Aj Bell PlcLSE: AJB

Q2 trading updateThree months ended 31 March 2026 Announcement

· Issued by Aj Bell Plc


23 April 2026

AJ Bell plc Q2 trading update

AJ Bell plc ("AJ Bell" or the "Company"), one of the UK's largest investment platforms, today issues a trading update in respect of the three months ended 31 March 2026.

Performance overview

Platform business

  • Record growth in customer numbers, increasing by 50,000 in the quarter to close at 723,000, up 22% in the last year and 7% in the quarter

    • Total advised customers of 189,000, up 7% in the last year and 2% in the quarter

    • Total D2C customers of 534,000, up 28% in the last year and 9% in the quarter

  • Assets under administration ("AUA") of £108.7 billion, up 20% over the last year and 1% in the quarter

  • Record gross and net inflows on the platform

    • Gross inflows in the quarter of £5.6 billion, up 40% versus prior year (2025: £4.0 billion)

    • Net inflows in the quarter of £2.7 billion, up 42% versus prior year (2025: £1.9 billion)

  • Market movements reduced AUA growth by 2% in the quarter. AUA levels reflect ongoing market volatility, with market levels improving post quarter end

    Investment business

  • Assets under management ("AUM") increased to £9.8 billion, up 31% over the last year and 3% in the quarter

  • Net inflows in the quarter of £0.3 billion (2025: £0.4 billion)

    Michael Summersgill, Chief Executive Officer at AJ Bell, commented:

    "I am delighted to report an excellent quarter of growth for our dual-channel platform, as we delivered a record 50,000 net new customers and £2.7 billion of net inflows. This performance reflects the early benefits of our previously announced increased investment in our brand and propositions.

    "Our D2C platform delivered its strongest quarter to date, achieving record customer growth - over 50% higher than the same quarter last year - alongside record net inflows. This significant increase in new customers reflects the value placed on our low-cost propositions, ease of use and trusted brand. These factors also contributed to heightened inbound account transfers from other platforms within the market. Our

    Advised platform delivered record-equalling gross inflows, with strong growth partially offset by anticipated outflows associated with ongoing adviser consolidation.

    "We operate a digital-first platform, while recognising that at key moments in the investment journey customers and advisers may want to speak to us directly. The tax year-end is the busiest time of the year for customer activity and throughout this period we maintained excellent service standards, with customers and advisers waiting an average of just eight seconds to reach our customer services team. This focus on service quality is reflected in our market-leading 4.9-star Trustpilot rating and our Which? Recommended Provider status for an eighth consecutive year.

    "We have a proven track record of growing across different market conditions. Whilst recent market volatility impacted asset values at the end of the quarter, customer appetite to invest remained strong in the run-up to the tax year-end. The UK platform market continues to offer significant structural growth opportunities, and our diversified revenue model and highly scalable business model position us well to continue to invest for long-term, sustainable growth."

    Notice of interim results

    AJ Bell expects to announce its interim results for the six months ended 31 March 2026 on Thursday 21 May 2026.

    Three months ended

    31 March 2026

    Advised

    Platform

    D2C

    Platform

    Total

    Platform

    Non-

    platform

    Total

    Opening customers (k)

    185

    488

    673

    8

    681

    Closing customers (k)

    189

    534

    723

    7

    730

    AUA and AUM (£billion)

    Opening AUA

    64.6

    43.4

    108.0

    1.6

    109.6

    Inflows(1)

    2.1

    3.5

    5.6

    -

    5.6

    Outflows(2)

    (1.6)

    (1.3)

    (2.9)

    -

    (2.9)

    Net inflows

    0.5

    2.2

    2.7

    -

    2.7

    Market and other movements(3)

    (0.9)

    (1.1)

    (2.0)

    (0.1)

    (2.1)

    Closing AUA

    64.2

    44.5

    108.7

    1.5

    110.2

    Closing AUM

    4.6

    3.1

    7.7(4)

    2.1(5)

    9.8

    Three months ended 31 March 2025

    Advised Platform

    D2C

    Platform

    Total Platform

    Non-platform

    Total

    Opening customers (k)

    174

    387

    561

    15

    576

    Closing customers (k)

    177

    416

    593

    15

    608

    AUA and AUM (£billion)

    Opening AUA

    57.2

    32.3

    89.5

    5.8

    95.3

    Inflows(1)

    1.8

    2.2

    4.0

    -

    4.0

    Outflows(2)

    (1.3)

    (0.8)

    (2.1)

    (0.1)

    (2.2)

    Net inflows/(outflows)

    0.5

    1.4

    1.9

    (0.1)

    1.8

    Market and other movements(3)

    (0.6)

    (0.4)

    (1.0)

    0.1

    (0.9)

    Closing AUA

    57.1

    33.3

    90.4

    5.8

    96.2

    Closing AUM

    3.8

    2.0

    5.8(4)

    1.7(5)

