AJ Bell plc, one of the UK’s largest investment platforms, today issued a trading update in respect of the three months ended 30 June 2022.
Performance overview
Platform business
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Customer numbers increased by 14,120 in the quarter to close at 417,503, up 18% in the last year and 4% in the quarter, which represents strong ongoing organic growth in what is an uncertain economic environment |
| o Total advised customers of 141,856, up 16% in the last year and 3% in the quarter
o Total D2C customers of 275,647, up 20% in the last year and 4% in the quarter |
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AUA closed at £63.5 billion, marginally up over the last year and down 5% in the quarter, primarily due to adverse market movements. During the quarter the FTSE All-Share Index fell by 6% whilst the MSCI World Index (GBP) fell by 9% |
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Net inflows were in line with those for Q2 across both the advised and D2C channels, although weaker investor sentiment in Q3 relative to the comparative quarter in 2021 led to a year-on-year decline |
| o Gross inflows in the quarter of £2.6 billion (2021: £3.2 billion)
o Net inflows in the quarter of £1.6 billion (2021: £2.1 billion) |
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Dodl by AJ Bell (“Dodl”) was launched successfully in April. Customer and AUA numbers relating to Dodl are included within the D2C platform totals |
AJ Bell Investments
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Assets under management (“AUM”) closed at £2.5 billion, up 25% over the last year and up 9% in the quarter |
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Net inflows in the quarter were £271 million, in line with the underlying net inflows reported in the comparative quarter last year |
Non-platform business
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Customer numbers remained broadly flat, closing at 14,947 |
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Net outflows in the quarter were £1.7 billion (2021: £0.3 billion), which reflected what was the final outflow of £1.7 billion in relation to the previously announced closure of AJ Bell’s institutional stockbroking business |
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As set out in previous guidance, the closure of the low margin institutional stockbroking business will not have a material impact on AJ Bell’s financial performance |
Andy Bell, Chief Executive Officer at AJ Bell, commented: “Our trusted investment platform has continued to attract thousands of new customers looking to invest for their future, despite a weakening in investor sentiment over the last six months. During our third quarter, platform customer numbers continued on an upward trajectory and closed 18% higher than in the previous year, whilst platform net inflows of £1.6 billion were in line with Q2, a traditionally strong quarter which benefits from the increase in customer activity in the run up to tax year end.
“The advised market has remained resilient in the face of current market headwinds and the strength of our proposition helped to deliver net inflows of £0.9 billion. We have recently reduced several charges on our advised platform, AJ Bell Investcentre, utilising our scale to further increase the value that advisers can offer to their clients. The phased launch of Touch by AJ Bell starting later in 2022 will further expand our offering for advisers, helping them to cater for clients looking for a digital service model.
“Our investments business is delivering on its commitment to offer a wide choice of investment solutions at low cost and with clear communications. Our investment solutions have outperformed against most competing products over the last 5 years, which is why they are valued by financial advisers, their clients and our retail customers. Net inflows of £271 million in the quarter equated to a healthy 12% of opening AUM, with total AUM hitting £2.5 billion.
“Overall, our business continues to perform well and our long-term growth prospects remain strong. The continued development of our customer propositions, together with our highly competitive pricing and strong customer service, means we are well positioned to continue growing the business and increasing our market share.”
Billy Mackay, managing director of AJ Bell Investcentre, comments: “A trend we are seeing more of in the advised market is firms giving consideration to the segmentation of their client base, with some shaping their offering to meet the varying needs of certain groups. This particularly applies to pensions where the simplicity of our Retirement Investment Account has seen demand grow amongst clients with more straightforward needs.
“We are also seeing strong demand for multi-asset investment options on the back of some firms considering outsourcing their investment processes and decisions. This is most typically via our range of Managed Portfolio Service options or our panel of third party MPS partners – all providing access to a diverse range of portfolio solutions that cater for clients’ differing objectives and appetite for risk.”
