Coutts in Bristol Co-Sponsors Jack Vettriano and Jeanette Jones Exhibition at the Royal West of England Academy

Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:04:16 GMT

Coutts in Bristol announces their co-sponsorship of the Jack Vettriano and Jeanette Jones: The Ballroom Spy exhibition at the Royal West of England Academy which will be shown until 31 August 2011 at the Royal West of England Academy.

Paul Kirk, Managing Partner for the South West was the senior host at the reception, which was held at the Royal West of England Academy. The NSPCC helpline, Childline is the Coutts Senior Client Partner nominated charity of the year. A charity auction held on the evening included a signed print from Jack Vettriano titled: dances in emerald, a lunch for four in the Directors dining room at Coutts’ head office in the Strand and a number of donated items from local clients. Richard Neville, Senior Client Partner at Coutts in Bristol is a keen watercolour painter and donated two paintings of Venice. These were all auctioned to raise more than £6,000 for the NSPCC. A total of £7,000 was raised for the charity, including donations from guests.

Richard Neville, Senior Client Partner at Coutts in Bristol said “We are thrilled to sponsor The Ballroom Spy by Jack Vettriano who is arguably the country’s most popular living artist and Jeanette Jones who mirrors his painting talent with her photographs. Coutts has a strong presence in Bristol and a long heritage of supporting the arts which goes back 300 years. We are very proud to be carrying on this tradition and playing our part by sponsoring this exhibition at the Royal West of England Academy.”

Jack Vettriano & Jeanette Jones: The Ballroom Spy will be shown until 31 August 2011 at the Royal West of England Academy. The Ballroom Spy is a dramatic dance-inspired collaborative show, featuring twelve new paintings by Jack Vettriano, and over forty black and white photographs by Jeanette Jones. The Ballroom Spy showcases the glamorous and intoxicating world of professional ballroom dancing, taking the viewer on stage and behind the scenes; from covert glimpses of backstage nerves to the full flourish bravado of performance under the glare of the spotlight.

Coutts & Co is the UK private banking arm of the Royal Bank of Scotland. The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is one of the world's largest banking groups.

Coutts & Co offers clients a range of products and investment services covering sophisticated investment products together with expertise in trust and fiduciary services and UK tax and banking services. Coutts commercial banking arm also provides full banking service to UK businesses.

SCC and HP agree new strategic investment to grow substantial networking business

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 09:56:06 GMT

SCC, the leading pan-European technology integrator, has agreed a strategic investment programme over the next two years to grow a substantial HP networking business. The agreement underlines SCC’s market leading position with HP and its expertise in selling network solutions that meet the end customer’s business needs.

The investment includes new recruitment involving ‘building a dedicated and specialist sales resource and both recruiting new and training existing technical expertise’, explains Andy Wright, SCC’s Director for Vendor Alliances. This will extend and strengthen SCC’s networking capabilities as part of a long standing strategy to enrich and extend its infrastructure services.

Andy Wright adds: “Increasingly, the network infrastructure is not keeping pace with the growth in applications to be a competitive differentiator. Our customers both private and public stand to achieve significant cost savings, reduce TCO and purchase price and use their network resource more effectively by taking advantage of new opportunities, such as unified communications. This will help to release business potential and create competitive edge.”

SCC already has a strong track record in the corporate UK market place for providing unified communications solutions having invested heavily in its capabilities and successfully grown a multi-million pound business. The new agreement with HP to develop its network business is the latest move to meet changing customer needs and help deliver strategies to cope with the new demands being made on their networks.

Alan Ryan, who runs SCC’s networking business, explains: “The network must be able to fully support both the organisation and new technologies, including unified communications, AV or VoIP, to achieve real competitive advantage. Today, employees have become accustomed to being part of an ‘always-on’, perpetually connected culture and the ability of an organisation to rapidly adopt emerging technologies is now a real expectation.

“We understand these market drivers and when aligned with our customer experience in the UK market, our strong technical skills and an ongoing investment in our networking capability, we are strongly positioned to maximise our customer’s operational effectiveness, reduce their cost base in the long term and align the IT strategy to that of the business to release its full potential.”

Prudential reveals a return to stock market as interest rates prompt rush for risk assets

Thu, 11 Feb 2010 12:13:57 GMT

Prudential has released findings from its latest research which shows that financial advisers are predicting a significant return to the stock market in 2010, with 72% expecting an increase in the number of clients looking to invest in equities over the coming 12 months.

While Independent Financial Advisers (IFAs) questioned for the Prudential study predicted a strong return to the stock market in 2010, they also believe that investors will look to adopt a more cautious approach on the back of the worst recession since World War II.

Almost three quarters (73%) of IFAs expect clients to invest in cautious managed growth funds, with 66% expecting to see investment in defensive funds and 70% believing investors will also look to spread risk by buying into multi-manager funds.

In addition, 55% of IFAs expect clients to invest in absolute return funds and 68% expect to see ongoing investment in bonds. In contrast, just 18% expect to see clients looking to invest in individual stocks and shares and 46% expect clients to invest in higher risk growth funds.

Andy Brown, Director of Investment Funds, Prudential said: "Given the performance of the markets in the second half of last year coupled with the ongoing poor rate of return for cash based savings, it is perhaps unsurprising that IFAs expect to see more clients looking to return to the stock market and buy into equity based investments in 2010.

"However, in reality not all equities will show equal growth over the coming 12 months and choosing the right time to invest in the right asset classes is key."

The survey also found that 71% of IFAs believe the recession will have a long term impact on the way clients look to invest and prompt them to adopt a more cautious investment strategy and be more reliant on professional advice. Of these advisers, 83% said they believe clients will be more cautious with investment decisions and favour more balanced portfolios, with 68% of IFAs expecting investors to utilise independent financial advice when choosing investment funds.

