Abrdn Adviser has today (3 October) announced the appointment of Derek Smith to the newly created role of chief technology & product officer.

The CTPO role will bring together Abrdn Adviser’s technology and product teams.

Smith will be responsible for executing the technology strategy and ensuring the continuous enhancement and scalability of the Abrdn Adviser business.

He will join in November from Morningstar Wealth, where he is currently chief technology officer, a role he has held for the past two years.

His previous roles include head of engineering at Virgin Money and Lloyds Banking Group.

Smith’s appointment follows a busy few weeks on the recruitment front for Abrdn Adviser.

Last month, it announced that industry veteran Verona Kenny will join as chief distribution officer and Louise Williams as chief financial officer.

Abrdn Adviser CEO, Noel Butwell, said: “Our ambition is to deliver a market-leading proposition with exceptional client service and we’ve set out to create the best senior leadership team in the market to achieve this.

“Technology is a critical enabler in realising our goals and aligning to continuously evolving customer needs, and Derek brings a wealth of experience to the role of chief technology & product officer.

“He will lead the implementation of our strategy and next phases of platform upgrades as we embark on our next stage of growth and evolution during a period of disruption and digital transformation in the market.”

Smith added: “I am thrilled to join Abrdn Adviser at such a pivotal time.

“My passion lies in leading the creation of innovative digital solutions and journeys that empower financial advisers to deliver high-quality, personalised service to their clients.

“Together, we will build solutions with service excellence and interconnectivity at their heart, supporting advisers to navigate and thrive in the ever-evolving financial landscape with confidence.”

SELF-employed workers have been urged to submit their tax returns now if they are looking to move home in the coming weeks or months.

From October 5, the majority of mortgage lenders will ask for 2023/24 tax returns as proof of earnings.

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HMRC doesn’t require the 23/34 year’s tax return to be submitted until the end of January 2025, meaning that many workers will not have yet completed it.

“Lenders see documentation over 18 months old as too historic to accept,” said Chris Sykes, technical director at mortgage broker Private Finance.

This means that anything relating to the end of the tax year April 5 2022/23 becomes out of date from October 5,

Chris said self-employed borrowers get caught out by this every year as the date isn’t advertised by lenders.

He added: “This will affect any self employed borrower looking to buy their first home, move house or remortgage over the next few months.

“Unlike an employed borrower just on a salary, a new year’s self employment figures can significantly change the borrowing upwards or downwards.”

Nicholas Mendes​​​​, technical manager at broker John Charcol agreed that this is a big issue for self-employed borrowers and they often oly become aware when starting the mortgage application process which can then create delays.

He said: “We see this issue arise quite frequently with self-employed clients—many are unaware that, even though HMRC gives them until January 2025 to file their 2023/2024 tax returns, lenders may not accept their older 2022/2023 tax returns after October 5 of this year.

“This mismatch in timelines often catches applicants off guard, leading to unexpected delays or issues in securing a mortgage.

“It’s a significant challenge because while the HMRC deadlines are designed to be lenient, lenders operate on much tighter expectations regarding financial documentation.”

If you can’t submit your tax return until later in the year, self-employed borrowers need to race against the clock to get a mortgage application in before lenders start rejecting their 2022/23 return.

Chris said there are some exceptions as a few lenders have a slightly longer window – but these are usually specialist lenders.

Specialist lenders often charge higher rates than mainstream lenders which means borrowers could end up paying more for their mortgage than they would otherwise.

The deadline for registering for a tax return for the first time for the 2023/34 year is also October 5.

There’s no penalty for registering after this, but if you haven’t signed up, filed your tax return, and paid your bill by January 31 you will be fined.

How to get a mortgage when you’re self-employed

Self-employed people can sometimes find it harder to get a mortgage as income can be more changeable than when you’re employed.

You will usually need at least two years of accounts and lenders will use these figures when deciding how big the mortgage offer will be.

Chris added: “We more often than not find self employed people don’t understand how a lender will look at their income, many think they are judged on their turnover when they are judged on their profit.”

Lenders may want to see more evidence of your income since you don’t have an employer to back you up.

This means all your accounts will need to be in order. It can be worth using an accountant if you don’t already to help you do this.

Lenders like to see consistent profits, and consistent earnings levels where possible. If there are fluctuations it needs to be understood why that is the case.

Keeping your financial documentation up to date can significantly increase your chances of a smooth mortgage application process and help avoid unnecessary stress or delays.

