How Financial Engineering, Legal Ambiguity and Regulatory Silence Create Structural Risk for Homeowners A Quiet Crisis Behind the Possession Courts Most homeowners believe repossession happens for simple reasons: arrears, expired terms, or a broken agreement with their lender.But behind the scenes, a silent and vastly more complex machine is operating — one that even judges … Continue reading The Securitisation Trap: The Hidden System Behind UK Repossessions & Why Your Bank Won’t Let You Switch to Interest-Only
Author: Steve Conley
Steve Conley brings over four decades of innovation and expertise to the forefront of financial planning. As the founder and driving force behind the Academy of Life Planning and HapNav Ltd, Steve has been a pivotal figure in transforming financial services to be more democratic and decentralised. His role as a Game Plan Practitioner, Coach, Mentor, Speaker, and Author of "Your Money or Your Life: Unmask the Highway Robbers - Enjoy Wealth in Every Area of Your Life" underlines his comprehensive approach to financial education.
The Academy of Life Planning, hailed as the "Most Pioneering Financial Planner Network," reflects Steve's commitment to fostering transparency, integrity, and accessibility. This institution serves as a testament to his dedication to enhancing the financial planning landscape.
Under Steve's innovative leadership, HapNav Ltd has launched groundbreaking advancements, including the first end-user financial planning app integrated with open banking. This app guides users towards achieving 'Kokoro'—a life rich in financial, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual abundance.
Recently, Steve introduced "Planning My Life" and "Financial Life Coach"—services that extend his ethos into practical, impactful tools for financial autonomy. "Planning My Life" offers an affordable subscription model, giving members access to an AI Life Planner, comprehensive resources, and expert insights. These initiatives epitomise Steve’s commitment to empowering individuals, nurturing community growth, and contributing significantly to global efforts to eradicate poverty.
Steve's journey is more than a career; it's a steadfast crusade to revolutionise financial education and planning, creating a world where financial wellbeing is not just attainable, but enriches every aspect of our lives. Contact steve.conley@aolp.co.uk.
The Hidden Credit Line Fraud: How Dishonest Bankers and Captured Regulators Engineered the Largest SME Asset Strip in Modern UK History
AoLP / Get SAFE Special Investigation For nearly two decades, thousands of UK and Irish business owners believed they had failed. They believed it was their fault their loans collapsed, their businesses went under, their homes were seized, and their families were shattered. They were told they “mismanaged risk”, “failed to plan”, or “didn’t understand … Continue reading The Hidden Credit Line Fraud: How Dishonest Bankers and Captured Regulators Engineered the Largest SME Asset Strip in Modern UK History
When “Independent” Advice Firms Disappear — The Plot Twist No One Saw Coming
Why the decline in regulated advice firms is not a crisis, but a turning point for Holistic Wealth Planners The headlines are alarming:“Number of independent advice firms continues to fall.”Commentators talk of consolidation, capacity issues, and the supposed “advice gap.” But the industry’s story is only half the truth. What’s collapsing is the old model … Continue reading When “Independent” Advice Firms Disappear — The Plot Twist No One Saw Coming
When Professional Bodies Forget the Public: What the ICAEW AGM Tells Us About Structural Capture
Professional bodies were created to uphold standards, protect the public, and act as the ethical compass of their industries. When they function well, they safeguard trust. When they drift, the consequences ripple across the whole financial ecosystem. In July 2025, Professor Atul K. Shah — a respected academic, ICAEW fellow, and long-time advocate for ethics … Continue reading When Professional Bodies Forget the Public: What the ICAEW AGM Tells Us About Structural Capture
When Auditors Pass and Workers Pay: What the Wilko Collapse Tells Us About a Captured System
When Wilko collapsed in 2023, 12,000 people lost their jobs.The auditors didn’t. The advisers didn’t. The owners didn’t. In a single hearing of the UK Parliament’s Business and Trade Committee in November 2023, Professor Atul K. Shah quietly confirmed what many workers already felt in their bones: the system did not fail by accident. It … Continue reading When Auditors Pass and Workers Pay: What the Wilko Collapse Tells Us About a Captured System
The 95% Myth: How the Advice Industry Manufactures Trust While Silencing the Truth
Why a single headline tells you everything about the system we are fighting to change This week, a new claim appeared across the trade press: “95% say financial advice helps them hit financial goals.”(Opinium survey of 8,000 UK adults, commissioned by St. James’s Place.) To the casual observer, it reads like a national truth.To those … Continue reading The 95% Myth: How the Advice Industry Manufactures Trust While Silencing the Truth
When Bureaucracy Forgets Its Purpose: How AI Helps Citizens Stand Tall Again
Across the country, thousands of ordinary people are discovering the same uncomfortable truth: the systems designed to protect us are often the very systems that overwhelm us. Recent events shared by members of our community highlight the widening gap between process and people inside major public institutions. When a frail 94-year-old lifelong resident receives a … Continue reading When Bureaucracy Forgets Its Purpose: How AI Helps Citizens Stand Tall Again
Fee-for-No-Service: The Hidden Consumer Duty Crisis — and the Rise of AI-Empowered Financial Planning
By Steve Conley, Academy of Life Planning For the first time since records began, the number of clients receiving ongoing financial advice in the UK has fallen.According to new FCA data, advisers switched off ongoing services for 335,286 clients in 2024, a dramatic spike from the previous year. Headlines attribute this to the Consumer Duty.But … Continue reading Fee-for-No-Service: The Hidden Consumer Duty Crisis — and the Rise of AI-Empowered Financial Planning
🌍 When Systems Fail, People Rise: How a Community of Truth-Seekers Is Rewriting the Future of Justice and Financial Planning
“You can’t defeat Goliath with your mouth shut.” - Paul Moore Those words, spoken during a Transparency Task Force gathering this week, captured the heart of a powerful realisation:the institutions meant to protect the public are no longer capable of doing so — but the public is learning to protect itself. This event was more … Continue reading 🌍 When Systems Fail, People Rise: How a Community of Truth-Seekers Is Rewriting the Future of Justice and Financial Planning
When Two Stories Become One: What Lisa King’s Case Reveals About a Broken System — and Why Independent AI Is Now Essential for Justice
When Lisa King shared her husband Peter’s story, the room fell silent. It wasn’t just the grief. It wasn’t just the injustice.It was the shock of recognition. Because for thousands of families across the UK — including John’s family — Lisa’s story is not an isolated tragedy.It’s a pattern. A pattern of misconduct.A pattern of … Continue reading When Two Stories Become One: What Lisa King’s Case Reveals About a Broken System — and Why Independent AI Is Now Essential for Justice
Academy of Life Planning 