Good morning and welcome to your Morning Briefing for Tuesday 5 August 2025. To get this in your inbox every morning click here.
Gender pension gap almost closed for new retirees, data reveals
The gender gap in state pensions has almost disappeared for today’s retirees, according to new data obtained by former pensions minister and LCP partner Steve Webb.
Figures released by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) under the Freedom of Information Act show that the average state pension for newly retired men and women is now within 1% of each other.
Cathi Harrison: Robots might take jobs but not the learning curve
I probably get asked on a weekly basis whether I am worried that the AI suitability report tools out there will decimate the paraplanning part of my business, writes Cathi Harrison, founder and CEO of Verve.
Whether learning how to paraplan and passing on that knowledge, or how to carve primitive tools and passing that down to the next generation, the accumulation and distribution of knowledge is inherent in the human race.
But if the AI can do the ‘basic’ tasks that normally fall to new people and juniors, how exactly do people ever get trainee jobs, to eventually become the senior ones whose jobs are (allegedly) not threatened by the tech?
Quote Of The Day
The majority of traces may be successful, but too many people have been left unhappy with what they feel is a ‘computer says no’ approach
– Money expert Iona Bain criticises the process to trace Premium Bonds accounts, following the news that more than £100m of prizes remain unclaimed
Stat Attack
The number of people paying tax on their savings income is set to quadruple in just four years, according to new data obtained by AJ Bell. A Freedom of Information request reveals that:
2.64 million people
are expected to pay tax on their savings in the 2025/26 tax year, up from 647,000 in 2021/22.
1.15 million basic-rate taxpayers
are projected to be caught in the savings tax net in 2025/26, more than doubling from 494,000 in 2022/23.
897,000 higher-rate taxpayers
are expected to be taxed on their savings in 2025/26, up from 405,000 three years earlier.
One in 25 basic-rate taxpayers
will pay tax on their savings in 2025/26, compared to less than one in 100 four years ago.
One in eight higher-rate taxpayers
will face savings tax, up from one in 25 four years ago.
45% of additional-rate taxpayers
are now paying tax on their savings interest.
£20bn
is the estimated total interest to be earned from non-Isa cash accounts by UK savers this year.
Over £6bn
in tax revenue is expected to be collected by HMRC from savers.
25% increase
in HMRC’s forecast for the number of savers paying tax in 2024/25 – rising from a projected 2.1 million to 2.52 million.
Source: AJ Bell
In Other News
Continuum has appointed three experienced advisers from the West Country, bringing over 60 years of combined expertise to the partnership.
Jim Low, Nick Foley and Virgil Higglesden have joined Continuum from Fleming Financial, which was acquired by consolidator Shackleton in December.
Shackleton itself was taken over by private equity firm Lee Equity Partners in June.
Low, based in Plymouth, has more than 25 years of industry experience, including over a decade at a regional accountancy firm.
He specialises in advising high-net-worth individuals and corporate clients across Devon and Cornwall.
Foley, based in Bristol, is a chartered financial planner and Fellow of the Personal Finance Society.
He brings 16 years of experience, including six years at a pension consultancy and ten at an accountancy-linked IFA firm.
Higglesden, also a chartered financial planner, is based in Exeter and began his financial advice career in 1999.
Continuum managing partner Martin Brown welcomed the trio, citing their experience and regional presence.
Bank of England faces inflation challenge as it prepares to cut rates (Reuters)
Trump administration posts guidance on tariff rollout (Bloomberg)
Who will pay for the trillion-dollar AI boom? (The Economist)
Did You See?
International advice firm Hoxton Wealth has expanded into Asia with the acquisition of Infinity Financial Solutions.
The acquisition, which is Hoxton’s first in the region and its largest to date, will add $300m (£225m) in assets under management (AUM) to its rapidly-growing portfolio.
The deal takes its total AUM to $3.3bn (£2.5bn).
Infinity, which was founded in 2004, is a leading provider of expat financial services with multiple offices across Asia.
Hoxton Wealth CEO Chris Ball said: “So far, our acquisition strategy has focused on the UK domestic market, with the objective of growing our footprint and supporting existing business in the country.
“A lot of our clients are UK expats, so a strong presence in the UK builds confidence among those with ties to the country.
“Branching out across Asia is a huge step for us.
“We are very excited to begin connecting with new clients and partners in a region where we did not previously have a huge presence, but which has an undoubtable opportunity for significant growth.”
Read the full story by Dan Cooper here.
