Rebate tax ‘fundamental breach of market freedom'

HM Revenue & Customs's (HMRC's) decision to tax unit and cash rebates could violate UK case law on competition, according to a platform consultancy.

The move means platforms will be forced to abandon negotiating individual discounts with managers, although a number of larger platforms, including Standard Life, Skandia and Axa Elevate, are lobbying fund groups for cheaper "super clean" share classes. Irrespective of whether platforms are able to negotiate multiple clean share classes, HMRC's decision was "a fundamental breach of freedom of market", AdviserAsset director Colin Turton (pictured) said. "It feels like we are going back in time," he said. "The only challenge I can see is from TISA who are lobbying for a delay. [It's] a ...