REG - AJ Bell PLC - Q1 Trading Update
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RNS Number : 8601P AJ Bell PLC 22 January 2026
22 January 2026
AJ Bell plc
Q1 trading update
AJ Bell plc ("AJ Bell" or the "Company"), one of the UK's largest investment
platforms, today issues a trading update in respect of the three months ended
31 December 2025.
Performance overview
Platform business
· Customer numbers increased by 29,000 to close at 673,000, up 20% in the last
year and 5% in the quarter
o Total advised customers of 185,000, up 6% in the last year and 2% in the
quarter
o Total D2C customers of 488,000, up 26% in the last year and 6% in the
quarter
· Record platform assets under administration ("AUA") of £108.0 billion, up 21%
in the last year and 5% in the quarter
· A year-on-year increase in gross and net inflows across the platform,
inclusive of a greater impact from UK Budget uncertainty compared with 2024
o Record gross inflows in the quarter of £4.6 billion (2024: £3.6 billion)
o Net inflows in the quarter of £1.5 billion (2024: £1.4 billion)
· Favourable market movements of 3% of opening AUA
AJ Bell Investments
· Assets under management ("AUM") increased to £9.5 billion, up 32% in the year
and 7% in the quarter
· Net inflows in the quarter of £0.3 billion (2024: £0.4 billion)
Non-platform business
· The sale of our Platinum SIPP and SSAS business completed on 3 November 2025,
with AUA of £3.3 billion and 3,400 customers transferring from the
non-platform business to InvestAcc Group Limited
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."
Three months ended Advised Platform D2C Platform Total Platform Non-platform
31 December 2025 Total
Opening customers (k) 182 462 644 13 657
Closing customers (k) 185 488 673 8 681
AUA and AUM (£billion)
Opening AUA 62.4 40.9 103.3 4.9 108.2
Inflows((1)) 2.1 2.5 4.6 - 4.6
Outflows((2)) (1.9) (1.2) (3.1) (3.4) (6.5)
Net inflows/(outflows) 0.2 1.3 1.5 (3.4) (1.9)
Market and other movements((3)) 2.0 1.2 3.2 0.1 3.3
Closing AUA 64.6 43.4 108.0 1.6 109.6
Closing AUM 4.6 2.9 7.5((4)) 2.0((5)) 9.5
Three months ended Advised Platform D2C Platform Total Platform Non-platform
31 December 2024 Total
Opening customers (k) 171 371 542 15 557
Closing customers (k) 174 387 561 15 576
AUA and AUM (£billion)
Opening AUA 56.1 30.4 86.5 5.7 92.2
Inflows((1)) 1.7 1.9 3.6 0.1 3.7
Outflows((2)) (1.4) (0.8) (2.2) (0.1) (2.3)
Net inflows/(outflows) 0.3 1.1 1.4 - 1.4
Market and other movements((3)) 0.8 0.8 1.6 0.1 1.7
Closing AUA 57.2 32.3 89.5 5.8 95.3
Closing AUM 3.7 1.9 5.6((4)) 1.6((5)) 7.2
( )
((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
· Mark Coxhead, Head of Investor Relations +44 (0) 7761 513 512
· Jack Pattinson, PR Manager +44 (0) 7525 277 170
Historical customer numbers, AUA and AUM by quarter
Advised Platform Qtr to 31 Qtr to 31 Qtr to 30 Qtr to 30 Qtr to 31
December March June September December
2024 2025 2025 2025 2025
Customers (k) 174 177 180 182 185
AUA and AUM (£billion)
Opening AUA 56.1 57.2 57.1 59.0 62.4
Inflows((1)) 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.8 2.1
Outflows((2)) (1.4) (1.3) (1.1) (1.5) (1.9)
Net inflows 0.3 0.5 0.6 0.3 0.2
Market and other movements((3))
0.8 (0.6) 1.3 3.1 2.0
Closing AUA 57.2 57.1 59.0 62.4 64.6
Closing AUM((4)) 3.7 3.8 4.1 4.4 4.6
D2C Platform Qtr to 31 Qtr to 31 Qtr to 30 Qtr to 30 Qtr to 31
December March June September December
2024 2025 2025 2025 2025
Customers (k) 387 416 440 462 488
AUA and AUM (£billion)
Opening AUA 30.4 32.3 33.3 37.1 40.9
Underlying inflows((1)) 1.9 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5
Outflows((2)) (0.8) (0.8) (0.8) (1.0) (1.2)
Underlying net inflows 1.1 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.3
Migration((6)) - - 0.4 - -
Total net inflows 1.1 1.4 1.9 1.4 1.3
Market and other movements((3))
0.8 (0.4) 1.9 2.4 1.2
Closing AUA 32.3 33.3 37.1 40.9 43.4
Closing AUM((4)) 1.9 2.0 2.3 2.6 2.9
Non-platform Qtr to 31 Qtr to 31 Qtr to 30 Qtr to 30 Qtr to 31
December March June September December
2024 2025 2025 2025 2025
Customers (k) 15 15 13 13 8
AUA and AUM (£billion)
Opening AUA 5.7 5.8 5.8 5.4 4.9
Inflows((1)) 0.1 - 0.1 - -
Outflows((2)) (0.1) (0.1) (0.2) (0.7) (3.4)
Net outflows - (0.1) (0.1) (0.7) (3.4)
Migration((6)) - - (0.4) - -
Total net outflows - (0.1) (0.5) (0.7) (3.4)
0.1 0.1
Market and other movements((3))
0.1 0.2 0.1
Closing AUA 5.8 5.8 5.4 4.9 1.6
Closing AUM((5)) 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.9 2.0
Total closing AUA 95.3 96.2 101.5 108.2 109.6
Total closing AUM 7.2 7.5 8.1 8.9 9.5
((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)
((6) Migration relates to the wind down of a White-label SIPP administration
agreement)
( )
About AJ Bell:
Established in 1995, AJ Bell is one of the largest investment platforms in the
UK, operating at scale in both the advised and direct-to-consumer markets.
Our purpose is to help people invest by providing them with easy access to
Pensions, ISAs and General investment accounts, great customer service and
competitive charges.
Our platform propositions offer a wide range of simple, low-cost investment
solutions including shares and other instruments traded in the UK and other
major stock exchanges around the world, as well as our own range of AJ Bell
funds.
In the advised market, we offer AJ Bell Investcentre, our full-service
proposition, alongside AJ Bell Touch, a simplified app-based proposition
enabling a fully digital service model, and AJ Bell Custody Solutions, which
provides flexible, low-cost, white-labelled investment management.
In the D2C market we offer AJ Bell, our low-cost, full-service proposition and
AJ Bell Dodl, a low-cost investment app that offers a simplified investment
journey.
AJ Bell is headquartered in Manchester, UK, with offices in London and
Bristol.
Forward-looking statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve substantial
risks and uncertainties, and actual results and developments may differ
materially from those expressed or implied by these statements. These
forward-looking statements are statements regarding AJ Bell's intentions,
beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, its results of
operations, financial condition, prospects, growth, strategies, and the
industry in which it operates. By their nature, forward-looking statements
involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on
circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. These forward-looking
statements speak only as of the date of this announcement and AJ Bell does not
undertake any obligation to publicly release any revisions to these
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date
of this announcement.
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