SWIP swells profits but lands £4m Keydata levy

Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) contributed more than £4m last year toward compensating investors in failed investment company Keydata.

The company paid £4,137,845 in 2010 toward a total £326m interim levy payable by the FSCS's investment management and investment intermediation sub-classes.

This was significantly up from SWIP's £70,812 contribution to an £80m interim levy the previous year, the vast majority of which was controversially met by the investment intermediation sub-class.

Keydata was in default under FSCS rules in June 2009.

Meanwhile, SWIP made profits of almost £66m in 2010 from revenues of £185m, up from profits of almost £16m from £107m revenues the previous year, according to the group's 2010 accounts.

Administrative expenses last year were almost £120m. As well as the Keydata levy, they included costs relating to the transfer of investment management of funds sourced from the Halifax and Bank of Scotland bancassurance operations, the Bank of Scotland wealth management business and the Clerical Medical intermediary franchise to SWIP.

Before that, management of the funds was handled by Insight Investment Management, but Lloyds Banking Group, SWIP's parent company, sold the business in 2009.