Assets under management (AUM) by UK-based fund managers reached £10trn in 2024, a 10% year-on-year increase.
The year also marked the first time that more than half (51%) of all UK-managed assets were sourced from overseas clients, underlining the UK’s role as one of the world’s leading hubs for investment management, according to new research from TheCityUK, the industry body that represents UK-based financial services.
The sector generated an estimated £17.5bn of gross value added in 2024, according to TheCityUK’s estimate.
This equates to nearly 6% of total UK financial and related professional services output. The sector also employed 74,000 people across the country in 2023.
In addition, institutional clients accounted for almost three quarters of AUM in 2024.
Alternative funds represented 17% of UK AUM (£1.7trn).
UK-based hedge fund AUM and private equity investment both ranked second globally – after the US.
The UK is one of the world’s three largest pension markets, alongside the US and Japan.
Insurance sector assets rose by 2.8% year on year in 2023.
Insurer portfolios remain dominated by fixed income, but allocations to alternatives such as private credit, private equity, securitisations and infrastructure are increasing.
The UK’s standing as Europe’s leading hub for fund management continues, with over one-third (35%) of total European AUM held in the UK, making it the dominant market by a wide margin, significantly ahead of France (16.1%) and Switzerland (11.2%).
Globally, AUM reached almost $300trn – another 10% year-on-year increase.
The report, The asset management landscape: global insights and UK strengths, offers a data-driven assessment of the sector’s performance, structure, and evolving client base in the UK and globally.
According to the report, net exports of fund management services grew by an average of 12.3% per year between 2013 and 2023, driven by strong growth in the sector’s gross exports.
“The asset management sector is a crucial part of the UK-based financial services ecosystem and has demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of a rapidly changing global environment,” said Anjalika Bardalai, chief economist and director of economic research at TheCityUK.
“In recent years it has successfully navigated major challenges, from geopolitical upheavals to shifting investor expectations, while continuing to play a key role in supporting economic stability and growth,” Bardalai added.
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