ISAs

There’s a time limit

A bank is tempting new customers with 10,000 Avios Points.

J.P Morgan Personal Investing confirmed the deal was running until July 31, 2026. The bank revealed customers could put their points towards flights at a time when concerns are mounting over potential fare increases.

The offer is open to new customers who invest £500 or more in a single payment before the end of July.

To qualify for the points, new clients must keep at least £500 invested from August 1, 2026, until February 1, 2027, after which the Avios will be awarded within 55 days of this holding period concluding. New clients can open a Stocks and Shares ISA, Junior ISA, Lifetime ISA, Personal Pension or General Investment Account.

New investors will need to complete the sign-up form, accessible via the promotional page. J.P Morgan reminded customers that their capital was at risk and that transfers in were excluded from the offer.

Claire Exley, head of advice and guidance at J.P. Morgan Personal Investing, said: “Many UK savers are curious about investing for the first time but unsure when to get started. Over the long term, it’s often more important to stay invested over several years than to try to time the market and pick the ‘perfect’ moment.

“For those thinking about starting to invest, our Avios offer is designed to help make that first step in investing feel a little more rewarding. With the cost of travel on many people’s minds, those Avios points could help towards a future holiday or bring a dream trip a bit closer.

“Whether you’re using a Stocks and Shares ISA for the first time, investing for your children, or topping up your pension, what often matters most is choosing an approach you’re comfortable with and staying invested for the long term.”

He was asked if now is a good time to open an ISA or not

Martin Lewis has offered some advice on how you could organise your savings. He explained the practical tip amid the current uncertainty surrounding the economic impact of the Iran conflict.

The major war has already triggered a surge in oil prices, with fears of long-term consequences for food production and global economic growth.

Mr Lewis was questioned on his BBC podcast about whether now is an opportune moment to open a stocks and shares ISA, given that markets are struggling. When share prices fall, it can present a prime opportunity to invest, as your funds could increase in value when the market bounces back. But if prices decline further, the worth of your holdings could also drop. In response, Mr Lewis outlined the general principle to bear in mind.

He said: “If you’re talking about investing for a long term money that you don’t need for five years and you’re going to do that in a nice spread of investments, like a global tracker fund or an S&P tracker or FTSE tracker, then you just have to accept that you will never know when the perfect time to put money in is.”

£1,000 savings tactic

Nevertheless, he did reveal one strategy you could use to reduce the risk posed by market volatility. Mr Lewis said: “Let’s just imagine you’re putting £10,000 in a stocks and shares ISA, and you’re putting it away for a long time.

“You could put £10,000 in now but you could arrange with the provider that it sits in its cash part. You can hold it in cash, within a stocks and shares ISA, for the moment.

“You could say I’ve got £10,000, over the next 10 months, I’d like you to buy £1,000 a month of that tracker fund that I’m putting my investment into. It’s called pound-cost averaging.

“Because you’re drip feeding the money in, that helps smooth out the short-term volatility of buying at the right moment. So if you’re worried about that volatility, you might want to adopt that tactic.”

Mr Lewis continued in saying that in reality nobody can predict the optimal time to invest. He said: “They are unknowable in the short term, but in a broad spread of investment over the long term, on the balance of probabilities, investing will outperform saving.

“So don’t let the volatility put you off, but you might want to spread the time that you’re putting the money in.”

Major changes to ISA allowances

Savers may also want to note that major changes to ISA allowances are on the horizon. Currently, you can deposit up to £20,000 each tax year, which can be divided as you wish between cash ISAs and stocks and shares ISAs.

From April 2027, you will only be permitted to save up to £12,000 as you choose. The remaining £8,000 will only be available for deposits into investment-based accounts.

Savers aged 65 and over will be exempt from the new regulations, retaining the existing £20,000 allowance. ISAs are entirely tax-free, with no tax liability on any interest earnings or investment gains within these accounts.