St James's Place exit fee overhaul welcomed but caveats raise concern

Impact on profitability in short term

Plans to overhaul the charging structure of St James's Place from the second half of 2025 has been described as “inevitable” by the industry, largely owed to its “outdated fees”.

The plans set out will see the wealth management giant replace its highly criticised ‘early withdrawal charge', with an explicit initial charge on new investment bond and pension investments. Charges will also be separated into components - advice, product/platform and fund - to simplify the structure and make them easier to understand for clients. Mark Polson, principal of the lang cat, said the overhaul was "very much Consumer Duty in action", following reports that SJP was receiving regulatory pressure to go further with amendments to its fee structure. "Whiplash is never pleasa...