No more pension tax relief?

Get straight to the good stuff every day with the Multiply Minute; a lightning-quick round-up of the money news and how it affects you.

Pension tax relief “broken”?

Hargreaves Lansdown has called for the pensions tax relief system to be scrapped (paywall) and suggested an alternative which it says would be simpler and fairer. Currently, pension savers receive tax relief meaning their contributions are topped up by the Government. Hargreaves’ suggestion? Increase employer contribution via auto-enrolment, from 3% to 5%, meaning savers would get an extra £1 for every £1 they save.

Goodbye IKEA Coventry

IKEA has announced its first ever closure of a big UK outlet. Coventry's flat pack palace is spread over seven floors and has struggled to attract customers since it opened in 2007. Shoppers will now have to go to Birmingham, Nottingham, or Milton Keynes to get their meatballs, and the company says it’s going to try and find other IKEA jobs for the 352 people who worked there.

Intestacy shake up

If you die without a will, your assets are divvied up according to the rules of intestacy. Those rules are changing tomorrow: a spouse or civil partner will be entitled to the first £270,000 (paywall) of their deceased partner’s estate - £20,000 more than under the current system. The rest goes to any children. However, the rules will still mean unmarried partners and close friends are unable to inherit.

Tesla thwarts short-sellers

Shares in the electric carmaker surged another 14% yesterday, leaving hedge funds that bet against it scrambling to avoid financial disaster (paywall). Tesla shares have doubled in price since the start of 2020, and they’re also the most shorted in the US. But short-sellers only profit from falling share prices, and Tesla’s just won’t stop rising.