Platforms

An award for the direct platform offering the most transparent and plain-English charges, terms and conditions has no recipient for the second year running.

Average investors have seen their platform costs tumble by almost a fifth in the last five years, according to research by the lang cat, but advisers are not favouring the cheaper options.

Platform group Allfunds Bank has hired Simon Shapland to head up its UK and Ireland business, following the departure of UK managing director Stephen Mohan.

Legal & General's decision to invite offers for Cofunds just two years after it bought the platform is fraught with a number of potential pitfalls, according to industry commentators.

The Caledonia investment trust has agreed to acquire a 94% stake in Seven Investment Management in a deal valuing the firm at £100m.

Legal & General is understood to be considering a sale of its Cofunds platform, just over two years after it sealed a deal to take full ownership.

Insurer Aviva has launched a direct to consumer (D2C) platform giving consumers access to a general investment account, and ISA and a self-invested personal pension (SIPP).

Stephen Mohan, UK director at Europe's largest platform group Allfunds Bank, is set to leave the firm, Investment Week understands.

Aberdeen Asset Management is to partner with pensions consultancy Hymans Robertson for a service which will see it use the firm's technology to target direct investors for the first time.

Hargreaves Lansdown has launched six "ready-made" portfolios for non-advised investors, offering access to its £5bn multi-manager range for an ongoing fee below 2%.