To meet this demand, Prudential recently launched five new actively-managed risk-rated multi-asset funds designed to help advisers focus on client management through an extension of its partnership with independent investment specialist Old Broad Street Research (OBSR).

The partnership gives advisers access to the asset allocation expertise of Prudential's Portfolio Management Group* (PMG), which currently manages over £100 billion of capital, and the fund selection and recommendation experience of OBSR, in one place.

The funds are actively risk managed in line with their portfolio investment objectives and may help reduce the risk of potential TCF issues through running static portfolios.

The five portfolios – Defensive; Cautious; Cautious Growth; Balanced; and Adventurous – are available on a range of Prudential personal pension products, income drawdown, onshore and offshore bonds.

- ENDS -

Notes to Editors:
The information contained in Prudential UK's press releases is intended solely for journalists and should not be used by consumers to make financial decisions. Full consumer product information can be found on the Prudential website.

* When managing these portfolios PMG work within M&G Investment management Limited, part of the Prudential Group.

Phone survey conducted 25Nov-1Dec 2009 by George Street Research. A total of 100 interviews were completed amongst Independent Financial Advisers throughout the UK who do 10% or more investment business (with at least 50 required to do 25% or more investment business).

About Prudential:
"Prudential&qu

NS&I reports growing confidence among British savers for the year ahead

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 10:40:37 GMT

According to the latest Quarterly Savings Survey by NS&I, the British population is feeling increasingly confident about its ability to save more in the coming year. Perhaps encouraged by recent reports of a financial upturn, British savers are more confident in their outlook with over a quarter of the population (27%) saying they are more likely to save money in the next 12 months than they did last year.

The NS&I figures reveal that male savers appear especially confident about the likelihood to set more money aside in 2010, with almost a third (30%) saying they will save more in the next 12 months, up from 25% in autumn 2008. By comparison, women savers have remained consistent in their outlook with 24% expecting to save more in the coming year, the same figure as autumn 2008. It is also the first time since spring 2008 that male savers have said they are more likely to increase rather than reduce the amount they save over the coming year,

Tim Mack, NS&I's savings spokesperson, commented: "People are increasingly confident that they will save more over the next year than they have done in the last year. Improving prospects in 2010 may be one reason, or it could be that people are taking the New Year as an opportunity to review and refresh their finances, and to increase their savings to boost their financial security."

Greater London, Wales, East Anglia and the North East England are the areas displaying the most certainty, while people in the South West are the least optimistic. Just 22% of people in this area thought they would save more in 2010.

For regional data, a copy of NS&I's Quarterly Savings Survey, case studies or further information on the statistics supplied in this release please contact the NS&I media team. Previous copies of the survey are available from the NS&I website.

Notes to editors
The Quarterly Savings Survey began in 2004, and reached its 5-year anniversary in autumn 2009
The autumn 09 omnibus survey was conducted by TNS, amongst 3012 respondents between 4 September 2009 and 1 November 2009.

Senior spokespeople are available for interview and high-resolution photographs can be supplied.

About NS&I
NS&I is one of the UK's largest financial providers with almost 27 million customers and over £96 billion invested. It is best known for Premium Bonds, but also offers Inflation-Beating Savings accounts, Savings bonds, Guaranteed Equity Bonds and Children's Bonus Bonds in its range. All products offer 100% security, because NS&I is backed by HM Treasury.

NS&I products are available over the telephone, internet, post and by standing order. They are also available through a network of Post Office branches, and the product range guide is available in over 300 WHSmith high street stores.

Saxo Bank announce Outrageous Claims for 2010 now live on Trading Floor

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 14:51:16 GMT

Saxo Bank's annual 'Outrageous Claims' now has its own page on tradingfloor.com, the home for news from the Denmark-based online bank's strategy team.

Among the 10 'Outrageous Claims' for 2010 are predictions of the devaluation of the CNY, the emergence of a third political party in the US, a massive fall in the price of sugar, a positive US trade balance for the first time since the 1975 oil crisis and the US Social Security Trust Fund going bust.

The online futures trade and investment specialist's ten claims are an annual thought exercise to predict rare but high impact 'black swan' events that are beyond the realm of normal market expectations. The exercise aims to challenge market conceptions. Compiled as part of the bank's 2010 Outlook, the claims this year paint a picture of a more positive year ahead but with a few tremors along the way.

David Karsboel, Chief Economist at Saxo Bank, commented: "We believe that 2010 will be a year of reflation, but structural headwinds lie ahead of us and could turn 2010 into a rollercoaster ride.

"One of the most likely structural headwinds will be a shift in investor focus towards slowing GDP and timing issues regarding the path of FED tightening. This will bring risk aversion back into markets.

"Whilst our annual 'Outrageous Claims' should be seen as the black swans of the market rather than outright predictions, we do believe that the odds of these events happening are somewhat higher than what is currently priced into the market," David Karsboel concluded.

About Saxo Bank
Saxo Bank is an online forex trading, CFDs trading and investment specialist, enabling clients to trade Stocks, Futures, Options and other derivatives, as well as providing portfolio management via SaxoWebTrader and SaxoTrader, the leading online trading platforms. SaxoTrader is available directly through Saxo Bank or through one of the Bank's global partners. White label is a significant business area for Saxo Bank, and involves customised and branding the Bank's online trading platform for other financial institutions and brokers. Saxo Bank has more than 120 white label partners and boasts thousands of clients in over 180 countries. Saxo Bank is headquartered in Copenhagen with offices in Australia, China, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, UK, and the United Arab Emirates.

Saxo Bank enter into agreement to acquire E*TRADE's Nordic business

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 15:28:21 GMT

Saxo Bank, the specialist in online trading and investment, has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire E*TRADE International's local Nordic online trading business and online bank from E*TRADE Nordic AB, an indirect subsidiary of US-based financial services company E*TRADE FINANCIAL Corporation. The Nordic business includes client accounts in Denmark, Iceland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden, and Norway.

