Quilter assets slide as Ukraine crisis hits investor confidence
Wealth manager Quilter reported a dip in assets under management in the past three months as investor jitters spread in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The London-based firm reported £107.2bn AUM at the end of March, a slump of four per cent from 31 December in 2021, as market volatility caused investors to pull back in March after strong inflows in the first two months.
Bosses said that net inflows hit £1bn in the past quarter, which helped dampen the overall fall in AUM.
“Net inflows in the first two months of the year were comfortably ahead of the comparable period in 2021 but the invasion of Ukraine in late February dampened investor sentiment for most of March,” Quilter boss Paul Feeney said today.
“Our resilient overall performance throughout this period has underlined both the strength of our advice-based model and demonstrated the potential of our transformed business.”
The firm felt the lift of a boost in individual adviser productivity, as annualised gross flows per adviser jumped 14 per cent to £2.5m, compared with £2.2m in the same period last year.
Feeney said the firm remained confident for the period ahead after the firm saw inflows on to its new platform and a boost in the firm’s high net worth segment.
“We have built a business for the long-term and remain confident in our potential and ability to drive growth and deliver efficiency. Markets may remain challenging, but we are focussed on execution and are well positioned to take advantage of the opportunities ahead,” he said.