An extreme example of the dangers of DIY investing, admittedly. A gambling addict who’d given up, obviously before he’d gambled everything away, and had some money to invest. He transferred his combined pension pot to Hargreaves Lansdown and moved it through a series of high risk investments until £220,000 was reduced to £3,000. He then complained, on the basis that they should have stopped him. And the answer from both Hargreaves Lansdown and the Ombudsman is, no, they had no actual legal or regulatory duty to do so, any more than might those endlessly-advertising Betfreds and NickNackPaddyPowers. Had an adviser advised him to lose all of his money, or taken his orders to invest, then he would have had a comeback. But, if you decided to go it alone, then you’re on your own, it seems. Unadvised investors in future Woodfords, take note.
“Platforms call for UK government to resist launching ‘retrograde’ British ISAs”
There is a school of thought which might say that, should you wish to revive and encourage investment in the UK Stockmarket, a starting point might be the reversal of Brexit.
