Reuters unveils IFA-specific data service

A service targeted specifically at IFAs is being launched by Reuters Lipper to provide data and analysis on over 14,000 funds and investment news.

Offered free of charge, the Reuters Lipper IFA Research Centre is designed to provide independent intermediaries with all of the information they need, in one site, to track and research the investment market, as well as create fund profile sheets and reports for clients.

Fund performance data and analysis encorporates the Lipper Leaders fund rating system which helps the adviser to select funds according to the clients risk profile and requirements.

Approximately 14,000 funds and 28,000 publicly listed equities, from all of the major indices, are recorded on the site, as well as currency data, regular market reports and key market developments and news relating to the IFA sector, through its links with Citywire.

Feedback from Robert Stancliffe, chief economist at IFA firm Worldwide Financial Planning, indicates the service could be popular with investment advisers.

"Reuter's new IFA research centre manages well the balance between the research and empirical quantification of data, and more qualitative information such as fund manager news and market views," says Stancliffe.

"Lipper provide unlimited research and data, and the Lipper leader system is a useful comparison tool which is right to focus on consistency and the preservation of capital, rather than simply the cumulative performance graphs favoured by much of the industry.

"It also allows IFAs to compare the charges their clients can expect with regards to lump sums, regular and top up payments," he adds.

IFAonline