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Media centre /
Press releaseFEE-BASED ADVISER AWARDED PREMIUM BOND MILLIONAIRE CONTRACT20 August 2008NS&I (National Savings and Investments) is pleased to announce it has awarded a three-year contract to Close Wealth Management Limited, the current contracted providers, to provide independent financial advice to the two winners of the monthly Premium Bond jackpot, effective from 18 August 2008. Each month, NS&I pays out more than one million prizes in its Premium Bond draw, including two jackpot prizes of £1 million. After being informed of their win by NS&I, the two lucky jackpot winners are given the opportunity to take advantage of independent financial advice, a service which NS&I has provided since the jackpot prize was introduced in April 1994. The services of Close Wealth Management Limited, a fee-based adviser with UK-wide coverage, will be offered to jackpot winners, beginning with an initial consultation and further sessions depending on their individual needs. Established almost 40 years ago, Close Wealth Management Limited provide solutions to the financial needs of private investors and employees from some of Britain's biggest organisations. The appointment process During 2007/08, NS&I invited responses for the contract from the intermediary market and received a high number of quality responses, including well-known financial services providers and niche and national IFAs. John Prout, NS&I sales director, said, “Our Premium Bond jackpot winners have a varied range of profiles and individual requirements and we needed an adviser who could reflect that. “We felt that Close Wealth Management’s expertise in the market and their straightforward and transparent fee-based structure, made them the best possible support that we can offer Premium Bond millionaires of the future.” Close was also selected on the basis that it provides a fee-based service. Prout added: “NS&I is a strong supporter of genuinely unbiased advice. We believe that a fee-based approach can often better reflect the value of this advice, and Close has a particularly well established way of working in this area of the market.” Peter Cooley, director of business development at Close, said: “Premium Bond millionaires are certainly a unique breed of people, they range from the reasonably wealthy to those who have struggled to make ends meet, and so the big win is certainly a life-changing event. “We have provided advice to Premium Bond jackpot winners since 2004 and because of their diversity the contract is still an exciting and unique opportunity for us. We look forward to continuing our relationship with NS&I and to working again with some of the UK’s luckiest people.” Premium Bonds facts and figures Launched in 1956, Premium Bonds are a serious yet fun investment, offering prizes instead of regular interest, in which 23 million people have invested £36 billion. The prize fund rate is currently 3.40% and all prizes are tax-free. Odds of any single Bond winning a prize are 22,000 to 1, so with average luck an investor with £30,000 in Premium Bonds could win 16 tax-free prizes a year. In August’s draw, NS&I awarded more than 1.6 million prizes worth more than £103 million including the two jackpot prizes of £1 million. To date, NS&I has created 216 millionaires. Premium Bonds can be bought online at www.nsandi.com, by telephone on 0500 007 0075, by post and over the counter at Post Office® branches, and brochures can be picked up in WHSmith in 400 of its High Street stores and 155 of its travel stores. About NS&I NS&I is one of the UK’s largest financial providers with 28 million customers and over £85 billion invested. It is best known for Premium Bonds, but also offers Inflation-Beating Savings, Guaranteed Equity Bonds and Children’s Bonus Bonds in its range. All products offer 100% security, because NS&I is backed by HM Treasury. ENDS Close Wealth Management Limited Peter Cooley
Media team The numbers below are for media use only. Customers wishing to contact NS&I can find details here.
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