Record Q1 2026 net inflows power Quilter to £141.9 billion AuMA
Quilter has kicked off 2026 with a record quarter for new money. Core net inflows hit £3.1 billion, up 35% year-on-year and equivalent to 9% of opening assets on an annualised basis. Group Assets under Management and Administration (AuMA) stood at £141.9 billion at 31 March 2026.
Despite the strong inflows, end-March AuMA was largely held back by adverse market moves around the quarter end. Management says the subsequent recovery in recent weeks has already lifted AuMA meaningfully from that level.
What Quilter actually delivered in the quarter
Two definitions to keep in mind:
- AuMA: the total pool of customer assets either managed by Quilter or administered on its platforms.
- Core vs reported: “core” excludes non-core legacy books. Reported numbers include everything.
The group posted gross flows of £6.1 billion and reported net inflows of £3.0 billion. Core net inflows were £3.1 billion. Productivity stepped up too, with annualised gross sales per Quilter adviser at £3.9 million, 15% higher than last year.
Affluent segment: Platform firing on all cylinders
The Platform remains the engine room. Affluent core net inflows were £2,857 million, equal to 11% of opening AuMA (up from 10% in Q1 2025). Both Quilter’s own advice channel and the Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) channel saw strong demand:
- Quilter channel platform gross and net inflows rose 22% year-on-year.
- IFA channel platform gross inflows rose 22% year-on-year; IFA net inflows were £1,943 million, up 24% on Q1 2025 (£1,573 million).
Within multi-asset solutions, management highlighted WealthSelect Managed Portfolio Service (MPS) at £26.0 billion AUM by end-March, up 35% year-on-year. That scale is a strategic advantage for ongoing fee income.
High Net Worth: new business picks up pace
Quilter Cheviot, the High Net Worth arm, delivered gross inflows of £944 million, described as materially above recent run-rate. Net inflows were £214 million, representing 3% of opening AuMA on an annualised basis (Q1 2025: 2%), and up around 80% year-on-year.
Note the closing AuMA for High Net Worth at £32.1 billion was slightly lower than the opening £32.5 billion, a reminder that late-quarter market weakness more than offset the positive flows.
Why this matters for investors
For a wealth manager, flows are the lifeblood. More net inflows typically translate into higher future fee revenue, provided persistency (client retention) holds up. Quilter says core business persistency remained stable year-on-year, which supports the revenue outlook.
The quality of flows also matters. The Platform – at £105.7 billion administered – keeps compounding, with both internal advisers and IFAs contributing. The blend of advice-led distribution and scaled investment solutions (like WealthSelect) is doing what it should: attract sticky assets and deepen client relationships.
The main negative is outside Quilter’s control: markets. Management flags that geopolitical events hurt end-quarter valuations, partially masking the strength of client activity. Encouragingly, they also say markets have rebounded since March, lifting AuMA again – though no figure is disclosed.
The moving parts to watch
- Platform momentum: Affluent core net inflows of £2,857 million is the standout. Watch whether that 11% annualised rate can be sustained through tax-year seasonality and into the summer months.
- High Net Worth cadence: £214 million of net inflows is a clear improvement. If that higher new-business “run-rate” sticks, it should start to outweigh market swings in reported AuMA.
- Non-core outflows: non-core saw £92 million of net outflows. These are small relative to the group but remain a headwind to reported numbers.
- External platform flows: the Affluent external platform line had £62 million of net outflows. It is small at £5.8 billion AuMA, but the direction is worth tracking.
- Pricing and mix: not disclosed. The RNS is focused on flows, so we do not have margin or revenue detail here.
Key numbers from the RNS
| Metric | Q1 2026 | Q1 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Group AuMA (period end) | £141.9 billion | £119.6 billion |
| Administered on UK Platform | £105.7 billion | £86.6 billion |
| High Net Worth AuMA | £32.1 billion | £28.7 billion |
| Gross flows (reported) | £6,084 million | £4,895 million |
| Net inflows (core) | £3,063 million | £2,276 million |
| Net inflows (reported) | £2,971 million | £2,180 million |
| Annualised core net inflows vs opening AuMA | 9% | 8% |
| Quilter adviser productivity (annualised gross sales per adviser) | £3.9 million | £3.4 million |
Segment detail worth noting
Affluent Platform and advice
- Total Affluent core net inflows: £2,857 million.
- Quilter channel platform net inflows: up 22% year-on-year.
- IFA channel platform net inflows: £1,943 million, up 24% year-on-year.
- Quilter Platform AuA: £105.7 billion at 31 March 2026.
High Net Worth (Quilter Cheviot)
- Gross inflows: £944 million.
- Net inflows: £214 million (3% annualised of opening AuMA).
- Closing AuMA: £32.1 billion.
Josh’s view: strength in flows, markets still the swing factor
This is a clean, positive update. Record core net inflows above £3 billion, broad-based growth across adviser channels, and stronger adviser productivity point to healthy underlying demand. The Platform is doing the heavy lifting and the High Net Worth franchise is re-accelerating.
The only frustration is that markets briefly took the shine off the headline AuMA, particularly in High Net Worth where closing assets dipped despite inflows. That is timing, not strategy. With management flagging an AuMA rebound after quarter end, the earnings flywheel from these new assets should come through provided persistency remains stable.
In short: operational momentum is strong, distribution is working, and the secular UK wealth opportunity remains intact. The next checkpoint is whether this level of inflows can be repeated outside the traditional tax-year peak – if so, 2026 is shaping up well.
