AJ Bell Investments has seen its assets under management (AUM) increase by 38% over the past year to 31 December 2024, according to its Q1 trading update published today (29 January 2025).
Assets ticked up by 6% over the quarter, while net inflows remained steady at £400m – in-line with the same period last year. This meant its total AUM surpassed £7bn for the first time.
In terms of the platform arm of the business, net inflows over the quarter came to £1.4bn, a £100m increase compared with Q1 last year. Gross inflows stood at £3.6bn, however, which is a £900m increase compared with Q1 2023. This meant assets under administration (AUA) reached record levels of £89.5bn, marking a 17% increase over the last year and 3% over Q1 alone.
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Total customer numbers rose by 16% over the year and 4% over the three-month period, reaching 561,000 by 31 December 2024. Advised customer numbers rose by 8% and 2% over the year and quarter, respectively, to 174,000, while D2C customers reached 387,000. This marked a 20% increase over the year and 2% over the quarter.
Michael Summersgill (pictured), chief executive officer at AJ Bell, said he is “pleased to report a strong start to the financial year”.
“Ahead of the October Budget, speculation around the tax treatment of pensions caused a short-term behavioural change among retail investors, which normalised quickly once the content of the Budget became known,” he explained. “We believe that pension savers deserve more clarity when it comes to the tax treatment of their long-term retirement plans. As such, we continue to call for government to commit to stability through a Pension Tax Lock, providing additional clarity around key features of the pension tax system.
“The strong start to the year positions us well as we approach the busy tax year end period. We remain focused on the significant long-term growth opportunity that exists in the platform market. Our dual-channel approach and continued investments into our propositions and brand mean we are well-placed to continue our strong growth.”
This story was written by our sister title, Portfolio Adviser