| Three months ended
30 June 2022 |
Advised Platform |
D2C Platform |
Total Platform |
Non-platform |
Total |
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| Opening customers |
137,201 |
266,182 |
403,383 |
14,926 |
418,309 |
| Closing customers |
141,856 |
275,647 |
417,503 |
14,947 |
432,450 |
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| AUA and AUM (£billion) |
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| Opening AUA |
46.5 |
20.4 |
66.9 |
7.2 |
74.1 |
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| Inflows(1) |
1.5 |
1.1 |
2.6 |
0.1 |
2.7 |
| Outflows(2) |
(0.6) |
(0.4) |
(1.0) |
(1.8) |
(2.8) |
| Net inflows/(outflows) |
0.9 |
0.7 |
1.6 |
(1.7) |
(0.1) |
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| Market and other movements(3) |
(3.1) |
(1.9) |
(5.0) |
(0.3) |
(5.3) |
| Closing AUA |
44.3 |
19.2 |
63.5 |
5.2 |
68.7 |
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| Closing AUM |
1.4 |
1.0 |
2.4(4) |
0.1(5) |
2.5 |
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| Three months ended
30 June 2021 |
Advised Platform |
D2C Platform |
Total Platform |
Non-platform |
Total |
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| Opening customers |
118,509 |
213,767 |
332,276 |
14,521 |
346,797 |
| Closing customers |
122,757 |
230,542 |
353,299 |
14,734 |
368,033 |
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| AUA and AUM (£billion) |
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| Opening AUA |
41.1 |
16.9 |
58.0 |
7.2 |
65.2 |
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| Inflows(1) |
1.8 |
1.4 |
3.2 |
0.1 |
3.3 |
| Outflows(2) |
(0.7) |
(0.4) |
(1.1) |
(0.4) |
(1.5) |
| Net inflows/(outflows) |
1.1 |
1.0 |
2.1 |
(0.3) |
1.8 |
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| Market and other movements(3) |
2.0 |
1.0 |
3.0 |
0.4 |
3.4 |
| Closing AUA |
44.2 |
18.9 |
63.1 |
7.3 |
70.4 |
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| Closing AUM |
1.2 |
0.7 |
1.9(4) |
0.1(5) |
2.0 |
(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
Contacts:
AJ Bell
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Shaun Yates, Investor Relations Director | +44 (0) 7522 235 898 |
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Charlie Musson, Brand and PR Director | +44 (0) 7834 499 554 |
Historical customer numbers, AUA and AUM by quarter
| Advised Platform
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Qtr to 30 June 2021 |
Qtr to 30 September 2021 |
Qtr to 31 December 2021 |
Qtr to 31 March 2022 |
Qtr to 30 June 2022 |
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| Customers |
122,757 |
126,920 |
131,610 |
137,201 |
141,856 |
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| AUA and AUM (£billion) |
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| Opening AUA |
41.1 |
44.2 |
45.8 |
47.5 |
46.5 |
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| Inflows(1) |
1.8 |
1.7 |
1.6 |
1.6 |
1.5 |
| Outflows(2) |
(0.7) |
(0.7) |
(1.0) |
(0.7) |
(0.6) |
| Net inflows |
1.1 |
1.0 |
0.6 |
0.9 |
0.9 |
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| Market and other movements(3) |
2.0 |
0.6 |
1.1 |
(1.9) |
(3.1) |
| Closing AUA |
44.2 |
45.8 |
47.5 |
46.5 |
44.3 |
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| Closing AUM(4) |
1.2 |
1.3 |
1.2 |
1.4 |
1.4 |
| D2C Platform
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Qtr to 30 June 2021 |
Qtr to 30 September 2021 |
Qtr to 31 December 2021 |
Qtr to 31 March 2022 |
Qtr to 30 June 2022 |
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| Customers |
230,542 |
241,045 |
251,664 |
266,182 |
275,647 |
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| AUA and AUM (£billion) |
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| Opening AUA |
16.9 |
18.9 |
19.5 |
20.6 |
20.4 |
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| Inflows(1) |
1.4 |
1.0 |
1.1 |
1.1 |
1.1 |
| Outflows(2) |
(0.4) |
(0.4) |
(0.3) |
(0.4) |
(0.4) |
| Net inflows |
1.0 |
0.6 |
0.8 |
0.7 |
0.7 |
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| Market and other movements(3) |
1.0 |
– |
0.3 |
(0.9) |
(1.9) |
| Closing AUA |
18.9 |
19.5 |
20.6 |
20.4 |
19.2 |
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| Closing AUM(4) |
0.7 |
0.8 |
0.9 |
0.9 |
1.0 |
| Non-platform
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Qtr to 30 June 2021 |
Qtr to 30 September 2021 |
Qtr to 31 December 2021 |
Qtr to 31 March 2022 |
Qtr to 30 June 2022 |
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| Customers |
14,734 |
14,789 |
14,792 |
14,926 |
14,947 |
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| AUA and AUM (£billion) |
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| Opening AUA |
7.2 |
7.3 |
7.5 |
7.5 |
7.2 |
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| Inflows(1) |
0.1 |
– |
0.1 |
– |
0.1 |
| Outflows(2) |
(0.4) |
(0.1) |
(0.2) |
(0.1) |
(1.8) |
| Net outflows |
(0.3) |
(0.1) |
(0.1) |
(0.1) |
(1.7) |
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| Market and other movements(3) |
0.4 |
0.3 |
0.1 |
(0.2) |
(0.3) |
| Closing AUA |
7.3 |
7.5 |
7.5 |
7.2 |
5.2 |
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| Closing AUM(5) |
0.1 |
0.1 |
– |
– |
0.1 |
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| Total closing AUA |
70.4 |
72.8 |
75.6 |
74.1 |
68.7 |
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| Total closing AUM |
2.0 |
2.2 |
2.1 |
2.3 |
2.5 |
(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
