Tax Elected Funds (TEF) now available on Ascentric
25 August 2010
Users of the independent wrap Ascentric now have access to Tax Elected Funds (TEF) for the first time following the
launch of Querns Income First Fund on the platform. The fund is provided by Querns Asset Managers and is managed by
former New Star managers Stephen Whittaker and Phil Roantree.
TEFs were introduced in the 2009 Budget and became effective last September. For holdings in tax efficient wrappers
such as an ISA or a SIPP the fund pays out dividends from stocks and interest from bonds gross, so the investor has
the same treatment as if the assets were held directly. Prior to the TEF regime, it was only possible to receive
gross interest from UK funds that paid interest distributions, although these funds required a minimum 60% invested
in fixed interest investments.
Querns Income First Fund has none of these restrictions and is the first TEF to be marketed in the UK. It has no
initial charge and a low annual management charge of 0.75%. The fund’s TEF status allows it to produce a high
monthly income from a portfolio of UK equities and Sterling corporate bonds without the restrictions on asset
allocation that affect traditional funds.
John Tierney, Sales and Marketing Partner at Querns commented, “Ascentric is one of the few platforms able to handle
TEFs, and their growing number of high calibre advisers will be able to make the most of the tax advantages that
this fund provides.”
Richard Goodall, Sales and Marketing Director at Ascentric stated, “Given the tax efficiency of TEFs, I am surprised
that there haven’t been further launches of this kind. We are delighted to offer the first TEF available in the
market as it provides further product choice and asset diversity for Ascentric users.”
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Ascentric
Dominic Ventham, Head of Marketing
Tel: 01225 787208, Mobile 07590 227039
Email: dominic.ventham@ascentric.co.uk
Issued by Concise Public Relations
Tel 0207 100 3960
Martin Wood
Mobile: 07946 527240, Email: martin@concisepr.com
Liam Jenkins
Mobile 07984 439968, Email: liam@concisepr.com
Notes to Editors
Ascentric and Fundsdirect are the trading names of Investment Funds Direct Limited.
Investment Funds Direct Limited was founded in 1982, and Fundsdirect launched as the UK’s first online fund
supermarket in December 1999. Since that time, the company has built on their reputation as a leading UK fund
supermarket to provide Independent Financial Advisers (IFAs) with a Wrap service under the brand name of Ascentric.
Ascentric is a whole of market Wrap service, available exclusively to IFAs and offers a fully integrated online
investment management and dealing platform. It also enables IFAs to transfer their clients’ assets onto a single
platform to provide them with the ability to manage their client’s financial needs in just one place. This is
obviously a considerable enhancement to the existing, time-consuming practice of IFAs introducing their clients to a
number of different product providers.
In October 2007, a majority holding of Investment Funds Direct Group Limited was acquired by Royal London Group.
For further information about Ascentric and Fundsdirect, please visit either www.ascentric.co.uk or
www.fundsdirect.co.uk
Royal London Group is a specialist financial service provider. Its businesses focus on those sectors of the market
which value quality propositions, operating through a number of brands:
• Scottish Life – UK pensions market
• Bright Grey – UK protection market
• Scottish Provident – UK protection market
• Royal London 360° – offshore investment markets
• RLAM – fund management
• RLAS – life and pensions administration
• Fundsdirect / Ascentric – funds supermarket; Wrap platform
Royal London also distributes life and pensions products through Santander’s UK branch networks.
Royal London is the largest mutual life and pensions company in the UK with Group funds under management of £39.1
billion. Group businesses serve around 3.4 million customers and employ 2,890 people. Figures quoted are as at 30
June 2010.