This strategic move continues Saxo Bank's steady expansion over the last few months and further cements Saxo Bank's position in the Scandinavian marketplace.

The acquisition of one of Scandinavia's established online bank and brokerages is a further step by Saxo Bank towards offering more saving and investment products to investors. Following this latest acquisition, Saxo Bank will be able to offer pension products as well as stock and margin accounts, bond offerings and, in the future, a Funds Supermarket. Moreover, Saxo Bank's AUM will increase by more than DKK 5.0bn and the acquisition adds an additional 50,000 active accounts.

In a joint statement, Kim Fournais and Lars Seier Christensen, Co-CEOs and co-founders of Saxo Bank, said: "This acquisition supports our long term expansion strategy and broadens our product offering on the SaxoTrader platform. In addition, the expanded client base will enable us to further improve our services to both existing and new clients through improved efficiency and scale."

Following the acquisition, E*TRADE Nordic's existing local clients will continue to receive the same service and offering to which they have become accustomed. In addition, E*TRADE Nordic's local clients will benefit from the additional trading opportunities that they will find on the Saxo Bank platforms, including futures trade. Similarly, Saxo Bank's existing and future clients will now have the opportunity to save for their pension through Saxo Bank, as well as trade Bonds and hold margin accounts.

Fournais and Seier Christensen added: "The acquisition of E*TRADE International's local Nordic business will strengthen our growth opportunities and market position in Scandinavia. In the past 10 years, E*TRADE International has become a well regarded online trading and investment brand across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The combination of E*TRADE Nordic's local business and Saxo Bank's brand is powerful and it strengthens our position in the long term investment market. Saxo Bank is looking forward to being able to offer E*TRADE Nordic's products and services to our client base and vice versa."

The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. E*TRADE FINANCIAL Corporation was advised by Fox-Pitt Kelton (now part of Macquarie Capital) on this transaction.

About Saxo Bank
Saxo Bank is an online trading and investment specialist, Forex trading, CFDs trading, Stocks, Futures, Options and other derivatives, as well as providing portfolio management via SaxoWebTrader and SaxoTrader, the leading online trading platforms. SaxoTrader is available directly through Saxo Bank or through one of the Bank's global partners. White label is a significant business area for Saxo Bank, and involves customisation and branding of the Bank's online trading platform for other financial institutions and brokers. Saxo Bank has more than 120 white label partners and boasts thousands of clients in over 180 countries. Saxo Bank is headquartered in Copenha

Saxo Bank offers new guide to global economic indicators

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 11:59:52 GMT

Saxo Bank's strategy team has gathered together the most important of its macroeconomic forecasts into a new monthly publication that can be downloaded for free from the Trading Floor website.

The new Macro Forecast publication is based on the results of Saxo Bank's comprehensive macroeconomic models and is released on the first working day of every month. The publication will give the most important economic indicators for the US, Eurozone and Japan.

"The US gets the most attention in line with its position as the most important world economy with more than 20 quarterly and monthly indicators. The most important indicators from Europe and Japan will be covered initially, with more depth added with time as the publication grows," said David Karsbøl, Chief Economist at Saxo Bank.

The Macro Forecast has been designed to be easy to read and navigate. Each country has a table giving the consensus forecast, Saxo Bank's forecast, the previous level, percentage change and release date.

"The Macro Forecast isn't meant to provide trading triggers," added Saxo Bank Market Strategist Mads Koefoed, who has been responsible for developing the model. "The publication is more a signpost to the general economy and makes the strategy teams views on the development of the economy easier to follow on a regular basis."

Tradingfloor.com has been running since May 2009 and features expert commentary starting every morning with The Daily Trading Stance that Saxo Bank's strategists distribute to clients giving a rundown of the main themes of the day in Forex trading, equities, FX options and CFD trading.

The commentary is prepared by David Karsbøl, Equity Strategist Christian Tegllund Blaabjerg and Forex expert John Hardy. Futures and Fixed Income expertise is provided by Ole S. Hansen and Alan Plaugmann. Also commenting are Market Strategist Mads Koefoed and Research Analyst Robin Bagger-Sjöbäck.

The new Macro Forecast can be downloaded as a PDF. Also available are Saxo Bank Research Notes, the Equity Strategy Outlook, the Forex Portfolio Model, FX Monthly, Cross Asset Research, Quarterly Outlook, and Saxo Asset Allocation.

About Trading Floor
Trading Floor is run by Saxo Bank - one of the most successful of the new generation of trading platforms. Trading Floor delivers tradable knowledge about key industry events, global trends and trading strategy within Forex and commodity markets. Good information drives profitable decision-making, making Trading Floor an important tool for anyone involved in the markets and interested in Forex strategy. Trading Floor aims to inform, inspire and provide an entertaining read for the contemporary trader.

NSI reveals Britons failing to prioritise savings

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:29:33 GMT

NS&I has revealed that despite the financial shock of the last 18 months, data for the last five years shows that Britons have not made savings any more of a priority. This is according to NS&I's Savings Survey which, with more than 50,000 people interviewed since the Survey began five years ago, provides a comprehensive picture of the nation's changing savings habits over this period.

The data shows that in 2009, while the average monthly amount Britons save per head has increased to its highest recorded figure (£83.87, up from £70.23 in 2005), the individual savings ratio - the average amount that people say they are saving as a percentage of their take-home income - has remained fairly constant at 6.06% this year from 6.02% in 2005. It seems that the population is not diverting a larger proportion of their take-home income to savings, despite the recent economic downturn which has created a greater need amongst many to build up emergency savings in a savings account or savings bond.

Tim Mack, NS&I's savings spokesperson, comments: "Many people are now putting a few more pounds away each month for greater peace of mind. But when expressed as a percentage of monthly income saved, it is evident that Britons don't seem to have made saving any more of a priority in 2009 than they have over the past five years, despite the economic downturn.

