Reflections of 2025

Published: January 2026

2025 has been a busy year for MM Wealth.  

On the back of the 2024 Budget, we saw existing and new clients seeking help and guidance in the first quarter of 2025, particularly concerned with inclusion of their pensions as part of their estate from April 2027. For some it meant their potential inheritance tax liability increased tenfold.  See our blog: How we have helped clients since the October 2024 budget – MM Wealth

With careful planning and as an example the use of Whole of Life Insurance, we have helped our clients mitigate the increased IHT liability.  

Donald Trump’s return to the presidency in January 2025 brought renewed volatility to financial markets.  True to form, the new administration moved quickly, with February’s announcement of tariffs targeting countries deemed to have unfair trade barriers against the United States, followed by the declaration of a headline-grabbing “Liberation Day” set for 1 April, a symbolic deadline for the introduction of those measures. This was covered in: Groundhog Day – MM Wealth 

The end of the tax year and start of quarter two is another key event on the calendar and a busy time of the year for our Chartered Financial Planners. Reductions in allowances and increase to tax rates announced in the 2024 Budget meant ensuring that ahead of tax changes in April 2025, our clients have made the most of their tax allowances. We referenced this in: Navigating the Tax Year-End: Essential Tips for Taxpayers – MM Wealth

This will be the same for 2026 and utilising the £20,000 ISA allowance due to ISA changes announced in the 2025 Budget.  From April 2027, under 65s cash ISA allowance will be reduced to £12,000.  See our blog: Will this Budget work – I wouldn’t bet on it! – MM Wealth

In April, we celebrated 10 years of having our Corporate Chartered Status. We are very proud to have achieved this for the tenth consecutive year. It is an accolade that we work hard for each year and very few independently owned financial planning companies achieve this.  We blogged this with: We’re celebrating our achievement of retaining our corporate Chartered status for the tenth consecutive year! – MM Wealth  

After a strong start to the British economy, quarters two and three of the year saw a reduction to growth and pressure on the Treasury and Bank of England with managing inflation targets of 2% with the use of the interest rate.  We wrote about this in: UK Inflation Rises to 3.6%: A Summer Setback or Just a Blip? – MM Wealth 

The Bank of England cut interest rates in December to 3.75% from 4.75% at the start of the year; the rate changing four times during 2025. Current predictions for 2026 are that inflation will continue to ease, with talk that by the end of 2026 the forecast for inflation will be closer to the Bank of England’s target of 2%.  

The end of quarter three brought speculation of when the 2025 Budget would be announced; we covered this in: Are you 26 November Budget-ready? – MM Wealth which was later than expected by many but allowed us to focus on welcoming clients to Our annual Growing and Preserving Wealth seminar – MM Wealth. 

The final quarter of the year was speculation of what would be in the Chancellor’s Budget. In recent times it seems that the government prefers to leak out potential policy changes to test the waters with many of the big news already published – see our blog: On the eve of the Budget… – MM Wealth.  On Budget day itself, the leaked OBR document 30 minutes before Rachel Reeves stood up to announce the changes, stole her thunder but gave us clarity on what had already been exposed in the press.  We reported this in: The Autumn Budget 2025: Key Changes to Salary Sacrifice and ISA Rules – MM Wealth 

2026 will be another interesting year in politics, both in the UK and globally and for the economy, with the Treasury already announcing when the Spring statement will be, on 3 March 2026. We here at MM Wealth Towers, look forward to supporting our clients and welcoming new clients to navigate these changes.  

In the meantime, MM Wealth wishes everyone a Happy New Year!  

We are always here to help you with any questions or concerns you may have.  If you would like to talk to one of our Chartered Financial Planners, please contact us on 01223 233331 or email info@mmwealth.co.uk.

Disclaimer

Opinions constitute our judgment as of this date and are subject to change without warning.  This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice.  All contents are based on our understanding of current taxation and legislation, which is subject to change.

The value of investments and the income from them can go down as well as up, and you may not recover the amount of your original investment.  Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.

The information in this article is not intended as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities or any other investment, nor does it constitute a personal recommendation.

The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate estate planning and tax planning.