Industry needs reform

A 1980s style Big Bang is needed to put an end to unfair charges and the dominance of a cartel of fund management groups

Our financial services industry has had a nasty habit of hiding things. These can be anything from traditional structures and bad behaviour to costs and charges. Often they are carefully wrapped in the excuses of tradition and the useful phrase: "That is the way we have always done it." This attitude, however, often leads to an attitude of complacency and cosiness that acts not only to prevent change but to destroy initiatives and dynamism. It can even lead to a cartel structure of price fixing and anti-competitive markets. This is good for those in the club but rotten for those outside i...