"Taking some time to review how much unnecessary expenditure could be cut back to help focus income on what we really want and need, encourages people to develop a good savings habit. Total up how much you could save in a month, a year or even five years and see how small monthly changes really add up."

Regular savers consistently set aside more than the rest of the population, almost double the proportion of their take-home income, around 12% for each of the past five years (11.76% in 2009, a monthly average of £188.20). However, it seems that few Britons appreciate the advantages that developing this savings habit can bring - even in these more challenging economic times - as the number of people who set aside some money every month has shown little movement. In 2005, 45% said they put aside money every month; by 2009, this had only risen to 47%.

One way the economic downturn appears to have impacted on the population is with respect to their savings goals. In autumn 2009, over half (54%) of people said their main savings objective was to set money aside in case of emergency - compared to just 27% in winter 2006/2007. At this time saving for retirement (33%) and setting money aside to afford a holiday or special occasion (32%) were stated as the most important savings goals.

Tim Mack continues: "The recent financial instability appears to have encouraged many of us to set money aside, to act as a financial safety cushion in the event of the unexpected. While this is key to making sure we are financially secure, it is also important not to forget about other major expenses that occur at different life stages where we may need to draw on savings or credit if no other funds are available. Therefore we should be looking at increasing the amounts we are saving for such expenses, rather than diverting money from savings set aside in case of an emergency."

ENDS
About NS&I
NS&I is one of the UK's largest financial providers with almost 27 million customers and over £96 billion invested. It is best known for Premium Bonds, but also offers fixed rate savings bonds, Guaranteed Equity Bonds and Children's Bonus Bonds in its range. All products offer 100% security, because NS&I is backed by HM Treasury.

NS&I issues new Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:27:37 GMT

NS&I (National Savings and Investments) is releasing new Issues of its Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds with rates up to 4.60% AER* with immediate effect.

The interest rates on NS&I's other savings products will remain unchanged.

John Prout, director of customer sales and retention for NS&I, said: "The new Issues of our Guaranteed Growth Bonds and our Guaranteed Income Bonds are good news for savers. Customers can choose to invest between £500 and £1 million in our one, two, three or five-year Bonds. With the new rates starting at 3.85% gross/3.92% AER for a one-year Bond, we hope that the new Issues will be highly attractive to customers who are looking for a guaranteed fixed rate of interest, coupled with 100% security for their money, as NS&I is backed by HM Treasury."

NS&I also recently announced changes to the way customers can invest in NS&I's Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds. These products will now only be available directly from NS&I (by freephone**, online or by post) and no longer available through the Post Office.

NS&I and the Post Office have jointly agreed to this change, which is in part a reflection of the development of the Post Office's own brand of savings products. These include Post Office Growth Bonds - a very similar range of fixed rate savings bonds to the two NS&I products. The decision also reflects NS&I's desire to develop its direct sales channels. In addition to this, the move to direct channels is more cost-effective which means NS&I can offer higher rates of interest.

The Post Office will continue to offer a wide range of other NS&I savings products - including Premium Bonds and Savings Certificates - which can be purchased over the counter.

Notes to editors

* AER stands for Annual Equivalent Rate
** NS&I has changed its general enquiries number. Customers will now need to call the freephone number 0500 007 007 to contact NS&I directly. The previous number - 0845 964 5000 will continue to operate but customers may incur a charge from their provider. NS&I's sales line will continue to operate through 0500 500 000.

About NS&I
NS&I is one of the UK's largest savings accounts providers with almost 27 million customers and over £96 billion invested. It is best known for premium bonds, but also offers a Direct ISA, guaranteed growth bonds, guaranteed equity bonds and Children's Bonus Bonds in its range. All products offer 100% security, because NS&I is backed by HM Treasury.

The Childrens Mutual reveals CTFs are the most successful UK savings scheme

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:18:48 GMT

The Children's Mutual, leading Child Trust Fund (CTF) provider, has highlighted that according to new HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) figures, the CTF is the most successful savings scheme in the UK.

The Children's Mutual's analysis of the HMRC 2009 CTF report reveals that families are far more engaged with the CTF than other long-term savings products. According to the report, 74% of families proactively opened CTF accounts within a year of their child being born, yet just 40%* have a private pension and only 30% of the eligible adult population have ISAs.

Over 4.6 million children now have Child Trust Fund accounts and almost £2 billion has already been saved for children's futures.

David White, Chief Executive of The Childrens Mutual, said: "The Child Trust Fund is changing the nation's savings habits in a way that adult's savings plans have not".

According to its customer data, October has been the strongest month ever with even more parents opening accounts. The Children's Mutual also announced record numbers of parents setting up a direct debit from outset this year.

David White continued: "The fact that three quarters of families are opening a Child Trust Fund account within a year of their baby being born is great news particularly when you look at the take up compared to adult's usage of ISAs or pensions.

These new figures demonstrate the widespread support of parents towards long-term savings and their commitment to doing the best for their children's futures. Families tell us that without the CTF, they just wouldn't be saving for their children so early on."

According to The Children's Mutual figures, half of its CTF customers are committing to long-term savings from the very beginning of their children's lives by starting a monthly direct debit averaging £24 a month. Over an 18 year period, this could produce a fund of £9750 into a CTF**.

David White said: "Through the CTF, in the future all 18 year olds will have the opportunity to start adult life with an asset and this should have a major impact on their lives and the wider economy."

Child Trust Funds are designed to provide a tax efficient, long term savings vehicle for all eligible children. Each eligible newborn child (born on or after 1 September 2002) receives a £250 Child Trust Fund voucher (£500 for low income families) from the Government when their parents register for Child Benefit. The Government will make a second contribution of £250 (£500 for low income families) when the child reaches seven and is considering a third in the child's teenage years. Parents, family and friends can all then add to this account up to a maximum value of £1,200 each year.

