IFA Talk

This week’s IFA Talk Budget Special is packed with practical insight, clear explanations, and a few “wait, did the Chancellor really do that?” moments. In this episode, host Sue Whitbread, Editor at IFA Magazine, is joined by Rachel Vahey, Head of Public Policy at AJ Bell, who helps advisers cut through the noise and get straight to what really matters for clients in terms of last week’s budget me...

Now live: The latest Mortgage & Property Investment special edition of IFA Talk lifts the lid on one of the most pressing issues facing today’s housing market, how to help more first-time buyers take that crucial first step onto the property ladder. In this episode, hosts Sue Whitbread and Meg Bratley are joined by Carlo Pileggi, Head of Mortgage Products at Nationwide Building Society. Carlo...

In this week’s episode of IFA Talk, Matt Williams and Jenny Hunter dive into one of the most important and complex areas of financial planning, helping clients manage risk and income throughout retirement. Joining them is Andrew Lewis, Senior Investment Director at Brooks Macdonald, who shares his thoughts on how advisers can design smarter, more resilient retirement strategies that adapt to clien...

The latest New Insurance & Protection special edition of IFA Talk turns the spotlight onto a topic at the heart of financial wellbeing, protection. In this episode, hosts Meg Bratley and Jenny Hunter are joined by Phil Jeynes, who leads the strategic direction of MetLife UK’s individual protection business. Phil shares his expert view on how advisers can better support clients when it comes to...

How can advisers prove their value, close the advice gap, and embrace technology without losing the personal touch? On this week’s episode of IFA Talk, Meg and Sue are taking a closer look at the client proposition, in particular at how advisers and planners can continue to deliver strong outcomes for clients while building a resilient business. Joining us is Arnie Millington, Head of Business Dev...

In this month’s special TEI (Tax-Efficient Investment) special edition of IFA Talk, Matt and Sue take a look back at some of the key changes to IHT and pension in last year’s Autumn Budget. With many of the new rules set to take effect from April 2026 and April 2027, advisers and clients are increasingly seeking support to navigate the changes ahead. Fortunately, joining us to unpack all of this i...

As the lines between model portfolio services (MPS) and bespoke investment solutions continue to blur, advisers are increasingly asking if these two approaches are really in competition, or can they actually complement each other? In this week’s episode of IFA Talk, hosts Sue Whitbread and Matt Williams are joined by Eddie Kennedy, Head of Marlborough’s Personal Portfolio Service, to explore this...

In this week’s episode of IFA Talk, hosts Matt Williams and Jenny Hunter delve into one of the most hotly debated topics, the evolving role of the paraplanner and whether it’s time for formal FCA recognition. They’re joined by Derek Bradley, founder and CEO of Panacea Adviser, to discuss the findings of Panacea’s latest industry survey: “Should Paraplanners be more formally recognised by the FCA?”...

The latest Mortgage & Property Investment special edition of IFA Talk explores how specialist lending is helping advisers support clients with increasingly complex financial needs. In this episode, Meg and Sue are joined by Gavin Diamond, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Inspired Lending. With over 15 years’ experience in senior leadership roles across the short-term and specialist lendi...

Multi-asset investing continues to sit at the heart of effective portfolio construction, helping advisers deliver diversification, risk alignment and consistent outcomes for their clients. But how can advisers be confident that the multi-asset solutions they choose really deliver long-term value? In this latest episode of IFA Talk, Matt Williams and Sue Whitbread are joined by Mithesh Varsani, Hea...

In this month’s special TEI (Tax-Efficient Investment) special edition of IFA Talk, Matt and Jenny dive into a topic which is front of mind for many advisers right now, and that is changes to Inheritance Tax, pension and business relief, and what they might mean for long-term planning. To do this, Jon Prescott, Partner at Praetura Investments, joins us. He reveals how these reforms could reshape s...

In this week’s episode of IFA Talk, Matt and Sue are exploring a skill that every great financial adviser needs, but that doesn’t often get talked about enough: emotional intelligence.  Often labelled a ‘soft skill’, emotional intelligence (EI) is anything but soft when it comes to its impact on adviser success. It can be the difference between being a good adviser and a great one.  Joining us for...

