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Mortgage approvals fall again in September


By Dan McGrath

Net mortgage approvals for house purchases fell to 53,400 in September, which is below an average of 58,800 over the previous six months, and follows decreases in July and August, the Bank of England (BoE) has revealed.

The central bank’s latest Money and Credit Report found that remortgage approvals increased from 34,000 in August to 42,600 in September, while net borrowing of mortgage debt by individuals decreased from £4.2bn to £3.9bn in the same period


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Lloyds profits jump but investors look for more

Lloyds Banking Group reported a strong rise in third-quarter profits a day after the Budget raised the tax surcharge for banks

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Budget 2026: Chancellor abandons Reeves' 'car crash' ISA reforms

Chancellor John Healey has scrapped controversial plans to cut the annual cash ISA allowance from £20,000 to £12,000

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Budget 2026: Healey replaces Lifetime ISA with first-time buyer ISA

Chancellor John Healey has announced a new first-time buyer ISA to replace the Lifetime ISA, alongside £4.7bn in government-backed lending for the Your First Home equity loan scheme, part of a package of measures to help more people onto the property ladder

Budget 2026: Property income tax rates to rise by 2 percentage points

The government is increasing all rates of income tax applied to property income by two percentage points

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ISA tax break falls for first time in four years

The cost of ISA tax relief fell for the first time in four years, dragging down the value of tax reliefs designed to encourage saving and investment in the UK, new research has revealed
Budget 2026: Chancellor introduces temporary higher tax on banks

Chancellor John Healey has announced a 15-month increase in the Bank Corporation Tax Surcharge from 3% to 6% to help fund energy bill support for households

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Motive Partners completes acquisition of Mobius

Private equity firm Motive Partners has completed the acquisition of investment administrator Mobius for an undisclosed sum

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Budget 2026: Property income tax rates to rise by 2 percentage points

The government is increasing all rates of income tax applied to property income by two percentage points

Budget 2026: Chancellor introduces temporary higher tax on banks

Chancellor John Healey has announced a 15-month increase in the Bank Corporation Tax Surcharge from 3% to 6% to help fund energy bill support for households

ISA tax break falls for first time in four years

The cost of ISA tax relief fell for the first time in four years, dragging down the value of tax reliefs designed to encourage saving and investment in the UK, new research has revealed

Inheritance tax and pension queries spike ahead of Budget

Two-thirds of financial advice firms have seen an increase in enquiries about inheritance tax (IHT) and estate planning ahead of the Autumn Budget, research from the Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association (PIMFA) has found

Budget 2026: Chancellor abandons Reeves' 'car crash' ISA reforms

Chancellor John Healey has scrapped controversial plans to cut the annual cash ISA allowance from £20,000 to £12,000

FCA calls on AI providers to issue disclaimers on advice

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has called on general-purpose large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude to provide "clear, proportionate and consistent" disclaimers when generating AI financial advice

Half of UK young adults facing housing insecurity highlight lack of financial education

Almost half (48%) of young adults facing housing insecurity say that a lack of financial education is the primary cause of these problems, Money Ready has found

FCA joins industry and consumer groups to boost protection insurance uptake

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is teaming with industry, government and consumer groups to encourage more people to consider protection insurance, after finding that around 58% of UK adults have no life insurance, critical illness cover or income protection

Majority of regular saver accounts beaten on returns by easy access accounts

Nine out of 10 regular savings accounts deliver poorer returns annually compared to standard easy access accounts, despite attractive headline rates, Spring has revealed

LISA savers hit with multiple withdrawal penalties in 2024/25

Around 45,000 lifetime ISA (LISA) savers were penalised with unauthorised withdrawal charges more than once in 2024/25, Plum has revealed

Savings accounts earning 1.5% or less reach £327bn

UK savings accounts earning 1.5% or less in interest currently hold a collective £327bn, Spring has revealed