- Ends –

Notes to editors
Figures from HMRC CTF Statistics 2009 and TISA September 2009
* Family Resources Survey, Department for Work and Pensions – published Summer 2009
** Projected value based on investing £24 a month (plus the Government's initial £250 voucher and another £250 at age 7) for 18 years in a stakeholder CTF account. Includes assumed investment return of 7% a year, with charges of 1.5% of the CTF account value each year. Projected values cannot be guaranteed as the value of shares goes up and down. So the final payout could be more or less.

About The Children's Mutual - Home of the Child Trust Fund
The Children's Mutual's mission is to help parents, grandparents,

NS&I issues new Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:03:57 GMT

NS&I (National Savings and Investments) is releasing new Issues of its Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds with rates up to 4.60% AER* with immediate effect.

The interest rates on NS&I's other savings products will remain unchanged.

The Post Office will continue to offer a wide range of other NS&I savings products - including Premium Bonds and Savings Certificates - which can be purchased over the counter.

Notes to editors

The Childrens Mutual launches CTF Cashback site to help families save while they spend

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:07:00 GMT

The Children's Mutual, leading Child Trust Fund provider, has revealed that expectant parents can earn over £200 by using its new shopping portal CTFCashback.co.uk to kit out their babies' nurseries.

Research shows that on average, British parents spend £3,383 decorating and furnishing a nursery with a further £605 spent on prams, buggies and car seats. If parents did this shopping through CTF Cashback, they could be earning financial rewards of up to £215.

Free to use, the site enables online shoppers to build up cash in £10 increments which can be placed directly into a bank account or a Child Trust Fund with The Children's Mutual.

The site, which offers members up to 20% cash back and lists over 1,000 retailers - many with additional voucher codes - can help parents and the wider family continue to save as the baby grows up too. By using CTFCashback.co.uk to purchase ongoing essentials such as nappies and baby wear right through to buying presents and even holidays.

Tony Anderson, Marketing Director at The Children's Mutual, said: "All parents quickly realise that buying everything they need and want for their child can be an expensive business. We created our CTF Cashback site to assist parents in getting great value for money on all their purchases, whilst being able to save towards their child's future".

Over 1,000 major retailers have already signed up to the scheme including leading brand favourites such as Mothercare, John Lewis, Kiddicare.com and Marks & Spencer. Collectively, retailers are offering www.CTFCashback.co.uk members average returns of over 5% through the site, with some offering up to 20% or lump sums of up to £85.

Tony Anderson continued, "When questioning expectant and new parents through our monthly poll, nearly 90 per cent* suggested that they would like to receive ‘money back' for their nursery shopping. We have taken this one step further so, whether it's buying baby grows and nappies or school uniforms and family holidays we wanted cash-strapped parents to be earning money every time they spend online. With so many pulls on household budgets, www.CTFCashback.co.uk offers a practical way of helping families to be savvy with their money and encourage them to save towards their children's futures."

- Ends -

Notes to editors:
Figures from Gurgle.com Baby Budget April 2009 and from CTFCashback.co.uk as of 28 October 2009
* Source: The Children's Mutual Brand Tracker Wave 19

About The Children's Mutual - Home of the Child Trust Fund
The Children's Mutual's mission is to help parents, grandparents, family and friends fulfil their hopes for today's children. The Children's Mutual is the only UK company that specialises in long term savings for children and is now the choice of 1 in 4 parents for their child's Child Trust Fund, with more than 725,000 CTF accounts. This expertise has led several financial institutions and family-focused high street retailers to choose The Children's Mutual as their stakeholder Child Trust Fund provider.

Saxo Bank announces intention to speed up development of trading systems

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:58:54 GMT

Saxo Bank, the online specialist in trading and investment, has announced the acquisition of a 40% stake in Initto, the Danish owned software and IT services provider. Initto has around 200 employees based mainly in India and Ukraine and the acquisition of Initto will enable Saxo Bank to continue to support and speed up the development of its trading systems.

Designed to meet the varying needs and demands of financial investors and traders, Saxo Bank has developed four specialised and integrated trading platforms; the downloadable SaxoTrader, browser-based SaxoWebTrader, compact SaxoMiniTrader and phone-based SaxoMobileTrader.

Mikael Munck, CEO of Initto, commented: "Initto provides a wide range of customized IT services and software engineering solutions to clients. We have been very successful in offering and integrating our services into the organisation of our clients. We offer access to a wide range of international specialists that focus entirely on delivering high quality solutions to our clients' allowing them to focus on core competencies, freeing up time for innovation and value creation. This is the secret of our success which we are certain Saxo Bank also will benefit from".

Since its establishment in 2003, Initto has grown by an average of 50% per year and expects to enhance its service offerings with the support of Saxo Bank as a strong financial partner. Initto is headquartered in Ballerup near Copenhagen with a representative office in Oslo. Initto will continue to develop software and provide services to its existing client base.

In a joint statement, Kim Fournais and Lars Seier Christensen, Co-CEOs and co-founders of Saxo Bank, said: "We are thrilled to have acquired this stake in Initto, which has great synergies with Saxo Bank and fit perfectly with our business model. The acquisition is in line with our ambition to acquire fully developed businesses and utilize their expertise to develop and strengthen Saxo Bank's products and services. Over the next few years, we will be working with Initto to further increase the value we offer our own clients. Initto's current and future client base will also benefit from our commitment as client and shareholder. We want to remain a first class service provider and we believe Initto can help us achieve this goal."

Notes to editors:

About Initto
Founded in 2003 by five Danish entrepreneurs, Initto is an IT services provider of a wide range of customized IT services, product engineering solutions and consulting to clients worldwide. Through a close integration with clients via its dedicated integrated sourcing model, Initto is focused on delivering high quality software and services to clients. Initto work with companies of all sizes, and its service offerings cater to multiple industry and technology domains.

