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Paraplanner, Glasgow More details of the vacancy and how to apply here
Auto Enrolment - are you preparing? It is good to see that the government is going to promote the impending changes within ‘auto enrolment' for employees into pensions. Given the fairly lame attempts to do something vaguely similar in 2001 with Stakeholder pensions, we hope this initiative is the first real step towards plugging the retirement savings gap whilst ensuring that employers accept responsibility for their employees at the same time. That said, not only is it important for employees to understand and appreciate what this initiative really means, but more so it is imperative that employers, particularly during a very tough economic and business climate, build auto enrolment into their business plans over the months ahead.
Focusing on Tax Scott Mackintosh talks to the CA Magazine about why tax is an important consideration when making any investment decision - particularly for high earners.
The Pros & Cons of low interest rates Scott Mackintosh comments on the latest MPC decision to keep Base Rates at 0.5% Whilst in my view it is absolutely necessary for interest rates to remain historically low at present, this does cause issues, both now and in the future. The key factor now is that whilst low interest rates are great news for borrowers , they're really not so hot for savers. As the current position is unlikely to change for some time, this means that people who do have money to save really need to take sound advice as to how and where they can go to try to get some decent returns. However, my key concern is for people who continue to rely on low interest rates to make their current borrowings affordable as when rates increase, and I believe they will increase dramatically within the next couple of years or so, unless current borrowers have reduced their debts during this time this will cause great financial strain - again! The best suggestion is to build a relationship with a trusted IFA who can start working with you now to navigate you through the slings and arrows as they come....
SCFDG (Scottish Charity Finance Directors Group) January Network Lunch to take place at EIC Ltd The January Networking lunch for members of SCFDG will take place on 19th January at EIC's offices in Leith.
Are you a parent worrying about the costs of further education for your dependants? Scott Mackintosh, EIC Director, talks to the Scotsman about how parents can best prepare. Read the Full Article
Qualified independent advice more important than ever when it comes to retirement Everyone knows there has been severe damage done to the levels of confidence which people have in high street banks since 2008; whilst it is often still seen as the ‘easy option' to pop into the local branch, when you need specialist expert advice you really should bear in mind that a fully independent, qualified financial adviser may well be your best bet. This recent article highlights retirement planning as an area where many banks have been caught coming up very severely short.... Read the full article
Interview with Lesley Mackintosh, 3rdi, November 2011 Lesley Mackintosh, CEO of EIC and Independent Women talks to 3rdi Magazine about her journey as founder of both businesses and brands - and her plans for growth. Read the full article
Finance for students - and parents It's that time of year again, as exam results come out, students are racing to get their FE place sorted out. For many, this will mean the first time they are really having to take control of their finances and learn how to manage what is actually a limited stock - CASH!
Lesley Collins a new UKFE Ambassador (UK Female Entrepreneurship) Lesley Collins, CEO of EIC Ltd and Independent Women, has been appointed an Ambassador as part of the UKFE programme for 2011. Recognising Lesley's business acumen and years of experience running and developing her financial services businesses, Lesley has much to contribute in terms of energising and inspiring young women around the UK. Her commitment to UKFE this year means that Lesley will undertake to carry out at least six different events or activities that can contribute towards this aim and show young women across Scotland and the UK that they can achieve whatever they set out to do, with hard work and determination to succeed. UKFEA is part of a wider EU-funded ambassador network. The European Network of Female Entrepreneurship Ambassadors (ENFEA) is a comprised of 22 European countries including the UK, France, Germany and Italy. Together, these countries provide a high-level network of 250 role models who act as ambassadors, sharing the message about the benefits of female entrepreneurship across Europe. Read full article.
EIC / IW is looking to recruit an Assistant Paraplanner to join the business at an exciting time, as we begin a programme of expansion.
The EIC / Independent Women team spoke with Julia Bradshaw at FT Adviser about the company's ambitious plans for expansion at home and abroad - and why we are so well placed to build up our customer bases and unique service proposition. Read full article
Families Juggling Too Many Balls In this month's Scotland on Sunday, Scott Mackintosh talks about the impact of recent tax, benefit and pensions legislation and the added pressure of rises in the cost of living; and he asks how families can best manage the impact and balance the need to spend, save, plan for the future and pay for the day-to-day....
