Welcome to AKG

The 2018 edition of AKG’s UK Life Office With Profits Reports, the 23rd annual edition of this independent and respected with profits output, is due to be published in mid December. Customers who confirm their order before close of business on Friday 14th December will qualify for the early bird discount of £100 off the purchase price, securing their copy of the reports at the 2017 rate of £2,150 + VAT.

These reports are designed to assist advisers and other analysts to assess the relative merits of specific with profits funds. The aim is to provide comprehensive, structured and consistent information, accompanied by AKG's key analytical assessments of with profits financial strength, future performance and transparency.

The 2017 reports contained analysis and assessments of 185 sub-funds within 72 funds within 26 firms that were active in the UK market at the end of December 2017 (from 25 different groups). A number of comparative industry-wide tables were also included, covering a range of key metrics. Please click here to access a copy of the table of contents from 2017. We will share further information about the publication of the 2018 reports over the coming weeks.

If you would like to order your copy of the 2018 AKG UK Life Office With Profits Reports, or if you have any questions, please contact us at akg@akg.co.uk.

27 November 2018

AKG has produced an independent report for an intermediary audience, including financial advisers, planners and paraplanners, on the potential relevance and suitability of direct lending as an investment asset for the sophisticated retail investor amongst a wider consideration of alternative asset classes.

The report was sponsored by investment management firms Triple Point and Foresight Group, who offer solutions in the direct lending investment market, along with regulatory consultancy Bovill and law firm Shakespeare Martineau, as report partners. It was underpinned by quantitative consumer and financial adviser market research insight instructed by AKG and carried out via online survey.

AKG looks across the market at a wide range of provider types and was asked to consider what part direct lending / private debt investment might be able to play in the evolving UK intermediary market as the search for yield continued against the post-financial crisis market with increasingly uncertain fixed interest and equity markets, with long term low interest rates and rising inflation.

Research showed a clear willingness by private investors to consider investment outside the traditional equity or cash-based solutions, albeit largely outside of the advice process currently. The report explores the potential opportunities for financial advisers to meet their clients’ continued search for yield and reduced volatility, alongside the challenges and hurdles for providers and advisers in making access to such solutions available.

4 October 2018

Despite the fact that AKG has been assessing financial services companies and producing ratings for these companies for over 20 years we understand the importance of continuing to underline the approach taken by AKG when carrying out our assessment work.

We have prepared a short animation on the subject, which can played below.

With this animation, and with time of the essence for intermediary businesses, we wanted to produce something short and snappy which cuts to the core of AKG’s approach. One of the main considerations being that these ratings are designed specifically for intermediary usage, to support such exercises as product/proposition research and due diligence, and another being the underlying customer focus and perspective on financial strength and sustainability of financial services companies.

We hope that you find the animation useful and please do let us know if you have any questions for the AKG team.

31 July 2018