you want one figure to sum up the apathy of the UK’s savers, it’s the fact that £280 billion is sitting in accounts earning absolutely no interest, at a time when interest rates are north of 5% for some savings accounts.
The latest Bank of England data to the end of March shows that there is a mountain of cash paying no interest, which has...
1 May 2025
How to invest when you’re not interested in financeThe finance industry is often associated with Wolf of Wall Street and finance ‘bros’ whose main interest is talking up crypto. You might think investing is only for these types of people, yet it is something that most individuals can do, and without much effort or knowledge.
At first glance, investing can look complicated from a practical point of...
29 April 2025
How AJ Bell DIY investors navigated the Liberation Day sell-off and recoveryThe way individuals responded to the market sell-off depended on their own personal circumstances. However, there were clear trends among AJ Bell’s DIY investors who felt confident enough to buy in the week after Trump’s big speech despite stock markets falling by a considerable amount in the first three trading days after the event.
With so much...
