- Hargreaves revealed its levels of assets under management rose by £7.5bn to a record £149.7bn
- SJP’s fund volumes grew by approximately £10.8 billion to £179 billion over the same period.
Hargreaves Lansdown and St James’s Place both recorded strong inflows in the first quarter of 2024, bolstering the platforms’ assets under management despite an uncertain economic backdrop.
HL’s assets under management rose by £7.5bn to a record £149.7bn between January and the end of March, while SJP funds grew by around £10.8bn to £179bn during the same period.
Higher asset volumes meant that HL enjoyed higher transaction volumes and platform revenues, which offset lower gains in net interest margin and cash balances, and increased total turnover by around 6 per cent year-on-year to £199.7 million.
Growth: Hargreaves Lansdown revealed its asset levels under management rose by £7.5bn to a record £149.7bn between January and the end of March.
HL recorded £1.6bn of new business during the quarter, as well as 34,000 more customers attracted by the group’s personal pensions, ISAs and active self-invested savings accounts.
Dan Olley, chief executive of Hargreaves Lansdown, said a record number of his clients contributed to their pensions during the period, while 270,000 Britons now have £10bn in active savings accounts with the firm.
At the end of January, Hargreaves launched a multi-bank Cash ISA that allows customers to spread their Cash ISA across multiple banks and between easy access, limited access and fixed-term accounts.
The momentum seen by the FTSE 250 company continued in April as clients took advantage of the opportunity to invest at the start of the new financial year.
Olley added: “We continue to make good progress on our priorities for the year: improving our proposition to clients, controlling our costs and increasing our pace of execution so we can capitalize on the significant growth opportunities ahead.”
Concerns: SJP’s latest trading update comes amid a review by the blue-chip firm, Britain’s largest wealth manager, of historical client service records.
SJP assets grow, but capital outflows remain “high”
SJP’s first quarter was boosted by higher investment returns and around £710m of net inflows.
However, the group said gross outflows remained at an “elevated level” as cost-of-living pressures led customers to withdraw money to meet “ongoing financial needs.”
SJP’s latest trading update comes amid a review by the blue-chip firm, Britain’s largest wealth manager, of historical client service records.
It has already set aside £426m in potential refunds for customers who paid for annual reviews they never received.
Mark FitzPatrick, chief executive of SJP, said the company was “making good progress” with the review, which it aims to publish alongside its half-year results over the summer.
He added: “While the outlook for the macroeconomic environment remains uncertain, our business is fundamentally in good shape as we continue to build our client base, grow advisor headcount, grow funds under management and deliver for our clients.”
Hargreaves Lansdown Shares jumped 5.4 per cent to 845.8p on Tuesday morning, while St James’s Place Actions They were 1.8 per cent lower at 436.8 pence.