An independent mortgage broker can help advise on the process and give you an idea of any additional documentation you may need to get your application through.

In some cases, self-employed workers might find they need a bigger deposit and a strong credit score to get a home loan.

Good morning and welcome to your Morning Briefing for Thursday 3 October 2024. To get this in your inbox every morning click here.

Royal London chair Parry stands down

Royal London chairman Kevin Parry has stood down from his role.

Parry has informed the mutual that he does not wish to serve beyond this year and the board said it has therefore accepted his resignation in line with his notice period.

Current deputy chair Lynne Peacock will take on his responsibilities as interim chair, with immediate effect.

Abrdn Adviser hires chief technology & product officer

Abrdn Adviser has today (3 October) announced the appointment of Derek Smith to the newly created role of chief technology & product officer.

The CTPO role will bring together Abrdn Adviser’s technology and product teams.

He will join in November from Morningstar Wealth, where he is currently chief technology officer.

ZeroKey appoints Mitchell to advisory role

ZeroKey has brought on board former FE fundinfo head of proposition Stephen Mitchell in an advisory role.

He previously spent 18 years at FE fundinfo and spanned both the asset management and financial advice sides of the business, including FE Analytics and FE CashCalc.

Since leaving FE fundinfo earlier this year he has taken a variety of advisory roles, which he will combine with his latest role with ZeroKey.

Quote Of The Day

The FTSE 100 has set aside global tensions and opened with a small bump this morning.

– Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown, comments on global markets continuing to tread carefully with Middle East tensions in mind.

In Other News

WTW has acquired a stake in the UK-based advice-led wealth manager atomos.

WTW provides atomos’ clients with access to a broader, more diversified range of asset classes and investment choices.

This next step in the partnership sees WTW acquire part ownership in the business, as well as providing additional capital designed to support further growth.

Through this investment, WTW boosts its presence in the UK wealth space.

WTW head of investments for Europe, Mark Calnan, said: “This is an incredibly exciting development for WTW which reinforces our commitment to the wealth markets, a strategic focus area for us and one that has driven significant growth for our business in recent years.

“Our stake in atomos enhances our ability to shape how the industry services the needs and aspirations of savers in the UK.

“This is particularly important as individuals take increased responsibilities for their retirement through defined contribution schemes and personal savings.”

TIME Investments has hired Jonathan Roseweir as head of marketing.

Roseweir joins from Octopus Investments, where he was responsible for marketing its range of quoted funds and inheritance tax (IHT) services.

Prior to that, he was at Miton Group and PSigma Asset Management.

He will be tasked with enhancing the TIME Investments brand and further develop its leadership position in the IHT services and property and infrastructure fund markets.

Sterling falls sharply after BoE Bailey remarks (Reuters)

Jupiter poaches team from rival Origin as part of push into global equities (Financial Times)

Why India’s giant options market poses a danger to financial stability (Bloomberg)

Did You See?

The already fractious relationship between the Personal Finance Society (PFS) and the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) has been ‘blown wide open’ once again.

The CII announced that its chief executive Matthew Hill and three other executives – Trevor Edwards, Mathew Mallett and Gill White – have been appointed to the PFS board.

The move has further increased tensions between members of the PFS and its parent body, the CII.

The debacle started with the ‘Christmas coup’ in December 2022, when the CII imposed its own directors on the PFS board in a highly controversial move.

THE UK’s cheapest supermarket for a weekly shop in September has been revealed – and it’s not Lidl or Asda.

Which? found German discounter Aldi to be the most affordable out of a list of eight major chains last month.

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The UK’s consumer champion looked at how the retailers’ prices compared on a shopping list of 59 products, to represent doing a weekly shop.

The list of 59 included both branded and non-branded items including Birds Eye Peas, Hovis bread, milk and butter.

Which?’s analysis also included special offer prices and loyalty prices where possible, but not multi-buys such as buy one get one free.

The consumer champion found Aldi came out cheapest ahead of Lidl, Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury’s with the basket costing £102.68.

The supermarket also pipped Morrisons, Ocado and Waitrose to first spot.

Asda’s basket of 59 goods came in just a fraction more expensive than Aldi, costing £103.86.

Asda was next, with its shopping list costing £112.19.

Tesco’s basket, with Clubcard, was £112.96, and without loyalty pricing it was £113.35.

Sainsbury’s shopping basket, for Nectar Card customers, was £113.79, then Morrisons was next, coming in at £119.18.

