M&G’s first-quarter update is better than it might look at first glance. The headline number is £0.6 billion of net inflows from open business, versus £(0.1) billion a year ago, which is a solid turnaround in a choppy market.
That matters because net inflows tell you whether fresh client money is coming in faster than money is leaving. In plain English, M&G is winning enough new business to offset some of the usual drag from older books and market volatility, and that is exactly what investors want to see from an asset manager and insurer.
M&G Q1 2026 trading update: the key numbers retail investors need to know
| Metric | Q1 2026 | Q1 2025 / FY 2025 comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Group AUMA | £371.4 billion | £375.9 billion at 31 Dec 2025 |
| Net flows from open business | £0.6 billion | £(0.1) billion |
| Total net flows | £(1.5) billion | £(2.3) billion |
| Asset Management net flows | £0.7 billion | £0.0 billion |
| Wholesale Asset Management net flows | £0.8 billion | £(0.2) billion |
| Institutional Asset Management net flows | £(0.1) billion | £0.2 billion |
| Life open business net flows | £(0.1) billion | £(0.1) billion |
| PruFund net flows | £(0.1) billion | £(0.3) billion |
| First With-Profits BPA transaction | £0.3 billion | Not disclosed previously |
AUMA means assets under management and administration – basically the amount of client money M&G looks after. It is a useful measure of scale, but it moves around with markets as well as with client inflows and outflows.
Why M&G’s AUMA fell even though open business returned to net inflows
The slightly tricky part of this update is that Group AUMA fell to £371.4 billion from £375.9 billion at the end of 2025, even though open business improved. That is not a contradiction.
M&G still had total net outflows of £1.5 billion in the quarter, and there was also a £3.0 billion market and other negative movement. Older legacy products, especially traditional with-profits business, continue to run off, and market falls in March did the rest.
That is why the real read-across here is this: the growth engine is improving, but the legacy drag has not disappeared. For me, that makes this a good update rather than a great one.
M&G Asset Management Q1 2026: strong wholesale flows are doing the heavy lifting
The best part of the statement is clearly Asset Management. Net inflows came in at £0.7 billion, up from flat flows in Q1 2025, and the division’s AUMA was £343.5 billion including internal assets, broadly unchanged from the start of the year and 10% higher than Q1 2025 on the rounded basis given by the company.
The standout performer was Wholesale Asset Management, which delivered £0.8 billion of net inflows versus £(0.2) billion a year earlier. Institutional business was softer, with £(0.1) billion of net outflows compared with £0.2 billion of net inflows last year.
That mix matters. Wholesale money can be a bit more sentiment-driven, but it also shows M&G’s products are finding demand in the market right now. Management highlighted client appetite in European equities, structured credit and impact funds, plus momentum in both public markets with £0.4 billion of net inflows and private markets with £0.3 billion.
There is also a useful strategic angle here. M&G said inflows were helped by demand from Daiichi Life Group and other external clients, which suggests distribution relationships are starting to do more of the work.
M&G Life business update: PruFund stabilising and BPA adds a new growth lever
The Life division was more mixed. Life AUMA fell to £187.9 billion, down 2% over the period, with management blaming modest adverse market moves and expected outflows from legacy business, mainly traditional with-profits.
PruFund, one of M&G’s flagship smoothed investment products, saw £(0.1) billion of net outflows in the quarter. That was still better than the £(0.3) billion outflow in Q1 2025, and the company says flows stabilised in April after March volatility knocked confidence.
I think that point is important. If April really was steadier and the planned launch of PruFund on third-party adviser platforms lands well, there is a reasonable case for flows to improve through the rest of 2026. But for now, that recovery is still a management promise rather than a delivered number.
The more interesting development is the new With-Profits Bulk Purchase Annuity, or BPA. A BPA is a deal where an insurer takes on a company pension scheme’s liabilities. M&G has now completed its first transaction of £0.3 billion, and says volumes should grow year-on-year with more weighting to the second half.
That gives M&G another route to growth in Life, and it is probably the most strategically important line in the whole release. New products that can scale are what help offset the slow bleed from legacy books.
What looks positive and what still looks weak in the M&G trading update
What I think is positive
- Open business net inflows improved to £0.6 billion from £(0.1) billion.
- Asset Management net inflows of £0.7 billion show the core franchise has momentum.
- Wholesale inflows of £0.8 billion were a strong swing from last year.
- PruFund outflows narrowed and management says April stabilised.
- The first £0.3 billion BPA deal suggests the Life division has a fresh growth avenue.
What I think is less encouraging
- Total net flows were still negative at £(1.5) billion.
- Group AUMA fell by £4.5 billion from the end of 2025.
- Institutional Asset Management was subdued at £(0.1) billion of net outflows.
- Legacy Life outflows, especially traditional with-profits, are still a significant headwind.
- No profit, cash generation, capital or dividend update was disclosed in this trading statement.
What this M&G Q1 2026 RNS means for investors
My overall take is that this is a reassuring update. It shows M&G is not stuck in runoff mode – there is genuine evidence of growth in the open parts of the business, especially in Asset Management, and that is a big improvement on the same period last year.
At the same time, investors should not ignore the drag from legacy outflows and market sensitivity. M&G still needs stronger and more consistent inflows to turn the whole group picture decisively positive, rather than just the open business slice.
The company sounds confident about 2026, citing a strong pipeline, the new BPA product and the expected PruFund platform launch. Based on this RNS alone, that confidence looks reasonable, but not yet proven.
So the simple verdict is this: good progress, credible outlook, but still a business in transition. If M&G can keep Asset Management flowing in, stabilise PruFund and scale BPA through the second half, this update could end up looking like the start of a stronger year rather than just a decent quarter.
