The Manchester based Online investment platform operator and stockbroker AJ Bell said that it had delivered further growth across its platform business in its first trading quarter, with assets under administration reaching a fresh record high
It’s customer numbers had risen by 29,000 to 673,000, ending the the quarter with 185,000 advised customers, an increase of 6% on the year, while direct‑to‑consumer customers rose 26% to 488,000.
Michael Summersgill, Chief Executive Officer at AJ Bell, commented:
“I am pleased to report a strong start to the financial year, delivering record levels of gross inflows onto both our advised and D2C platform propositions and attracting 29,000 new platform customers. This excellent customer growth reflects the impact of ongoing investment in our brand and platform propositions.
“We continue to invest to accelerate growth. Ahead of the tax year end, we recently launched a new multi‐channel brand advertising campaign, building on the success of our ‘Feel good, investing’ campaign, which has helped drive brand awareness to record levels over the past year.
“Record gross inflows were moderated by temporarily elevated outflows, driven largely by uncertainty ahead of the UK Budget. Customers nearing retirement responded to speculation around potential pension tax changes, resulting in a £500 million increase in pension withdrawals compared with Q1 FY25. Persistent uncertainty in the lead‐up to the last two Budgets has become an unwelcome feature of the market, prompting higher levels of assets moving out of pensions and risk‐based investments. This is directly at odds with the Government’s stated ambition to boost retail investing. We hope to see a more considered approach to the next fiscal event and urge government to provide a clear commitment to pension tax stability going forward.
“We have started the year with strong momentum. The platform market presents significant long-term growth opportunities, and our dual-channel model, supported by continued business investment, ensures we are well-placed to deliver on this opportunity.”
