The Morning Briefing: Busting the biggest myth about online fee disclosure
Good morning and welcome to your Morning Briefing for Friday 31 July 2026. To get this in your inbox every morning click here.
Phil Bray: Busting the biggest myth about online fee disclosure
“We’ll get tyre-kickers asking us to reduce our fees.”
That, and variations of it, is the biggest objection advisers and planners give us when we recommend they consider publishing fees on their website.
I understand the logic and resulting nervousness. I really do. If people can compare prices more easily, surely that’ll lead to more potential clients negotiating on fees?
Wealthy UK families eye Channel Islands after non-dom tax overhaul
High-net-worth UK families are increasingly turning to the Channel Islands as a “near-shore, offshore” base following the abolition of non-domiciled status, according to figures from wealth manager Rathbones.
The shift comes as HMRC released its final batch of statistics under the previous regime, revealing a drop in the number of non-domiciled and deemed-domiciled taxpayers to 81,900 in the 2024/26 tax year.
Quote Of The Day
Today marks the 250-day countdown to one of the biggest estate planning changes in recent years, with pension death benefits set to come within the scope of inheritance tax from April 2027
– Clare Moffat, pensions and tax expert at Royal London
Stat Attack
Families in London and the South East paid 46% of all UK inheritance tax (IHT) bills in the 2023/24 tax year, up from 44% the previous year, according to new analysis by private wealth and family law firm TWM Solicitors.
The data, based on HMRC statistics, reveals that total UK IHT liabilities reached £7.03bn in 2023/24, with London and the South East accounting for £3.3bn of that bill. It shows:
46%
of all UK inheritance tax was paid by families in London (£1.43bn) and the South East (£1.830m/£1.83bn).
18 of 20
top-paying parliamentary constituencies for IHT are in London, the South East, or within commutable distance, led by Kensington (£107m) and Cities of London and Westminster (£97m).
9,130
estates were worth more than £1m in 2023/24, up from 9,070 in 2022/23 and 7,905 five years earlier.
£1.18bn
in total IHT was paid by estates valued at over £1m during the 2023/24 tax year.
Source: TWM Solicitors / HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics
In Other News
The Openwork Partnership has launched Thrive, an AI-powered learning platform designed to streamline continuous professional development for financial advisers.
Delivered through The Openwork Business School, the mobile-first platform features an artificial intelligence learning assistant named Obi.
Obi delivers personalised CPD recommendations and targeted learning pathways aligned with an adviser’s specific license, speciality and career stage.
Content is mapped directly to the Financial Services Skills Commission’s Future Skills Framework, targeting key areas such as digital literacy, behavioural coaching, and adaptability.
Ed Bailey, principal of The Openwork Business School, noted the launch addresses adviser time constraints, enabling professional growth seamlessly within daily workflows.
From Elsewhere
UK economy to flatline, warns Bank of England (The Telegraph)
Burnham to give mayors a share of income tax in devolution drive (Reuters)
Amazon, Microsoft results show AI spending spree remains solid (Bloomberg)
Did You See?
The Bank of England has kept interest rates at 3.75% for the fifth time in a row as policymakers weighed easing inflation against the risk of renewed price pressures from higher energy costs, writes Tom Browne.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted six to three to hold Bank Rate, with three members preferring a 0.25 percentage point increase to 4%.
The split was more hawkish than June’s seven-to-two vote, when two members supported a rise.
