AJ Bell has added the Standard Life International Bond to its Investcentre platform, offering advisers a fresh tool for tax and estate planning within a General Investment Account wrapper. The AJ Bell Standard Life bond allows clients to switch investments without triggering a capital gains tax liability, and to withdraw up to 5% of premiums paid each year with tax deferred until a later date, subject to individual circumstances.
For clients in, or approaching, drawdown, that combination of flexibility and deferral can matter considerably. The ability to rebalance a portfolio without an immediate tax charge is particularly useful for anyone managing sequence-of-returns risk, where the timing of withdrawals relative to market moves can erode capital. Deferred tax is not avoided tax, however, and planners will need to model the eventual liability carefully against a client’s projected income in later years.
AJ Bell Standard Life Bond: What Advisers Should Consider
Offshore bonds have a long-standing role in estate and income-tax planning, but they are not a universal solution. The 5% annual withdrawal facility is often misunderstood: it represents a return of capital rather than income, and unused allowances can be carried forward, but large encashments in a single year can produce a substantial chargeable gain. The product will suit some clients far better than others, and the suitability assessment remains the adviser’s responsibility, not the platform’s.
Regulatory and Market Developments Worth Watching
Elsewhere, the Financial Conduct Authority secured confiscation orders worth £851,000 against two men convicted in connection with a £1.5 million crypto investment fraud. At Southwark Crown Court on 28 September, Raymondip Bedi was ordered to pay £603,404.28 and Patrick Mavanga £247,997.99. The pair operated a fraudulent scheme between February 2017 and June 2019, cold-calling consumers and directing them to fake cryptoasset opportunities through companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP. For advisers regularly fielding questions from clients about direct crypto exposure, the case is a useful reminder of the risks that sit outside regulated advice.
Aviva Master Trust has surpassed £20 billion in assets under management, serving more than 650,000 members across over 650 participating employers. Louise Williamson, head of Aviva Master Trust, attributed the milestone to new employer wins, continued contributions and investment performance, and described the growth as “strong, sustainable.” Greater scale, she said, allows the scheme to invest in technology and improve services for employers and members.
On the legislative horizon, Neil Macleod, senior technical manager at M&G, has drawn attention to income tax changes due on 6 April 2027 that may receive less attention than the proposed inheritance tax reforms for pensions. From that date, the basic, higher and additional rates applying to savings and property income will rise from 20%, 40% and 45% to 22%, 42% and 47% respectively. For clients holding income-producing assets outside tax-sheltered wrappers, the uplift is worth factoring into any income-planning review well ahead of that date.
New YouGov research commissioned by Mattioli Woods finds that 44% of Britons do not feel financially prepared for any major life event before retirement. Among 45-to-54-year-olds, that figure rises to 53%, compared with 32% of those aged 55 and over. The average age at which Britons believe people should begin serious long-term financial planning is 28.5, suggesting a persistent gap between intention and action that advisers working in the accumulation space will recognise.
