The FTSE 100 continued expanding its market share in 2017, which chief executive Andrew Croft hailed as a “record year” for the wealth manager.
Gross inflows in the final quarter alone exceeded £4bn, which took full year inflows to £14.6bn, up 29% on the previous year. Net inflows into its funds were up 40% at £9.5bn.
According to the firm’s final results, it also retained 96% of its client funds last year.
Its investment arm ended the year with 9% higher FUM of £28.3bn, while its discretionary fund management unit saw 24% growth in FUM to £26.29bn.
The firm is currently the UK’s largest advice business by some distance, boasting thousands of qualified advisers through its Partnership network. At the end of last year, its total number of advisers was up 7%, standing at 3,661 people strong.
On the wealth manager’s staying power, Croft said: “At the heart of this sustained growth is the importance we place on maintaining long lasting relationships with, and between, our Partners and clients and serving them well. We continue to see a growing demand for advice and it is therefore also pleasing to report a 7% increase in the number of qualified advisers across our Partner businesses.
“Our continuing focus on achieving the best possible outcomes for our clients, through the provision of trusted financial advice and our distinctive investment management approach, gives us confidence that we will continue to grow our business, in line with our objectives, in 2018 and beyond.”
Brewin Dolphin
Fellow wealth manager Brewin Dolphin also reported higher total funds in its first quarter trading update on Thursday.
The FTSE 250 manager’s total funds climbed from £40.1bn to £41.5bn by the end of the period.
Its core funds, which include assets in its discretionary funds, managed portfolio service and execution only funds, swelled to £39.2bn, with discretionary funds making up £35.3bn of the total.
The firm said that its discretionary funds growth was down to “continued strong organic inflows” of £700m and “positive investment returns”.
Commenting on the first quarter results, Dave Nicol, Brewin Dolphin’s chief executive said: “The business has continued to perform well in the first quarter, maintaining the positive momentum we saw at the end of our 2017 financial year.
“Growth in total funds was achieved from continued strong inflows into our core services and positive investment returns for our clients. This has led to good overall income growth with the particularly strong growth in fee income more than offsetting the decline in commission income.
“The business remains focused on delivery of our strategic initiatives and we believe that our positive momentum will continue into the second quarter.”
