Hargreaves Gives in to Investment Trust Clients

Hargreaves Lansdown has performed an about turn on pricing for investment trusts clients who had complained the new charge structure penalised them

Emma Wall 5 February, 2014 | 9:46AM
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Investors who hold closed-end funds on Britain's largest retail investment platform were poised to transfer their business following last month's new pricing announcement

Hargreaves Lansdown cut the cost of investing for thousands of fund investors - totting up the total savings as £8 million. But the stock broker reclassified investment trusts; previously they carried the same dealing charges as any other share bond or exchange traded fund (ETF), but Hargreaves planned to seperate investment trusts into a new distinct category. This would mean if you invest in investment trusts as well as other listed assets you would pay a service charge of 0.45% on both sets of holdings. 

Following a backlash lead by the Association of Investment Trusts Director General Ian Sayers, Hargreaves has scrapped these plans. 

In an announcement this morning Hargreaves said the firm had deliberated long and hard about the changes required to accommodate the new regulations being introduced by the Financial Conduct Authority, and investment trusts were one of the most challenging considerations. 

Investment trusts fall under fund regulation, but as they are traded like shares investors adopt a different attitude towards closed-end funds. 

Hargreaves Chief Executive Ian Gorham said: “We have always listened to clients and designed our service around what they want.  It is clear that this particular aspect of our pricing change has been disliked. I believe it is therefore the right thing to do to revert to a charging structure that clients are happy with. Clients who hold investment trusts through Hargreaves will therefore be better off than previously proposed.”

Following the initial pricing announcement, clients of Hargreaves who held investment trusts on the platform took to forums to discuss how best to withdraw their business without incurring significant charges.

AIC Chief Sayers responded positively to the move: “It is great to see Hargreaves has listened to feedback and we congratulate them.”

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Emma Wall  is former Senior International Editor for Morningstar

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