About Saxo Bank
Saxo Bank is an online trading and investment specialist, enabling clients' Forex trading, CFDs Trading, Stocks, Futures, Futures trade, Options and other derivatives, as well as providing portfolio management via SaxoWebTrader and SaxoTrader, the leading online trading platforms. SaxoTrader is available directly through Saxo Bank or through one of the Bank's global partners. White label is a significant business area for Saxo Bank, and involves customised and branding the Bank's online trading platform for other financial institutions and brokers.

The Childrens Mutual reports the rise of stay at home dads

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:36:17 GMT

According to new research by leading Child Trust Fund (CTF) provider, The Children's Mutual, contrary to concerns of an allegedly worsening work/life balance in the UK*, many fathers are electing to be at home either full or part-time, looking after their little ones and taking care of the house.

Following the birth of their children, 26% of dads decided to work part-time and nearly as many (24%) started working flexibly. 14% of dads chose to stop working outside the home altogether.

43% of these dads are responding to the current recession by spending even more time helping around the house, with only 27% feeling that they now need to become more focused on earning money.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, stay-at-home dads spend the greatest amount of their time each week looking after the children (4hrs 22mins) and cooking (3hrs 50mins), as well as arranging the family finances (3hrs 45mins). And even though they have more time to be with their children than full-time working dads, stay-at-home dads wished they could spend a further hour a day with their children.

David White, Chief Executive of The Childrens Mutual, said: "The changing role of dads within families is a positive step towards the greater recognition of what dads can and do contribute to family life. Dads play a vital role within their children's lives and their homes, so it’s great to see these changing family dynamics.

"One of the most important roles for every dad is being a provider for his children, whether that's as the main breadwinner or as the lead carer. Dads want to provide for their children now and will want to continue to do so as they grow up. One way dads can really help provide for their children is planning for the future and saving regularly over the long term. Contributing towards a Child Trust Fund is one of the ways dads can save for their children's futures. By opening a Child Trust Fund early and saving regularly and encouraging friends and family to contribute too, dads can help to give their children a financial springboard into adulthood."

- Ends -

Notes to editors:
Figures refer to The Children's Mutual Working and Stay at Home Dads research, undertaken by 72 Point. 2,187 dads interviewed in June 2009.
* Telegraph.co.uk

Trading Floor adds video content from Saxo Banks team of experts

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:20:21 GMT

Trading Floor, the forex, equity and commodities blog written and run by Saxo Bank’s strategy team, is now adding regular video comments throughout the European trading session.

The comments on macroeconomic indicators, financial issues and earnings releases will complement the Daily Trading Stance video released every morning and the weekly forex options and equity update released every Friday.

Videos are recorded in the studio on the Saxo Bank trading floor, minutes after the news is released. Saxo Bank's chief economist, David Karsbol, said: "The advantage of video is that it fills in the gap between reporting the headlines and the more detailed research notes we publish.

He added: "We comment on macroeconomic indicators or earnings or central bank decisions in a way that is fast, but also allows us to give more detail in a way that allows our blog visitors to get to know us a little better."

Trading Floor has been running since May 2009 and features expert commentary starting every morning with The Daily Trading Stance that Saxo Bank’s strategists distribute to clients giving a rundown of the main themes of the day in FX, equities, FX options and commodities.

The commentary is prepared by David Karsbøl, Equity Strategist Christian Tegllund Blaabjerg and forex expert John Hardy. Commodities expertise is provided by Ole S Hansen and Alan Plaughmann. Also commenting are Market Strategist Mads Koefoed and Research Analyst Robin Bagger-Sjöbäck.

The Daily Trading Stance, daily commentaries and Weekly Forex and Equities Update are available on the Trading Floor web site and on Trading Floor’s dedicated YouTube channel.

About Trading Floor:
Trading Floor is run by Saxo Bank - a global investment bank specialising in online trading and investment across the international financial markets. Trading Floor provides up to date forex news and market place analysis.

About Saxo Bank
Saxo Bank is an online trading and investment specialist, enabling forex trading for clients, CFD trading, stocks, futures trading, options and other derivatives, as well as providing portfolio management via SaxoWebTrader and SaxoTrader, the leading online trading platforms. SaxoTrader is available directly through Saxo Bank or through one of the Bank's global partners. White Labelling is a significant business area for Saxo Bank, and involves the Bank's online trading platform being customised and branded for other financial institutions and brokers. Saxo Bank has more than 120 White Label Partners and boasts thousands of clients in over 180 countries. Saxo Bank is headquartered in Copenhagen with offices in Australia, France, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, UK and the United Arab Emirates.

Trading Floor expert predicts positive economy growth for late 2009

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 11:14:33 GMT

Trading Floor columnist and Saxo Bank chief economist David Karsbol says the American economy will return to positive GDP growth in the second half of 2009; however, the reliance of the recovery on government spending and inventory re-stocking may mean the growth is not sustainable.

Karsbol says consumer deleveraging will continue and demand will remain subdued. US unemployment will continue to rise over the coming months, further hindering debt repayments and consumption.

Saxo Bank's fourth quarterly financial outlook for 2009 is available for download on the Trading Floor site, which has been running since May 2009. Trading Floor gives daily and quarterly outlook and trading analysis of Forex, Equities, FX options, CFD trading, and commodities.

The Saxo Bank quarterly report is put together by the bank's strategy team of chief economist David Karsbol, chief equity strategist Christian Blaabjerg, consulting FX strategist John Hardy and market strategist Mads Koefoed.

The quarterly outlook predicts that monetary stimuli and government deficits are likely to continue, leading to a 'Japanisation' of financial markets - higher price-to-earnings ratios and lower yields on both corporate bonds and treasuries.

