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Finance company Aberdeen Asset Management is to take over £40bn of Credit Suisse's fund management business in a move worth £250m.

The deal will create the UK's largest listed fund management group and see investment banking giant Credit Suisse take a 25% stake in Aberdeen.

The takeover is expected to complete by June.

Hundreds of thousands of endowment policyholders could find themselves with greater than expected shortfalls as their policies set to mature.

After becoming notorious in the 90's, there is a sudden rise in the number of policies due to pay out. But these come just as insurance providers are marking down their values due to share price falls and bonuses are being slashed by up to 75%. 

Many policyholders will find the remaining mortgage payments will not be met by the endowments.

Lower energy costs have helped to push the Consumer Prices Index inflation rate down to 4.1% in November from 4.5% the previous month.

The headline rate of Retail Prices Index inflation also dropped sharply in November to 3% from 4.2% the month before.

The falls came after energy costs have decreased and the average price  of a litre of petrol fell by 9.3 pence in the last month.

Despite the continuing fall in inflation, it is expected that the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee are to cut interest rates further.