Sainsbury’s without a Nectar Card was £119.19, then Ocado and Waitrose came in bottom of the pack, with their baskets costing £125.16 and £130.37 respectively.

Ele Clark, Which? retail editor, said: “Our latest monthly analysis once again sees Aldi crowned as the UK’s cheapest supermarket.

“Given the ongoing strain of high food prices on household budgets, it’s understandable that many people are choosing discounters to cut costs.

“By switching supermarkets, consumers could save 21%, highlighting the advantages of shopping around.”

It’s worth bearing in mind, the research carried out by Which? was based on prices for the list of 59 products across just September.

That means they are just a snapshot of what you might pay for them at different times of the year.

Prices at supermarkets change frequently, sometimes daily, and you will find items on offer in one chain one week then in another the following week.

However, in Which?’s survey of a larger basket of goods it was Asda that came out top of the survey.

The comparison looks at 164 items – but it doesn’t include Aldi and Lidl as they don’t offer large enough ranges in shops.

Asda came top of the list with this basket costing £418.88 – but Tesco (with Clubard prices) was just 1p more expensive.

An Asda spokesperson said: “Asda is consistently recognised as the best-value supermarket for the big shop in independent price comparison surveys, including the Grocer 33 basket comparison and the Which? monthly big shop trolley comparison.

“This is despite these surveys including other retailers’ loyalty schemes but not Asda Rewards.”          

It’s also worth factoring in that Which? looked at loyalty pricing for Lidl, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Waitrose, but only Tesco and Sainsbury’s had items on its chosen shopping list with a loyalty price in September.

Meanwhile, Asda doesn’t have two-tier loyalty pricing. Its loyalty scheme is based on points and personalised rewards, not lower prices for every scheme member which meant Which? didn’t include the retailer’s loyalty scheme prices.

It’s not the first time in recent months Aldi has come out on top of Which?’s cheapest supermarket survey.

The German discounter, which is looking to massively expand its physical store presence across the UK, was crowned the cheapest supermarket in August, July and June.

It was also crowned the cheapest supermarket of 2023, pipping the other major chains including Lidl, Asda and Sainsbury’s to the top spot.

The Sun asked Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Ocado and Waitrose to comment.

A Morrisons spokesperson said it was “working hard to keep prices down and competitive for our customers”.

They added: “Our More Card members can also earn points on selected purchases, including fuel, and redeem those points for fivers off their shopping.

“They also benefit from market-leading discounts on over 2,000 branded and essential items across fridge, freezer and cupboard fillers as well as personalised offers and surprises.”

A Waitrose spokesperson said: “We’re committed to keeping prices low for customers and remain focused on giving our customers great value for money. 

“We have invested in prices without compromising on quality or our industry-leading animal welfare standards.

“Which’s price comparison also excludes multibuy offers, which are extremely popular amongst our customers for both our branded and own-branded products.”

The retailer added that it had reduced prices on its No.1 range which was recently relaunched.

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Tesla (TSLA) announced third quarter deliveries on Wednesday that slightly missed expectations, sending the stock down about 3%.

The EV maker delivered 462,890 vehicles in the three months ending Sept. 30, up 6.4% quarter over quarter to mark the first quarter of delivery growth this year. The numbers also came in ahead of the 435,059 EVs the company delivered in the year-ago period.

Wall Street had expected Tesla to deliver closer to 463,897, according to Bloomberg.

The Model 3 and Model Y represented the bulk of Tesla’s overall total, with those two vehicles combining for 439,975 deliveries.

Prior to the delivery numbers’ release, Tesla stock had been up around 20% in the past month, fueled by optimism about its upcoming robotaxi event on Oct. 10 and good news coming out of China indicating rising sales there.

But investors have also debated a “notably lower” annual vehicle growth rate, which Tesla warned about after the first quarter.

The company is currently dealing with stiff competition in China from Chinese automakers like BYD and Xpeng. Recent price cuts have also squeezed profit margins as competition intensifies.

Analysts have said next week’s robotaxi event will serve as a pivotal moment for the company’s future and its plans to further utilize artificial intelligence.

“We believe Robotaxi Day will be seminal and historical day for Musk and Tesla and marks a new chapter of growth around autonomous, FSD, and AI future at Tesla,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday.

Tesla will report third quarter earnings on Oct. 23.

Alexandra is a Senior Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X @alliecanal8193 and email her at alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com

Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.

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