Britons feel unprepared for financial shocks, study finds

Almost half of Britons feel financially unprepared for major life events, despite recognising the importance of long-term financial planning, according to new research

Motive Partners completes acquisition of Mobius

Private equity firm Motive Partners has completed the acquisition of investment administrator Mobius for an undisclosed sum

Standard Life enters Ireland's pension risk transfer market

Standard Life has launched into Ireland's growing pension risk transfer (PRT) market, targeting a €65bn defined benefit (DB) pensions sector

Welsh National Opera pension scheme concludes £11.1m buy-in with Utmost

The Welsh National Opera Limited Pension Scheme has concluded an £11.1m buy-in with Utmost, securing the benefits of all 158 members of the scheme

Advisers seek pension tax certainty ahead of Budget

Six in ten financial advisers want greater certainty over pension taxation, while more than half are calling for a simpler tax system ahead of next week’s Autumn Budget, according to research by Royal London

Lloyds profits jump but investors look for more

Lloyds Banking Group reported a strong rise in third-quarter profits a day after the Budget raised the tax surcharge for banks

Half of UK adults expect to be worse off after Budget

More than half of UK adults expect to be worse off following the Autumn Budget, with many households struggling to cover essential bills and increasingly relying on credit to manage unexpected costs, new consumer research has found

Fintel acquires Mortgage Brain Holdings

Fintel has announced the acquisition of Mortgage Brain Holdings as it looks to strengthen its software and data division and expand its presence in the mortgage market

ISA reforms risk undermining rising investor confidence

Investing confidence among UK adults has reached a three-year high, with 40% now feeling confident about investing, up from 33% in 2024, but planned ISA changes risk undermining the growing momentum, Moneybox has warned. The latest Moneybox Financial Confidence Index found that the proportion of adults holding investments has risen from 30% to 44% over the past two years

AI one of the most influential advisers in the UK – the lang cat

AI is one of the most influential advisers in the UK, with tools shaping financial decisions over an estimated £47.7bn of UK savings and investments, the lang cat has stated

Nivo launches AI assistant to streamline specialist lending cases

Nivo has launched Lender Collect, an AI assistant designed to help manage specialist lending cases from initial broker enquiries through to post-decision conditions

AI poised to reshape workplace pensions

Artificial intelligence is poised to reshape the UK defined contribution (DC) pensions market, with employers increasingly looking to use the technology to improve member communications, engagement and retirement outcomes, according to a new WTW survey

AI will raise speed expectations for letting agents

Artificial intelligence is more likely to replace individual tasks than letting agents themselves, but the technology will raise expectations for faster service, smarter decision-making and greater efficiency across the lettings sector, Propoly has argued

Loans Warehouse partners with Flexi Network

Loans Warehouse has been appointed as a specialist lending partner to the recently launched Flexi Network, in a move that aims to strengthen its position in the intermediary market

News in brief - 27 October 2026

Today's round up of developments coming out of the consumer finance space, featuring MQube, United Trust Bank, Lovey, Atomos, Atom bank, One Mortgage System, and more...

News in brief - 26 October 2026

Today's round up of developments coming out of the consumer finance space, featuring Landbay, JammJar, Octane Capital, Mortimer Street Capital and Twenty7tec

News in brief - 23 October 2026

Today's round up of developments coming out of the consumer finance space, featuring Mercantile Trust, TAB and Rosemount Financial Solutions

Alan Ritchie: Looking to the future for Equity Release

Royal London Equity Release's CEO explores property wealth’s role in retirement planning

BLOG: Are added-value services the key to engaging clients in protection?

Scottish Widows Protection Director, Rose St Louis, discusses how reframing protection conversations can help to engage clients

BLOG: Award-winning lending, built brick by brick

Saffron for Intermediaries discusses its latest lending offering on the MoneyAge blog

BLOG: Doing Good is Good Business

MoneyAge Awards winner Bespoke Advice discusses the key fundamentals of good financial planning in our latest blog piece

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