AJ Bell (LON:AJB) said assets fell in the three months to December 31, according to a trading update published on Wednesday.
The online investment platform said that ‘negative market movements’ of £2.7 billion led to a 4% decline in assets to £44.2 billion since 30 September 2018.
Meanwhile, platform customer numbers rose by 7,285 to 190,498, marking an increase of 4%. Underlying Platform inflows increased 20% to £1.2 billion, compared to £1.0 billion during the same period a year before.
The update is the first since AJ Bell floated on the London Stock Exchange in December, valuing the firm at £651 million.
Chief executive Andy Bell commented:
“Trading in the first quarter of our financial year continued in line with the growth story we outlined ahead of our IPO and remains on track. We continued to attract new customers and inflows to the platform in the face of volatile investment markets, which demonstrates the strength and resilience of our business model as we approach our busiest period of the year. Our low-cost and easy-to-use investment platform continues to appeal to both retail customers and financial advisers, and providing high quality service to them remains our top priority.”
Looking ahead, Mr Bell said that platforms are set to remain “one of the main beneficiaries of defined pension transfers.”
He added: “Our competitive pricing model and service proposition means we are well positioned to benefit from anticipated developments in these areas.”
AJ Bell is an online investment and broker platform. The firm was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Manchester.
Shares in AJ Bell remain flat as of 11:00AM (GMT).
