Wealth – In the news

Huge rise in individuals exceeding pension Annual Allowance

In the past five years, the number of individuals whose yearly pension contributions breached the Annual Allowance (£40,000) has soared by more than 675%1. In the 2015–16 tax year, 5,460 people reported pension contributions exceeding the Annual Allowance in their self-assessment forms. For the 2019–20 tax year, the figure stood at 42,350. Meanwhile, the value of pension contributions breaching the Annual Allowance rose by 564% during the same period.

Victim loses £48,000 in ‘screen sharing’ scam

The Financial Conduct Authority’s2 (FCA’s) ScamSmart scheme has turned its attention to so-called ‘screen sharing’ scams, whereby fraudsters take over their victims’ computers using remote desktop software. Since July 2020, the FCA has seen well over 2,000 such cases, with victims losing a combined total of £25m between January 2021 and March 2022. One 59-year-old woman lost nearly £50,000 when a scammer posing as a financial adviser convinced her to download screen sharing software on the pretext of helping her complete a Bitcoin investment. Instead, they took advantage to access her banking details and other private information.

1House of Commons, 2022

2FCA, 2022

The value of investments can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount you invested. The past is not a guide to future performance and past performance may not necessarily be repeated.