Merryn Talks Money

Merryn Somerset Webb sits down with  Mark Wood, Chairman of Everest Funeral Concierge, Chair of PensionBee, and former CEO off Prudential UK and AXA, to discuss how sweeping pension reforms could transform the way UK earners save and draw down their pensions.Update: We wanted to add clarification to a point made in the show. In the interview, it was suggested that taking your 25% tax-free lump sum at age 55 or later means you’ve “retired” and can no longer put money into your pension with tax relief. It is correct that from the normal minimum pension age (currently 55, rising to 57 in 2028), you can access up to 25% of your pension pot tax-free. The restriction only arises if you also start taking taxable income (for example, via drawdown or as a lump sum payment). At that point, the Money Purchase Annual Allowance (MPAA) rules apply, and your future tax-relievable contributions are capped at £10,000 per year (current rules). However, withdrawing this lump sum alone does not mean you are treated as retired. You can continue to contribute to your pension and receive tax relief on those contributions, subject to the standard annual allowance.Thanks as always to those who wrote in seeking clarification.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

These days, UK energy policies arguably seem more ideological than anything else. But that doesn’t seem to be working, so perhaps it’s time for it to be practical instead? With that in mind we invited Dieter Helm, a professor of economic policy at the University of Oxford, to join this week’s Merryn Talks Money podcast. He discusses how the UK, which consistently ranks among the most expensive countries for consumer electricity prices, should address its energy problem. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week's markets roundup, host Merryn Somerset Webb, editor-at-large for Bloomberg UK Wealth, sits down with Noor Al Ali from Bloomberg Markets Live to unpack gold’s remarkable rally and its implications for global markets. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

