Aberdeen confident despite fall in assets under management

(Sharecast News) - Aberdeen Group reported a decline in assets under management and administration in the first quarter of 2026 on Wednesday, as market weakness, outflows and a business disposal offset strong growth in its retail platform. Group AUMA stood at £547.7bn as at 31 March, down from £556.0bn at the end of December, reflecting net outflows of £2.9bn, lower markets and the divestment of its financial planning arm.

Despite that, the company said overall performance was "robust" amid heightened geopolitical and market uncertainty.

"We continued to deliver against our strategy in the first quarter, despite the backdrop of heightened geopolitical and market uncertainty," said chief executive Jason Windsor.

The FTSE 250 group's interactive investor platform was a key driver of performance, delivering record net inflows of £3.0bn, up 88% year-on-year, while customer numbers rose 14% to 513,000.

Daily average retail trades increased to 35,000, up around 21% on the previous quarter.

"Interactive Investor delivered a record quarter across a range of key metrics - supported by continued strong growth in SIPP customers," Windsor said.

Assets on the platform fell to £95.3bn from £97.5bn at the end of 2025, as strong inflows were offset by weaker markets and the £3.6bn impact of the financial planning business disposal.

Customer cash balances rose to £8.7bn from £8.0bn.

In the Adviser segment, net outflows were unchanged year-on-year at £0.6bn, with higher gross inflows of £1.9bn offset by increased redemptions.

AUMA declined to £78.6bn from £80.4bn.

The company appointed Rich Denning as the new chief executive of the division, effective May, as part of efforts to return the business to growth.

"In Adviser, we have seen an increase in gross inflows and we continue to reposition the business for a return to sustainable growth," Windsor added.

The Investments arm saw AUM fall to £383.4bn from £390.4bn, primarily due to £5.4bn of net outflows and adverse market movements.

Institutional and retail wealth outflows included around £4bn of previously flagged lower-margin equities withdrawals, partly offset by inflows into fixed income and real assets.

Net flows in Insurance Partners improved to flat from outflows of £2.3bn a year earlier.

Windsor said performance in the division was "largely as expected", adding that "outflows were mainly driven by anticipated redemptions, while we recorded progress in fixed income, real assets, and in our emerging market franchise."

Looking ahead, the group reiterated its full-year targets, including adjusted operating profit of at least £300m and net capital generation of around £300m.

"Looking ahead, we remain focused on delivery of our 2026 targets, while supporting customers through ongoing market uncertainty," Windsor said.

Aberdeen added that AUMA had recovered to approximately £573bn as at 17 April, reflecting improved market conditions.

At 0940 BST, shares in Aberdeen Group were up 0.94% at 212.69p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

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