    7.5

    1. Transfers-in, subscriptions, contributions and tax relief

    2. Transfers-out, cash withdrawals, benefits and tax payments

    3. Total investment returns and revaluations, net of charges and taxes

    4. Platform AUA which is held in AJ Bell's Funds or Managed Portfolio Service

    5. Assets which are held in AJ Bell's Funds or Managed Portfolio Service via third-party platforms

    Contacts: AJ Bell
  • Mark Coxhead, Head of Investor Relations +44 (0) 7761 513 512

  • Mike Glenister, Head of PR +44 (0) 7719 554 575

Historical customer numbers, AUA and AUM by quarter

Advised Platform

Qtr to 31 March 2025

Qtr to 30

June 2025

Qtr to 30 September

2025

Qtr to 31 December

2025

Qtr to 31 March 2026

Customers (k)

177

180

182

185

189

AUA and AUM (£billion)

Opening AUA

57.2

57.1

59.0

62.4

64.6

Inflows(1)

1.8

1.7

1.8

2.1

2.1

Outflows(2)

(1.3)

(1.1)

(1.5)

(1.9)

(1.6)

Net inflows

0.5

0.6

0.3

0.2

0.5

Market and other movements(3)

(0.6)

1.3

3.1

2.0

(0.9)

Closing AUA

57.1

59.0

62.4

64.6

64.2

Closing AUM(4)

3.8

4.1

4.4

4.6

4.6

D2C Platform

Qtr to 31 March 2025

Qtr to 30

June 2025

Qtr to 30 September

2025

Qtr to 31 December

2025

Qtr to 31 March 2026

Customers (k)

416

440

462

488

534

AUA and AUM (£billion)

Opening AUA

32.3

33.3

37.1

40.9

43.4

Underlying inflows(1)

2.2

2.3

2.4

2.5

3.5

Outflows(2)

(0.8)

(0.8)

(1.0)

(1.2)

(1.3)

Underlying net inflows

1.4

1.5

1.4

1.3

2.2

Migration(6)

-

0.4

-

-

-

Total net inflows

1.4

1.9

1.4

1.3

2.2

Market and other movements(3)

(0.4)

1.9

2.4

1.2

(1.1)

Closing AUA

33.3

37.1

40.9

43.4

44.5

Closing AUM(4)

2.0

2.3

2.6

2.9

3.1

Non-platform

Qtr to 31 March 2025

Qtr to 30

June 2025

Qtr to 30 September

2025

Qtr to 31 December

2025

Qtr to 31 March 2026

Customers (k)

15

13

13

8

7

AUA and AUM (£billion)

Opening AUA

5.8

5.8

5.4

4.9

1.6

Inflows(1)

-

0.1

-

-

-

Outflows(2)

(0.1)

(0.2)

(0.7)

(3.4)

-

Net outflows

(0.1)

(0.1)

(0.7)

(3.4)

-

Migration(6)

-

(0.4)

-

-

-

Total net outflows

(0.1)

(0.5)

(0.7)

(3.4)

-

Market and other movements(3)

0.1

0.1

0.2

0.1

(0.1)

Closing AUA

5.8

5.4

4.9

1.6

1.5

Closing AUM(5)

1.7

1.7

1.9

2.0

2.1

Total closing AUA

96.2

101.5

108.2

109.6

110.2

Total closing AUM

7.5

8.1

8.9

9.5

9.8

(1) Transfers-in, subscriptions, contributions and tax relief

(2) Transfers-out, cash withdrawals, benefits and tax payments

(3) Total investment returns and revaluations, net of charges and taxes

  1. Platform AUA which is held in AJ Bell's Funds or Managed Portfolio Service

  2. Assets which are held in AJ Bell's Funds or Managed Portfolio Service via third-party platforms

  3. Migration relates to the wind down of a White-label SIPP administration agreement

About AJ Bell:

Established in 1995, AJ Bell is one of the largest investment platforms in the UK, operating at scale in both the advised and direct-to-consumer markets.

Our purpose is to help people invest by providing them with easy access to Pensions, ISAs and General investment accounts, great customer service and competitive charges.

Our platform propositions offer a wide range of simple, low-cost investment solutions including shares and other instruments traded in the UK and other major stock exchanges around the world, as well as our own range of AJ Bell funds.

In the advised market, we offer AJ Bell Investcentre, our full-service proposition, alongside AJ Bell Touch, a simplified app-based proposition enabling a fully digital service model, and AJ Bell Custody Solutions, which provides flexible, low-cost, white-labelled investment management.

In the D2C market we offer AJ Bell, our low-cost, full-service proposition and AJ Bell Dodl, a low-cost investment app that offers a simplified investment journey.

AJ Bell is headquartered in Manchester, UK, with offices in London and Bristol.

Forward-looking statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve substantial risks and uncertainties, and actual results and developments may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these statements. These forward-looking statements are statements regarding AJ Bell's intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, its results of operations, financial condition, prospects, growth, strategies, and the industry in which it operates. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this announcement and AJ Bell does not undertake any obligation to publicly release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this announcement.