Laura Suter is AJ Bell's Director of Personal Finance. She joined the company in 2018 and is the go-to spokesperson on all things personal finance - from cash savings rates to saving for children and how to invest for the first time. Laura has a degree in Journalism Studies from the University of Sheffield.
Since joining the company, Laura has co-founded AJ Bell’s Money Matters campaign, which aims to help more women start their investing journey and close the gender investment gap. She writes articles for the campaign and co-hosts the Money Matters podcast.
Laura also co-hosts AJ Bell's weekly Money & Markets podcast, giving an update on all the investing and personal finance news of the week. She's regularly quoted in the national and trade press, as well as appearing on TV and radio. She speaks and presents at live events, ranging from AJ Bell roadshows to the company’s flagship investment conference, Investival, and Money Matters events.
Laura is a multi-award winning former financial journalist, having worked in this role for 10 years before joining AJ Bell. She was previously at the Daily Telegraph as an Investment Editor. During her time at the Telegraph, she was crowned the Headlinemoney Investment Journalist of the Year. She also worked for financial adviser publications Money Marketing and Money Management, as well as an investment publication in New York focusing on the hedge fund and private equity world.
28 November 2019
The potential impact of the Labour manifesto on people's finances and long term savingsLabour has published its election manifesto with plenty of proposals that could have a big impact on people’s finances and long term savings.
AJ Bell’s analysts consider the key pensions and personal finance pledges put forward by the party.
Freeze in state pension age increases beyond 66Make no bones about it – this is a gargantuan promise from...
14 November 2019
25 years of the National LotteryIt’s been 25 years since the first National Lottery draw on November 19th 1994. And despite the first draw failing to make the UK its first lottery millionaire, as seven people picked the top numbers, the National Lottery has gone on to make 5,550 people millionaires.
Loyal players who took a flutter on Lotto once a week every week since its...
4 November 2019
Help to Buy ISA end nears – what are your options?Hopeful first-time buyers only have a month left before one savings route is shut off to them forever.
The Help to Buy ISA will close to newcomers on 30 November, meaning that anyone who wants to open a new account needs to do so by then. If you’ve already got a Help to Buy ISA open you can keep paying into it and have more than a decade until you...
22 October 2019
The UK Equity Income funds exposed to low dividend cover stocksDividend cover is expected to fall to its lowest level in a decade* this year, meaning investors will understandably be jittery about what lies underneath their income funds’ portfolios. Ideally you’d want income stocks to have a dividend cover ratio at 2 times or above, meaning annual earnings are twice the level of dividends. This provides a...
21 October 2019
Woodford alternatives: The best performing UK equity income funds over 10 yearsThe only positive that investors are likely to take from the Woodford situation is that there is an end in sight and those in the Equity Income fund will get their first return of capital in January, after the first tranche of assets have been sold off. They will then receive any remaining money as and when the fund’s assets are sold. Those who...
21 October 2019
Property funds build Brexit cash buffer as outflows soarProperty funds have seen consistent outflows over the past year, as UK retail investors have withdrawn more than £4bn of money from the leading UK direct property funds. Worries about the Brexit impact on property values have made investors nervous, as well as concerns about liquidity in the funds.
The level of outflows from some of the property...
16 October 2019
Woodford Equity Income wind up: Questions answeredWhat should investors in Equity Income do now?
Frustratingly for investors, there’s still nothing they can do. The fund remains closed to redemptions and investors will now have to wait to see how much of their money they get back and how long it takes to wind up the assets. Investors who hold the fund outside an ISA or SIPP will likely have a...
15 October 2019
Woodford Equity Income wind upLink Fund Solutions, the Authorised Corporate Director (ACD) of the Woodford Equity Income fund has today announced that the fund will not re-open in December, as previously announced, but instead will be wound up as soon as possible and the proceeds returned to investors.
The announcement at least confirms the end to a sorry saga but this will...
11 September 2019
The FTSE 350 companies delivering inflation-busting dividendsIncome investors can easily be lured in by high yields, but instead of taking a big ticket payout on day one they need to hunt for income that’s going to increase each year to keep up with inflation. Inflation gradually eats away at your money each year, so if you’re relying on stocks to hand you income you want to make sure they are at least...
11 September 2019
The UK investment trusts most exposed to BrexitInvestors are understandably preoccupied with what Brexit means for their portfolio, but they need to make sure they’re aware of any hidden risks in their portfolios, and in the funds they own.
A total of eight UK-focused investment trusts have gearing of 20% of more, meaning investors in these funds are exposed to more risk. Gearing works to...