Karsbol added: "Because Western economies are more flexible and able to embrace the necessary changes, we do not think that things will get as bad as was the case in Japan.

"However, it is increasingly evident that the current scenario in the West bears a close resemblance to post-1990 Japan, and it looks progressively like we have entered a new regime in which everyone assumes that large companies will be bailed out. This means that default risk is 'priced out', and we see higher price-to-earnings ratios and lower yields on fixed income."

With maximum stimulus in the rear view mirror and austerity and exit strategies increasingly on the menu, Forex trading as a whole may begin to shift away from the rosier recovery projection that is already priced in. This could likely mean the exhaustion of many of the trends that are currently in place in FX, where so many trades are aligned along the ubiquitous risk appetite axis.

A USD short seems to be a vote for the global recovery and has become the 'newer and better' carry trade. "The very low US yields and need for external financing and increasing reluctance from China to buy greenbacks is a toxic cocktail that could drive the currency even weaker in the near term," Karsbol said.

Looking towards the end of the year, market dynamics indicate a shift from this year's equity market rally. Global equity markets rallied 59% from the March lows through to August, and looking ahead, dynamics indicate a shift in performance towards micro trends and sector-specific growth and valuation stories.

"Most indicators of economic activity are stabilising, but at very depressed levels. We believe investors should continue to take cyclical risk through regional allocations, with particular emphasis on emerging markets over Europe and the US, where it will be difficult to maintain and improve growth."

About Trading Floor
Trading Floor is run by Saxo Bank - one of the most successful of the new generation of trading platforms . Trading Floor delivers tradable knowledge and stock trading analysis about key industry events and global trends within Forex and commodity markets. Good information drives profitable decision-making, making Trading Floor an important tool for anyone involved in the markets.

NS&I reveals the luckiest regions for winning premium bonds prizes

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 09:56:58 GMT

NS&I has unveiled a list of the luckiest regions for winning Premium Bonds prizes showing that those firstly in the South East, and then in the South West of England, win more Premium Bonds prizes of £1000 or more than the rest of the UK. Ranking as third luckiest was the East of England, while North East England emerged as the least lucky of all the regions.

Sally Swait, Premium Bonds manager at NS&I, commented: "Each month ERNIE randomly generates the winning Premium Bonds numbers from his home in Blackpool, where all eligible Bonds - regardless of their age - have an equal chance of winning.

"The last year has seen the South East region receive the greatest luck in having their numbers come up, though all other regions were not without their own significant wins. As the numbers are generated randomly each month, we may very well see a change in the rankings of the luckiest regions in the UK next year."

NS&I also revealed that there are currently more than 599,000 unclaimed Premium Bonds prizes across the UK, worth over £35 million.

The good news is that there is no time limit for claiming prizes. Premium Bonds results can be found by using the Premium Bonds draw prize checker or writing in to NS&I.

Premium Bonds are an investment where, instead of interest payments, investors have the chance to win tax-free prizes. They were officially launched by Harold Macmillan, Chancellor of the Exchequer, in his 1956 budget.

At the end of June 2009, more than 23 million people had a total of over £40 billion invested in Premium Bonds. There are currently more than one million tax-free prizes from £25 to £1 million being won each month.

- ENDS -

Notes to editors
Calculations for the luckiest regions data is based on the total value of prizes (£1000 and more) won by counties with at least 100,000 Premium Bond holdings. Information is for the period July 2008 - June 2009.

The current Premium Bonds prize fund rate is 1.0% tax-free. The current odds of each £1 Bond number winning any prize are 36,000 to 1, so with average luck, an investor with £30,000 in Premium Bonds could win 10 tax-free prizes a year.

All Premium Bonds prizes are free of UK Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax.

About NS&I
NS&I is one of the largest UK investments and savings organisations, offering a range of savings accounts and investments products, including fixed rate savings bonds, fixed term investments, Premium Bonds, savings certificates, and ISAs to almost 27 million customers. Established in 1861.

NS&I report reveals future families founded on fortune

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 12:00:55 GMT

The new National Savings and Investments (NS&I) commissioned report*, 'Families, Finance and the Future', suggests the existence of a new institution of British life - the 'Financial Family' - a collaborative unit of close friends and family marked by financial interdependence. It does not simply show a steady flow of cash down the generations, or the 'sandwich generation' arrangement observed in recent years, but also shows flows of money and advice, up and down the generations as well as between siblings.

The costs of living and care for the elderly are recognised as rising, and the report suggests that the traditional family unit is shifting - yet family ties will be stronger than ever, and people will rely much more on financial networks. By 2029, there will be more cohabiting couples, and more single-person households than married couples living together** - so the Financial Family will be important even after the traditional family has declined.

According to the new survey research, the majority of people felt financially responsible for family members (54%), while 70% stated that current economic trouble meant families needed to support each other (70%).

Young people are more engaged with the Financial Family, with 50% of 16-24s identified as members of a Financial Family, compared to 30% of 25-34s and 20% of 35-44s. As this generation grows up, the Financial Family will become more and more widespread.

Technology will also mean that people are better equipped to share financial advice - but will also make it more important they do so. As the amount of information that tries to reach consumers increases, people will rely on the insights of their financial network to process this mass of information. This network is likely to revolve around the family as most people feel comfortable discussing financial matters (55%) with close friends and family, or sharing financial tips and advice (60%).

Barry Clark, Associate Director at the Future Foundation said: "We feel we've revealed a new way for people to look at British family life - and one that will become increasingly common. When we look at several demographic trends, like the rise of single-person households, the advance of technology and young people's involvement in financial matters, we can expect the Financial Family to be a very important feature in the future. The Financial Family is here to stay."

Tim Mack, Savings Spokesman at NS&I, said: "We started from an intuitive feeling that discussing money isn't taboo any more, but the results far exceeded our expectations. The research shows that the discussion of finances, and our relationship with money, extends beyond the traditional family."

