AJ Bell has reported record assets under administration after attracting a wave of new customers across its divisions.
The London-listed investment platform said its assets under administration (AUA) rose 22 per cent year-on-year to £126bn in an end of year trading update.
The group’s assets under management (AUM) also reached a record £12.1bn, up from £8.9bn. Net inflows increased 37 per cent from £7.1bn to £9.7bn, while gross inflows jumped to £21.5bn.
Customer growth
The group credited the growth to its influx of new customers using the site. Total customer numbers rose 24 per cent to 796,000.
Both business segments reported an uptick, as total advised customers increased by 12,000 over the course of the year to reach 194,000.
The jump in customer numbers saw the investment platform‘s channel achieve record gross inflows of £8.7bn.
Meanwhile, total direct to consumer (D2C) clients increased 30 per cent to 602,000 from 140,000. It generated inflows of £7.8bn.
Michael Summersgill, chief executive officer at AJ Bell, said the influx of new customers reflected the “strong appeal of our low-cost, trusted platform”.
Its investment solutions channel continued to attract “strong flows” in both the advised and D2C business, reaching record inflows of £1.9bn, which was credited to clients actively searching for “low-cost investment solutions”.
Simplifying the business
The FTSE 250 group also continued with plans to streamline the business, by ceasing its ‘non-platform’ operations.
The wind down of its remaining third-party SIPP arrangement, where AJ Bell handled the administration for pensions sold by other firms, is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027.
The group expects clients who used this service to transfer to its D2C platform.
“At the start of the year, we outlined our intention to accelerate growth through increased investment in brand, marketing and platform propositions,” said Summersgill.
“Record growth during the year provides clear evidence of the success of that approach, as we continued to attract…long-term investors with significant potential to grow their assets over time.”