Way Trustees has launched a trust-writing service called Acrobat Trust for financial advisers.
The new platform will allow advisers to have two options available; to continue to write the trusts themselves, or refer clients to Acrobat where one of the Way Trustees ambassadors will set up the trust and hand the client back to the introducing adviser for ongoing regulated advice on the assets.
Until now, the firm said it has relied on IFAs to complete the advice and trust work involved in establishing personal trusts for their clients.
However, the launch of its ‘referred’ business model will provide a different way to do this.
Way Trustees said the launch of Acrobat Trust was in response to the many advisers who wanted to offer their clients a highly valuable facility but were unable to do so for a variety of reasons.
The firm said the Acrobat Trust has two main purposes, the first being to allow the settlor of the trusts to place monies in a segregated legal entity with a potential life of 125 years, overseen by a team of professional trustees.
Their actions are always guided by the settlor’s recorded wishes which can be updated as the family progresses.
Secondly, as the gift into trust sets off a seven-year clock, any funds remaining in the trust after the seven-year anniversary of the gift then fall out of account for inheritance tax purposes.
Charges for using the service are 1 per cent plus VAT of the initial investment and ongoing up-to a maximum of £3,000 inclusive of VAT per annum, depending on the size of the investment.
sonia.rach@ft.com
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