Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Discount Broker?

Discount brokers enable you to buy funds at a cheaper rate than if you had bought directly from the provider. Costs are lower because we negotiate bulk-buy deals with providers. For example, we will rebate all the initial commission and any in-house provider discount back into your contract to enhance the terms.

Can I use different fund managers with an ISA?

The taxman allows only one provider for a Maxi stocks and shares ISA or for each Mini stocks and shares ISA. However, by applying for the funds featured on our site through our fund supermarket, you are allowed to include a whole platform of different funds from different Investment Houses in your ISA. You only need to refer to one set of key features and terms and conditions.

Can I transfer between fund managers during the year?

Our fund supermarket gives you the flexibility to switch between fund managers without having to complete large amounts of paperwork and experiencing sometimes lengthy delays in transfers. You can switch your holdings between fund management groups if required at vastly reduced costs and with the convenience of being able to do this on-line.

What is a Standard & Poor’s rating?

Standard & Poor’s is the worlds leading provider of mutual fund information and analysis - 5,000 professionals in 20 countries have been providing independent and trusted expertise to the global financial markets for over 140 years.

S & P’s Fund Management Ratings are based on a thorough evaluation of a fund and its management. This rating not only looks at statistics but also looks at ‘qualitative’ issues such as how a fund manager goes about selecting the investments for your fund.

The highest rating is AAA and this means a fund demonstrates the highest standards of quality in its sector, with AA demonstrating very high standards and A demonstrating high standards.

What is Forsyth-OBSR rating?

Forsyth-OBSR provides a ratings service which aims to identify the quality of a fund. Whilst a rating will take account of past performance there is a much greater emphasis on assessing how well positioned the fund is to deliver competitive performance in the future. Their analysts assess factors such as strength of the investment process and the continuity of the investment personnel.

There are three levels of rating - AAA, AA and A. The Forsyth-OBSR AAA rating is an indication of excellence, the Forsyth-OBSR AA rating is an indication of highly superior quality based on process and track record and a fund which achieves the Forsyth-OBSR A rating status is a highly commendable one.

What are Shares?

Shares are issued by companies to raise money, and each share represents a proportion of the company. The value of the share will increase and decrease according to the demand for them. You might also hear the term ‘stock’ - although the two terms have become interchangeable, ‘stock’ is actually an umbrella term that also includes bonds and fixed-interest securities.