AJ Bell plc (LON:AJB), one of the UK’s largest investment platforms, has issued a trading update in respect of the three months ended 31 March 2025.
Performance overview
Platform business
| · | Strong growth in customer numbers increasing by 32,000 in the quarter to close at 593,000, up 18% in the last year and 6% in the quarter |
| o Total advised customers of 177,000, up 7% in the last year and 2% in the quartero Total D2C customers of 416,000, up 23% in the last year and 7% in the quarter | |
| · | Record assets under administration (AUA) of £90.4 billion, up 13% over the last year and 1% in the quarter |
| · | Gross and net inflows on the platform in the run up to the tax-year end were significantly higher than in the comparative quarter last year |
| o Gross inflows in the quarter of £4.0 billion, up 18% versus prior year (2024: £3.4 billion)o Net inflows in the quarter of £1.9 billion, up 19% versus prior year (2024: £1.6 billion) |
AJ Bell Investments
| · | Assets under management (AUM) increased to £7.5 billion, up 29% over the last year and 4% in the quarter |
| · | Net inflows in the quarter of £0.4 billion (2024: £0.4 billion) |
Michael Summersgill, Chief Executive Officer at AJ Bell, commented:
“We continued the strong start to our financial year as our platform attracted over 30,000 new customers in the quarter and achieved net inflows of £1.9 billion to surpass £90 billion of AUA for the first time. AJ Bell Investments sustained its excellent growth with quarterly net inflows of £0.4 billion resulting in closing AUM of £7.5 billion, up 29% in the last year.
“These results highlight the strength of our dual-channel platform, as our market-leading customer service and low-cost, easy-to-use platform propositions continue to be highly valued by customers and advisers. Our D2C platform enjoyed its strongest quarter ever, delivering record-breaking customer growth and net inflows, reflecting the benefits of our continued investment in brand and propositions.
“The UK Government’s commitment in the Spring Statement to boost the culture of retail investing through both ISA reform and the ongoing work on Targeted Support was an encouraging step. We believe a powerful combination of straightforward reforms, centred on implementing Targeted Support and simplifying cash and stocks and shares ISAs into a single product, would significantly reduce the barriers between saving and long-term investing.
“We have started the second half of our financial year in a strong position. Since the quarter end, global trade tariffs and broader macroeconomic uncertainty have created significant market volatility. This has led to increased D2C trading activity as customers use the flexibility of our platform to respond to changing market dynamics. The long-term investment outlook among customers is illustrated by the fact more than three-quarters of these trades were buys with the net investment totalling more than £300 million.
“Whilst recent volatility has impacted market levels, we have a proven track record of growing across different market conditions. There remains a significant structural growth opportunity in the UK platform market and our well-diversified revenue model enables us to continue to invest in our propositions and brand to drive long-term growth.”
Notice of interim results
AJ Bell expects to announce its interim results for the six months ended 31 March 2025 on Friday 23 May 2025.
| Three months ended 31 March 2025 | Advised Platform | D2C Platform | Total Platform | Non-platform | Total |
| Opening customers (k) | 174 | 387 | 561 | 15 | 576 |
| Closing customers (k) | 177 | 416 | 593 | 15 | 608 |
| AUA and AUM (£billion) | |||||
| Opening AUA | 57.2 | 32.3 | 89.5 | 5.8 | 95.3 |
| Inflows(1) | 1.8 | 2.2 | 4.0 | – | 4.0 |
| Outflows(2) | (1.3) | (0.8) | (2.1) | (0.1) | (2.2) |
| Net inflows/(outflows) | 0.5 | 1.4 | 1.9 | (0.1) | 1.8 |
| Market and other movements(3) | (0.6) | (0.4) | (1.0) | 0.1 | (0.9) |
| Closing AUA | 57.1 | 33.3 | 90.4 | 5.8 | 96.2 |
| Closing AUM | 3.8 | 2.0 | 5.8(4) | 1.7(5) | 7.5 |
| Three months ended31 March 2024 | Advised Platform | D2C Platform | Total Platform | Non-platform | Total |
| Opening customers (k) | 161 | 323 | 484 | 15 | 499 |
| Closing customers (k) | 165 | 338 | 503 | 15 | 518 |
| AUA and AUM (£billion) | |||||
| Opening AUA | 51.0 | 25.2 | 76.2 | 5.4 | 81.6 |
| Inflows(1) | 1.7 | 1.7 | 3.4 | 0.1 | 3.5 |
| Outflows(2) | (1.1) | (0.7) | (1.8) | (0.1) | (1.9) |
| Net inflows | 0.6 | 1.0 | 1.6 | – | 1.6 |
| Market and other movements(3) | 1.8 | 0.7 | 2.5 | 0.1 | 2.6 |
| Closing AUA | 53.4 | 26.9 | 80.3 | 5.5 | 85.8 |
| Closing AUM | 3.2 | 1.5 | 4.7(4) | 1.1(5) | 5.8 |
(1) Transfers-in, subscriptions, contributions and tax relief
(2) Transfers-out, cash withdrawals, benefits and tax payments
(3) Total investment returns and revaluations, net of charges and taxes
(4) Platform AUA which is held in AJ Bell’s Funds or Managed Portfolio Service
(5) Assets which are held in AJ Bell’s Funds or Managed Portfolio Service via third-party platforms