This week on IFA Talk, Matt Williams and Jenny Hunter are joined by Gill Millen, Managing Director at Bowmore Financial Planning, to dig into one of the most pressing issues facing advisers and their clients today: people simply aren’t saving enough for retirement.  Bowmore’s latest analysis reveals that many clients, even those in their 40s and 50s and beyond, are contributing far below recommend...

The latest New Insurance & Protection special edition of IFA Talk shines a light on an issue that impacts millions of households across the UK – protection.   In this episode, hosts Sue Whitbread and Meg Bratley are joined by The Exeter’s Head of Protection Distribution, Jamie Page. Jamie explains why certain groups continue to be left behind when it comes to protection, and what the industry...

This week on IFA Talk, we’re getting into one of the biggest talking points in pensions – transfers. For years, they’ve been a bit of a nightmare. Slow processes, endless paperwork, frustrated clients… we’ve all heard the stories. But are those days finally behind us, or is there still work to be done?  Sue Whitbread, Editor here at IFA Magazine, and Senior Financial Journalist Jenny Hunter are jo...

Retirement income planning has always been front and centre for advisers and paraplanners – and it’s evolving fast.  In this week’s episode of IFA Talk, Matt and Sue are joined by not one but two expert guests from Morningstar Wealth:  Steve Coleman, Head of Product, and Steve Owen, Head of Proposition. Together, they explore what advisers and paraplanners really want and need from providers when...

Now live: The latest Mortgage & Property Investment special edition of IFA Talk explores how advisers can best support clients in complex or evolving circumstances.  In this episode, Jenny Hunter and Meg Bratley are joined by Laura Sneddon, Head of Mortgage Sales and Distribution at Hinckley & Rugby for Intermediaries. With over 20 years’ experience in financial services, Laura shares her...

If you’ve ever felt like the tech in your advice business is more of a hindrance than a help, you’re not alone. Multiple systems that don’t talk to each other, endless rekeying, and the same tasks repeated in five different places, it’s a frustration most advisers know all too well.  In this week’s episode of IFA Talk, Jenny Hunter and Sue Whitbread are joined by Nick Ryan, CEO, and David Mills, C...

In this week’s IFA Talk podcast, we’re exploring model portfolio services (MPS), asking what really makes for a successful partnership between an MPS provider and an advice business. It’s a subject that remains front of mind for many advisers and wealth managers, especially as the MPS market evolves and client expectations continue to grow. To learn more about L&G’s MPS, visit here. You can al...

In this month’s special TEI (Tax-Efficient Investment) special edition of IFA Talk, Matt and Jenny dive into the topic of tax-efficient planning during a time of rising taxes.  With taxes on the rise, new rules bringing pensions into the inheritance tax net, and clients increasingly looking to advisers for clarity, the landscape has never been more challenging. But it’s also a time of real opportu...

Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII) might not be the most glamorous of topics but it’s a crucial one for every financial advice firm. In this episode of  IFA Talk, we’re taking a fresh look at it with someone who knows the advice profession inside out.  Our guest is Lee Robertson, now Non-Executive Director and Head of Strategic Partnerships at BareRock, the digital-first PII provider that’s sh...

In this month’s special New Insurance & Protection episode of IFA Talk, we shine a light on client protection, something which concerns all of us in the industry. Joining us to discuss this are LifeSearch’s CEO Debbie Kennedy, and Homeowners Alliance’s CEO and Founder Paula Higgins. The two have worked together recently on some fascinating research, which we’ll dive into in this special episod...

This week on IFA Talk, we’re flipping the script on one of the biggest topics in financial services – AI. But rather than talking about how it can help you churn through work faster, we’re asking something a bit deeper: what if the real power of AI is actually about creating better workplaces? Joining us for this thought-provoking episode are two brilliant guests, Jenny Segal, a Workplace Culture...

In this week's episode of IFA Talk, we dive into the world of taxes, following changes to IHT rules. Recent changes and potential further tightening of the IHT rules mean that some families could face a shockingly high combined tax burden on a business owner’s estate. When you factor in Corporation Tax, Dividend Tax and IHT, in some cases the overall tax exposure could reach as much as 88%. Joinin...

In this week’s episode of IFA Talk, we’re shining a spotlight on one of the most important and often overlooked parts of the advice process: the first client meeting. Joining Jenny and Sue for the chat is the fantastic Melissa Kidd, Director, Speaker and Soft Skills expert, who’s on a mission to help advisers make the most of that all-important first hour with a potential client. Earlier this year...