Bid to make it easier to switch cash to ISAS

More people with excess savings could be encouraged to move their money into stocks and shares Isas, as a result of proposals to make financial advice easier to access.

The proposals will create a simplified financial advice regime, making it cheaper and easier for firms to advise consumers about certain investments in stocks and shares Isas, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

The watchdog’s recent

Financial Lives survey found 4.2 million Britons hold more than £10,000 in cash and are open to investing some of it.

Consumers who hold significant amounts of excess cash may be damaging their financial position, as inflation reduces the value of their savings, the regulator said.

The FCA expects its proposed changes to lead to more people moving some of their excess cash savings into investments in stocks and shares Isas.