September signals the end of summer in the UK and the start of the school year. Gearing up to start university can be a daunting time for many young people, often catapulted into a situation of continuous firsts—first time living away, first time having to cook all their own meals and the first time having to manage their own money. On this personal finance episode of Merryn Talks Money, host Merryn Somerset Webb is joined by award-winning journalist Marc Shoffman to discuss all things student finance.https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2024-09-09/merryn-talks-your-money-paying-university-fees-podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We'll be back next week with more Merryn Talks Money interviews, but for now we bring you an interesting conversation from the Odd Lots team.  These days, everyone is talking about high interest rates across the rich, developed world, while warning of eventual fiscal disaster. But we may have gotten an early glimpse of this anxiety in October 2022, when then-UK Prime Minister Liz Truss unveiled her mini-budget that spooked the gilt market. Well today, rates at the long end of the British yield curve are even higher. So what's going on? Why all this angst now about UK fiscal sustainability and the economy itself? In this episode, we speak with Liz Truss about what she learned during her brief time as the PM. She talks about the political reality of fiscal consolidation, and how difficult it is on both the tax and spending side. And we also discuss what her economic vision was really all about, had she not been forced from the position so quickly. In addition, we talk about the general state of politics, the media, and free speech in the UK. Only Bloomberg.com subscribers can get the Odd Lots newsletter in their inbox — now delivered every weekday — plus unlimited access to the site and app. Subscribe at bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlotsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this news round up episode of Merryn Talks Money, host Merryn Somerset Webb has returned from her holiday and is joined by Bloomberg Opinion columnist Marcus Ashworth. The pair discuss why the IMF won't be bailing out the UK anytime soon, gold's stellar performance, soaring high gilt market yields and the whether the stamp duty regime is all that complicated. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the final panel at this year's Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, host Merryn Somerset Webb speaks with Richard Wilson, chief executive of one of the UK’s largest investment platforms, Interactive Investor, Anna MacDonald, investment manager at Aubrey Capital, and journalist and author Alex Massie. The episode is taped in front of an audience at Adam Smith’s final remaining home, Panmure House.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Merryn Talks Money, host Merryn Somerset Webb is joined by Bloomberg senior reporter John Stepek, author Dominic Frisby and Interactive Investor Chief Executive Officer Richard Wilson for a roundtable discussion at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The conversation takes place at Panmure House, the last home of economist and philosopher Adam Smith.  The panel share their favorite Adam Smith quotes and their relevance to our current economic and financial climate. They question how relevant the ideas of Adam Smith are today and the lessons we can learn from his writings. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Could Scottish philosopher and economist Adam Smith make sense of the economic world that exists today? In this episode of Merryn Talks Money, Merryn Somerset Webb speaks with Alec Cutler, portfolio manager of the Orbis Global Balanced and Cautious funds, Tom Slater, manager of Scottish Mortgage and Bloomberg senior reporter John Stepek about how portions of Smith’s bestsellers The Theory of Moral Sentiments and The Wealth of Nations relate to today’s issues in global trade, technology, renewable energy and investment strategies. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Daniel Rasmussen, founder of Verdad Advisers and author of The Humble Investor: How to Find a Winning Edge in a Surprising World, joins Merryn.  They discuss his book, why all forecasts are wrong (and why we need them anyway), the case for selling US tech and buying small caps, whether we’re in an artificial intelligence bubble, and Japanese equities.This is a replay of a conversation taped in January this year. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John Stepek, Bloomberg senior reporter and author of the Money Distilled newsletter is joined by Opinion columnist Marcus Ashworth to discuss the unexpected good news about the UK economy, why we’re currently in a buyers market when it comes to housing and why the Bank of England needs to continue to hold its nerve. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s no tradeoff between net zero and growth in the UK. That’s the conventional wisdom and the position of the current government. But what if it’s the decline in available electricity that’s causing productivity, GDP and living standards to stagnate?  Research from Kallum Pickering, chief economist at Peel Hunt, suggests there may indeed be a connection. He joins Merryn Somerset Webb and senior reporter John Stepek on Merryn Talks Money to explain that the rise of power-hungry artificial intelligence and the UK’s renewed focus on defense may mean the government should reexamine its energy policies.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Whilst usual host Merryn Somerset Webb is still out on holiday, John Stepek is joined by Bloomberg Opinion columnist Marcus Ashworth to discuss America's tariff war vs Switzerland, the latest UK fiscal blackhole estimates and Rachel Reeves' job security. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week’s Merryn Talks Money, host Merryn Somerset Webb sits down with Euronext CEO, Stéphane Boujnah to explore the reasoning behind the sense that investors are starting to look away from the US and towards Europe for opportunties. They discuss a range of topics from evolving market conditions, investor sentiment and the growing uncertainty surrounding US economic stability. They also discuss the impact of Europe’s institutional framework on its investment appeal and the role of European market integration in attracting capital.  “Europe today is perceived as a large Switzerland. It’s not like everyone is getting fascinated by the growth prospects of European economies,” says Boujnah. “It’s just the feeling is that the institutional framework is stable and predictable.”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Whilst usual host Merryn Somerset Webb is out on holiday, John Stepek is joined by Bloomberg Opinion columnist Marcus Ashworth to discuss why America's tariff deal with the European Union is actually quite good, the spat between Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and the mood music amongst UK consumers.       See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Paula Higgins, CEO of HomeOwners Alliance, joins hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek to answer a few more UK housing questions. They tackle all the things you need to know if you're considering a retirement apartment, if you're thinking about buying a house via auction, and Paula explains why home buyers insurance is always worth considering.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Scottish Mortgage Manager Tom Slater joins Merryn Talks Money to explain how the UK investment trust is trying to find tomorrow’s market winners.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek discuss falling UK house prices, capital exodus and relocating to west London. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek discuss some helpful tips for making the most of your money while on holiday. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

US equities markets are expensive, by any and all measures. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still have a hefty allocation. That’s according to this week’s Merryn Talks Money guest, Nataliia Lipikhina, head of EMEA equity strategy and executive director at J.P. Morgan Private Bank.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.