The investment management arm of Legal and General group now has assets under management (AUM) of around £433bn. Gross flows were up 66% to £24.9bn in the period.
LGIM’s AUM growth was supported by inflows from its international distribution, which includes sales into Europe, the Gulf and, more recently, Asia. Of the £24.9bn gross inflows, the international business contributed net inflows of £7.5bn.
The group as a whole reported a 13% increase in profit before tax, £592m, and a 15% in profit after tax, which was £405m in the same period last year versus £464m this year.
Operating profit was up 10% to £571m, and the interim dividend increased to 2.40p per share, an increase of 22% from 1.96p in H1 2012.
The group also completed its acquisition of Lucida, the UK annuity buy-out company, and Cofunds during the period, and invested over £4bn in UK infrastructure and has made direct investments including one in CALA homes.
Nigel Wilson, group chief executive, said: “We are successfully evolving our strategy from a post-financial crisis focus on cash to one based on cash plus growth plus selective acquisitions. It is based on five macro-trends: increasingly global asset markets, ageing populations, digital lifestyles, welfare reform and bank retrenchment.
“We remain determined to deliver value to shareholders. We are equally determined to deliver value to our millions of customers With £433bn of assets under management in LGIM, £111bn assets under administration in Savings, and eight million customers, we have the scale, strength and skill-sets to provide insurance, savings and investment solutions that work for individuals, families, companies and for ‘UK plc’."