Don't Get Diverted From Your Goals Scott Mackintosh tells the Scotsman that it is crucial that investors don't get distracted from their long term objectives, by short term switches between funds, equities and bonds. He comments that his focus for clients is always their long term life-shaped objectives and this must always be done in conjunction with crucial tax planning that is right for the individual client.
EIC : proud to be runner up in the Scotsman's IFA of the Year 2010 - the culmination of Awards Season
Nerves of steel and absolute client focus Scott Mackintosh tells the Scotsman how he approached this year's IFA of The Year competition challenge and how he balanced the need for stellar growth and performance against the paramount importance of the right tax wrapper and a focus on long term client need.
"EIC Success in Scotsman IFA of the Year Competition 2010" February 2011 EIC is proud and delighted to have achieved the ‘Runner Up' position in the Scotsman's IFA of the Year Competition 2010, announced on Friday 26th February 2011.
As Money Moves discusses the virtues of this relatively new concept, Scott Mackintosh of EIC points out that, whilst these funds absolutely have a place in a balanced portfolio, it's important that investors really understands what is ‘under the bonnet' before they press ahead...
Get the bigger picture November 2010 Scott Mackintosh shares with the Herald his views regarding the impact on the financial services industry of the coming Retail Distribution Review (RDR); he explains how the review aims to improve professional standards, will help better define service levels and fee structures and will insist upon more robust capital adequacy ratios, increasing confidence for the consumer in the inherent strength of the company. Transparency and focus will be watchwords and will generally encourage the development of financial advisers as partners who assist clients with a long term, often complex financial plan rather than, as has sometimes been the case in the past for some advisers, as one-off stock selectors. For Mackintosh, this is not a threat, but an opportunity for his business, EIC, which is well placed to benefit through its historical long term investment in client relationships and robust back office structures.
EIC announces Alzheimer Scotland as its chosen charity November 2010 EIC Director, Scott Mackintosh, discusses his personal involvement with the charity and explains that EIC seeks to lend its support to charities in Scotland in particular, to reflect the locale of the majority of its client base. He is keen to help support the invaluable research carried out by Alzheimer Scotland into a disease that strikes so many individuals, often at younger ages than people tend to imagine. EIC has elected to make a donation to the charity this Christmas, in lieu of sending Christmas cards and Mackintosh explains that this is the first stage in contributing greater support in the future, from both a personal and an organisational perspective. Read the full article
Advice review a challenge for both sides 13 November 2010 Scott Mackintosh comments in the Scotsman on the challenges facing the IFA industry from the FSA's Retail Distribution Review (RDR) planned for implementation on 31st December 2012.
Scotsman IFA of the Year 2010 25th September 2010 With just a few months left in the competition, Scott Mackintosh's portfolio shows an outstanding return of over 15%. Will market turbulence and a hinted double-dip recession change this in the remaining three months? To read more about the competition so far, including updates about the finalists and the performance of their portfolios, please see our Scotsman section on the left or click here.
Protecting your assets from inheritance tax 31st July 2010 "...the nil rate band is frozen at its current level until 2014/15...likely to capture more individuals as inflation alone causes the value of estates to rise..."
The Scotsman Money Moves 5th June 2010 How financially stable is my bank? Scott Mackintosh considers the pros and cons of high street investments.
SIPPs and self-investing for retirement 20th February 2010 The benefits of self-invested personal pensions and how to tailor your retirement plan. Read more
How should I invest £70,000 to generate an income? 26th October 2009 ..a mixture of an ISA and fixed-income funds, says EIC's Scott Mackintosh... Read more
Timing is vital over bond surrender tax 26th September 2009 Scott Mackintosh of independent financial adviser [EIC] replies: It is possible to time the surrender of the bonds to minimise potential tax, but this is a complex area and advice is essential... Read more
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