The report, compiled by Matrix Financial Clarity and released 2 June, showed that a record £125.3m of transactions in the first quarter – a quarter-on-quarter increase of 14%.
It also represented an upswing on the £109.7m figure recorded a year previously, and a 43% rise on the same period in 2013 when sales totalled £87.6m.
Another all-time high was set in the 12 months leading up to 31 March, with purchases hitting £468.6m.
Sales of investment company shares also grew in Q1 2015, rising to £77.2m from £70.3m the previous quarter, which the AIC said suggests that advisers and wealth managers are rebalancing portfolios via profits taken.
As of 31 March, the number of IFAs and wealth managers buying investment companies via platforms stood at 881, a 13% increase on 12 months previous.
“It’s promising to see investment company purchases on adviser platforms hit another record high in Q1 2015,” said Ian Sayers, AIC chief executive. “It’s also pleasing that the number of adviser firms purchasing investment companies has increased considerably.”
Other findings in the study included statistics indicating that the global and UK equity income sectors retained their status as the most bought on adviser platforms, representing 15% and 12% respectively of total sales in Q1.
Property direct UK rose for a third consecutive quarter, accounting for 9% of purchases, while infrastructure investments fell by 5% quarter-on-quarter.
