Total funds under management (FUM) reached £32.2bn ($46.6bn, €41.2bn) at the end of March 2016 compared with £29.7bn for Q1 2015.
Pension sales, which include unit linked pensions, Sipps, pension investment accounts and the Family Suntrust Business, were £418m.
International arm flat
The Isle of Man-based unit, Axa Wealth International, reported that its first quarter 2016 inflows were broadly in line with last year, with overall funds under management at £9.6bn.
Mike Foy, managing director of Axa Wealth International said for the quarter new business in its core UK market has grown by 15% against a backdrop of continued stock market volatility and a lot of noise around ‘tax evasion’.
This, he said, showed “many in the industry have been dispelling some of those offshore investing myths”.
“The key is to ensure only reputable, transparent and well-regulated jurisdictions are utilised and that investments are fully declared,” he said.
Axa Wealth’s UK investment management unit, Architas, saw its total assets rise 43% to £20.4bn in Q1 compared with the same quarter of 2015, driving the company’s total assets to over £46bn, up 26% on the first three months of 2015.
Strategic move
Last week, Axa announced an agreement to sell the Axa Wealth International’s Isle of Man businesses to specialist M&A firm LCCG Group for an undisclosed amount. The Isle of Man business is a major provider of offshore bonds into the UK.
LCCG said that following the acquisition it would maintain and grow the UK franchise and continue its relationship with Axa Life Europe for the provision of offshore bonds in to the UK from Dublin, and with Axa in Hong Kong and Singapore for the distribution of products in Asia.
Foy said the deal provided long term strategic opportunities for all those working for the Isle of Man operation, and allowed Axa to maintain its joint strategy of profitable growth in the UK market balanced against a valuable joint venture with Axa in Asia.
Axa Wealth forms part of the Axa Group, which is the world’s largest insurance company with total assets of €887bn and consolidated gross revenues of €99bn at the end of last year.
Axa operates primarily in Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific Region and, to a lesser extent, in other regions including the Middle East, Latin America and Africa.
