Merryn's blog

An employment tribunal has ruled that two recently dismissed bricklayers were not self employed, whatever the contract they signed said. The conseque…

After the worst week for markets since 2008, Donald Trump thinks equities look “very good”. But if you’re thinking of buying, says Merryn Somerset Web…

The point of pensions tax relief is to keep you out of the means-tested benefits system. The current system is ridiculously generous, says Merryn Some…

The UK’s stockmarkets are unusually cheap compared with the rest of the world. If you don’t have substantial holdings in UK stocks, you should, says M…

The UK may have its problems, but not nearly as many as people seem to think, says Merryn Somerset Webb.

Given that whoever wins next week's election will be going on a massive spending spree, we're going to need to raise at least some of that money throu…

The one-percent club may not be quite as exclusive as you think, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Many people can drift in and out throughout their lives.

Our politicians are all promising voters the world. But mostly, it is just pointless showing off, says Merryn Somerset Webb.

Around 78,000 people it in the UK last year fell victim to “authorised push payment fraud” – where fraudsters persuade you to transfer money from your…

The greatest danger to capitalism isn't a far-left Corbyn government, it's the rise of powerful corporations distorting the free market.

If you want a very long-term investment that produces an income into your retirement while preserving your capital, buy an investment trust, says Merr…

Global geopolitics has become a "black swan" machine. Unexpected things just keep happening. How are you supposed to invest in a world full of politic…

Japan suffered one of the most spectacular bubbles in financial history. But today, the market is so cheap that it’s practically the opposite of where…

If you feel yourself getting swept up in the excitement of a new disruptive stock coming to market, watch out. Buying into an IPO nearly always involv…

The gap between rich and poor is a growing problem. But fixing inequality isn't as simple as just squeezing the rich till they squeak, says Merryn Som…

Both the RAC and AA have been saddled with huge debts by private equity owners. It;s not done them any favours at all.

Rather than spend their donors’ money on charitable causes, a huge number of charities are hoarding cash and investing it. They should be spending it …

Neil Woodford and Adam Neumann have pulled off spectacular examples of the “bezzle”, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Hoodwinking investors and walking off …

Neil Woodford made every mistake it is possible to make as a money manager. And his investors have been stiffed. But however wrong it all went, Woodfo…

Cash machines are dying. And it’s not all down to people using debit cards, says Merryn somerset Webb. Rock-bottom interest rates are playing their pa…

Our system of inheritance tax is needlessly complicated, says Merryn Somerset Webb. Here, she outlines one way in which the well-off could save over £…

Quantitative easing isn't doing what it is supposed to do. Reversing it might, says Merryn Somerset Webb.

Negative interest rates could spark the next financial crisis. And central bankers could end up the object of the public's wrath, says Merryn Somerset…

Boris Johnson really isn't being controlled by a mysterious cabal of international financiers working to force a no-deal Brexit so that they can make …