Barclays is to stop offering a full-scale wealth management service to clients with between £100,000 and £500,000, as part of a scaling back of its global wealth division.

Wrap platform Standard Life has revealed the names of the first seven fund groups who have offered it preferential ‘super clean' share class deals, with a further four to be announced in the coming weeks.

Standard Life is to abandon its existing platform discounts for large adviser firms in favour of negotiating individual prices with firms based on assets under management, as well as loyalty to the group.

Fund buyers have cautioned on investing in the UK's buoyant property market, amid fears the sector may be overheating.

Smith & Williamson is reducing the number of holdings in its £87m North American Trust by almost 50% as part of an overhaul of the fund, which also sees lead manager Lady Tana Focke step back from her role.

Miton has reported pre-tax half-yearly profits of £300,000 to 30 June, down from £500,000 from the same period last year as expenses rose.

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Investec Asset Management has set out a marker for other fund groups on super clean after launching low-cost share classes for six of its most popular funds.

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett has compared the Federal Reserve to a giant - and successful - hedge fund, after the central bank opted not to taper its asset purchase programme on Wednesday evening.

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