A real benefit to customers in these current volatile market conditions is the ability for them to view all their investments in one place, as well as enabling them to obtain instant market valuations, giving valuable peace of mind at a time when many will be worried about the poor performance of existing products.

Another benefit in the current climate is the site allows cautious investors to make regular savings into funds, rather than just lump-sum investments. By purchasing online, investors will pay 0% initial commission, potentially saving them up to 5.25% on the standard initial charge.

As well as enabling customers to pick ISAs or mutual funds from the whole of the market 24/7 and 365 days a year, the new site includes:

Consolidation service - the opportunity for investors to bring together all their current PEPs, ISAs, unit trusts and OEICs under one roof and one statement, enabling quick and easy switching between funds in future, whilst earning each customer £25

Regular savings - customers can now drip-feed investments into ISAs or funds from as little as £50 per month

Top sellers - the current most popular fund choices

Highly rated - the select group of products experts regard as the best*

Special offers - a selection of new launches and further discounted products each month

Sin bin - those funds which have performed below average in their respective sectors for each of the last three years

Compare savings - the chance for customers to check how much they could save by purchasing online one of the 1,000 funds from over 60 providers available on the Fidelity FundsNetwork platform

Simon Holt, managing director of Skipton Financial Services, commented, "We believe that, in the current climate, many people would benefit from the peace of mind of being able to view all their investments in one place, so we expect the consolidation facility on our new SFS Invest Direct website to prove popular. Whilst our core proposition rem remains face-to-face advice, we are seeing more savvy customers who want the ability to purchase investments online. Our new website makes this process even easier for them, giving a choice of how they can transact with us, with guidance to help them choose the best investment for them from over 1,000 available, as well as check their current holdings are not on our 'sin bin' list. With no initial commission to pay and the option to make regular savings as well as lump sum investments, this is a great option for the customers who know the ISA or fund they want."

* All funds that have been selected as 'Highly rated' have all been awarded a S&P (Standard & Poor's) rating and must also have been awarded a minimum of 3 stars by leading ratings company Morningstar.