AJ Bell’s year-end trading update: £100 billion AUA and record growth
AJ Bell has closed its financial year to 30 September 2025 with record numbers across the board. Platform assets under administration (AUA – the value of assets held on the platform) hit £103.3 billion, up 19% year on year, and total customers jumped by 102,000 to 644,000.
The dual-channel model continues to do the heavy lifting. Advised customers rose to 182,000, while direct-to-consumer (D2C) customers surged to 462,000. Management calls out strong brand, pricing and service – and, crucially, says the favourable market backdrop supported revenue growth.
Customer growth: D2C engine in top gear
The standout driver was D2C. Customers here increased by 91,000, up 25% in the year to 462,000. Advised added 11,000 customers, up 6%, to 182,000. That mix matters because D2C growth typically arrives faster when the brand resonates and the user experience is simple.
Quarter by quarter, D2C momentum was consistent, with total net inflows each quarter ranging from £1.0 billion to £1.9 billion, and customer numbers stepping from 371,000 at the start of the year to 462,000 by the end. On the advised side, inflows were robust but outflows picked up, reflecting elevated pension lump sum withdrawals and adviser consolidation, as flagged by the CEO.
Flows and markets: records on both gross and net
Underlying gross inflows (money in before outflows) reached £15.8 billion, up 21% on FY24 (£13.1 billion). Underlying net inflows (after outflows) were £7.1 billion, up 16% on FY24 (£6.1 billion). AJ Bell also benefited from favourable market movements of £9.3 billion, equivalent to 11% of opening AUA.
There was a small one-off benefit from a migration related to the wind down of a white‑label SIPP administration agreement, which added £0.4 billion to the D2C platform and reduced non‑platform AUA by the same amount, netting to zero for the Group.
Total platform net inflows were £7.5 billion, while non‑platform saw net outflows of £1.3 billion, giving Group total net inflows of £6.2 billion.
AJ Bell Investments: AUM up 31% despite slower net inflows
AJ Bell’s own investment solutions kept attracting assets in both advised and D2C channels. Net inflows were £1.3 billion (FY24: £1.5 billion). Assets under management (AUM – assets managed within AJ Bell funds and the Managed Portfolio Service) reached a record £8.9 billion, up 31% from £6.8 billion.
Within that total, platform AUM closed at £7.0 billion and third‑party platform AUM at £1.9 billion. That growing in‑house AUM is strategically important, as it deepens customer relationships and broadens the proposition.
Non‑platform business: shrinking by design
Non‑platform AUA fell from £5.7 billion to £4.9 billion, with total net outflows of £1.3 billion. Part of the movement reflects the wind down of a white‑label SIPP arrangement and AJ Bell’s ongoing focus on its core platform activities. The company also expects to complete the sale of its Platinum SIPP and SSAS business in November 2025.
In short, the non‑platform segment is being tidied up, while the platform – where the structural growth lies – continues to scale.
Why this update matters for investors
- Scale begets scale: With platform AUA at £103.3 billion and total customers at 644,000, AJ Bell is operating at serious scale. Management highlights a “highly scalable business model” and “operational gearing” – in plain English, the platform can support more customers and assets without costs rising at the same rate, allowing reinvestment in price, product and brand.
- D2C strength: The 91,000 D2C additions show the proposition is resonating. This matters because organic customer growth is the lifeblood of long‑term inflows.
- Advised nuance: Record gross inflows on the advised platform were offset by higher outflows, driven by pension withdrawals and adviser consolidation. It is not a structural negative, but it is a watch item if the rate of outflows remains elevated.
- Market tailwind: Market gains added £9.3 billion to platform AUA. Helpful, yes, but not controllable. The underlying inflow engine is what counts, and that rose 16% on a net basis.
- Focus on core: The non‑platform rundown and planned disposal simplify the group and free up focus for the higher‑growth platform.
Policy watch: pensions uncertainty is unhelpful
Management is blunt about the impact of policy chatter around pensions. Ahead of the November Budget, speculation over pension taxation is creating uncertainty for customers and advisers. AJ Bell is campaigning for a commitment to pension tax stability. For investors, this is external noise rather than a company‑specific issue, but it can influence near‑term customer behaviour and outflows.
Key numbers at a glance
| Metric | FY25 | FY24 |
|---|---|---|
| Total platform customers | 644,000 (up 19%) | 542,000 |
| Advised customers | 182,000 | 171,000 |
| D2C customers | 462,000 | 371,000 |
| Platform AUA | £103.3 billion | £86.5 billion |
| Underlying gross inflows | £15.8 billion | £13.1 billion |
| Underlying net inflows | £7.1 billion | £6.1 billion |
| Platform market movements | £9.3 billion | £9.5 billion |
| Total Group AUA (incl. non‑platform) | £108.2 billion | £92.2 billion |
| Total AUM | £8.9 billion | £6.8 billion |
Definitions: Gross inflows include transfers‑in, subscriptions, contributions and tax relief. Outflows include transfers‑out, cash withdrawals, benefits and tax payments. Net inflows are gross inflows minus outflows. “Underlying” excludes one‑off book migrations. AUM represents assets in AJ Bell funds or the Managed Portfolio Service, including £7.0 billion on the platform and £1.9 billion via third‑party platforms at year end.
My take: a strong print with a couple of watch items
This is a high‑quality update. Record customer adds, record inflows and record AUA show the proposition is winning in both channels, with D2C providing the spark. The investment solutions arm is scaling nicely too, with AUM up 31%.
Two caveats. First, advised outflows were “heightened” and worth monitoring into FY26. Second, the policy fog on pensions could keep behaviour choppy in the short term. Neither takes away from the core message: AJ Bell’s scale and dual‑channel strategy are working, and management is leaning into growth by reinvesting the benefits of scale.
What to watch next
- Government’s November Budget and any clarity on pension taxation.
- Completion of the Platinum SIPP and SSAS sale, expected in November 2025.
- Full‑year results on 4 December 2025 for revenue, margin and profit detail not disclosed in this trading update.
- Advised outflows – do they normalise after a year of elevated withdrawals and consolidation?
Bottom line
AJ Bell has crossed the £100 billion platform AUA milestone with momentum. The engine is running smoothly, particularly in D2C, and the group is simplifying around its core strengths. Provided policy headwinds do not worsen, the set‑up going into results day looks encouraging.