Ends

Notes to editors
* Research carried out by Future Foundation in April 2009, with a base of 1,049 adults in the UK aged 16+ using desk research and original survey work. Sources the British Household Panel Survey, the ONS, Eurobarometer, the Department for Communities and Local Government, and previous surveys conducted by the Future Foundation.
** Department for Communities and Local Government figures predict that by 2029, about 40% of all households will be single-person; about 30% will be married couples; and 15% cohabiting couples. The figures for 2009 are around 30%, 40% and 10%

Trading Floor to open up trading information for forex and equities

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 17:00:33 GMT

Saxo Bank, the online trading and investment specialist, is addressing the problem of market information overload with its TradeMaker module to complement its trading platforms, as well as a new Trading floor website.

The information barriers of the past that limited trading to professional traders with a Bloomberg or a Reuter's screen have long gone. The quantity of trading information and Forex news available to all types of traders on a home or business PC has increased to such an extent that now it is possible to trade not only stocks, but also Forex and more exotic instruments such as Futures and CFDs.

But while speed is vital when making trading decisions, speed without solid strategic insight won't bring any advantages. The main problem is that as the cost of information has fallen, the volume has increased accordingly. Trying to find a way through this jungle of FX crosses, quotes and trades is sometimes a challenge even for the most experienced trader.

TradeMaker is a real-time trading idea generator that is part of Saxo Bank's award winning trading platforms. It provides ten daily intra-day trading ideas on major currency crosses and CFDs including intuitive charts and interface, as well as one click pre-populated trade tickets or the ability to tailor the idea to personal trading strategies.

"Using the information and services provided by TradeMaker, we hope to be encouraging those traders that are looking to enter the market but need more direction," said Patrick Mortensen, Global Head of Partner Marketing at Saxo Bank.

"We have already received feedback that tells us users actually feel more secure in their trading decisions, as TradeMaker enables them to better identify and manage the risks involved in the market," said Patrick Mortensen.

The advent of the electronic trading platform has brought an end to the 'open outcry' of busy, noisy trading floors. As traders have retreated behind desks and screens, the shouting, signaling and pulling faces have disappeared. And with it has gone some of the human interaction that helped inform the markets.

Trading Floor is an attempt by Saxo Bank to bring some of that noise back by getting the markets rubbing shoulders, dealing - and shouting. Trading Floor provides up to date, forex news and market place analysis.

The aim of the new Tradingfloor site is to bring market participants together through the web site. Saxo Bank provides the web site and the expertise of its strategists and analysts and those of its partners.

The Daily Trading Stance is the mainstay of Tradingfloor's daily offering. It is the position that Saxo bank's own strategists distribute to traders with a rundown of the main themes of the day in FX, equities, futures, and FX options.

The commentary is prepared by Saxo Bank's Chief Economist David Karsbøl and Saxo Bank's Equity Strategist Christian Tegllund Blaabjerg, with additional advice from Forex expert John hardy, who was named as one of the most influential people in Forex in 2008. Commodities expertise is provided by Ole S Hansen and Alan Plaughmann. Tradingfloor.com also has its own YouTube Trading Floor channel which is updated daily with the day's trading information and delivered by David or Christian.

The speed of trading has picked up tremendously in recent years with the use of automated and semi-automated systems. But the systems are only as good as the information they receive. The key to success in online trading is to find reliable sources of solid tradable information.

About Trading Floor:
Trading Floor is run by Saxo Bank - a global investment bank specialising in online trading and investment across the international financial markets

NS&I launch new fixed rate direct two year bonds

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:20:45 GMT

NS&I is to launch a new 2-year issue of both its Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds. The new 2-year Bonds will only be available direct (via phone or online) from NS&I and will pay an interest rate of 3.75% per annum and 3.65% respectively.

Customers can invest between £500 and £1 million in total in the fixed rate bonds, with guaranteed rates of interest. The Guaranteed Income Bond offers customers the opportunity to receive their interest as a monthly income, while with the Guaranteed Growth Bond customers will receive their interest at the end of the 2-year term.

The Bonds come with the 100% capital guarantee which NS&I can offer because all of its savings and investments are backed by HM Treasury.

The new Bonds, which are available online and through NS&I's award winning UK based call centres, are part of NS&I's strategy to encourage customers to buy and manage their savings with NS&I directly. This enables NS&I to offer a more attractive interest rate to customers.

Peter Cornish, Director of Customer Offer at NS&I, said: "Our Guaranteed Income Bonds and Guaranteed Growth Bonds offer customers a simple and straightforward saving opportunity.

"Money saved in our Guaranteed Income Bonds or our Guaranteed Growth Bonds will earn a competitive and guaranteed rate of interest for the next two years. It is a simple offer and easy to take up, either online at nsandi.com or through our UK based call centres."

Dr Robin Keyte, Chartered Financial Planner and Director of Towers at Taunton Ltd, which specialises in fee-based financial planning and socially responsible investments, commented on the new issues from NS&I: "NS&I's Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds are an effective way for customers to earn a fixed rate of interest on their investment, either as monthly income or as a lump sum at the end of the term. Like all NS&I investments, they also have the added benefit of a 100% capital guarantee, which is something many people will value highly in the current environment."

About NS&I
NS&I is one of the UK's largest financial providers with almost 27 million customers and over £94 billion invested. It is best known for Premium Bonds, but also offers Inflation-Beating Savings, Guaranteed Equity Bonds and Children's Bonus Bonds in its range. All products offer 100% security because NS&I is backed by HM Treasury.

NS&I products are available over the telephone, internet, post and by standing order. They are also available through a network of Post Office branches. Customers can also pick up brochures for NS&I Premium Bonds, Inflation-Beating Savings and Income Bonds at retailer WHSmith in 400 of its High Street stores and 155 of its travel stores.

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