The Lifetime Isa (or Lisa) was hailed by George Osborne, who introduced it, as a revolution in saving for a first home or retirement. Those aged up to 40 can pay in a maximum of £4,000 a year, with the promise of a 25 per cent top up from the government on the amount invested.
When the initiative was launched on April 6, it was labelled a damp squib with a handful of shares-only versions offered. Financial institutions complained that they had insufficient time to prepare products in time for the launch.
Now, however, a cash version is on its way. Skipton Building Society will be the first to offer one this month.
“It was the same with Junior Isas; few providers were ready from day one, but most had launched products within six months,” says Danny Cox, of Hargreaves Lansdown, the wealth manager, which has almost 17,000 customers for its shares Lisa. Half of these are aged under 30 and 18 per cent are 39, just getting in before the age cut-off.
The Scottish National Party said it should be scrapped and called for “an end to gimmicks that disincentivise other forms of retirement savings that offer a greater return”.