Wednesday 2nd of September 1998

Friendly society Manchester Unity is set to announce, tomorrow, a direct sales operation using the Internet.
The site is a mixture of educational material, plus a direct sales operation where investors can order investment statements and application forms for a variety of risk, superannuation and savings products.
Full details of the operation will be revealed tomorrow. However, it is understood many of the big name firms will allow their products to be sold through this website.
Manchester Unity has looked to broaden its operations as its client base has been diminishing over time.
Meanwhile, William M Mercer has launched its Mercer Retirement Trust (MRT), range of master trusts which are aimed at workplace superannuation market.
Chief executive Louis Boulanger says the MRT "offers a range of options which allow chief executives and senior managers to take the reins again on their corporate sponsored superannuation arrangements."
Essentially the MRT allows firms to fully outsource all their corporate superannuation business, plus it gives trustees of existing schemes the ability to access in a cost efficient way the sector specialist approach to investment management preferred by Mercer.
"The increasing complexity and burgeoning compliance costs of New Zealand's superannuation retirement will encourage employers to look at full outsourcing of their employee superannuation arrangements," Boulanger says.