Quilter topped the adviser platform leaderboard in 2025 - a record year for the platform sector with assets topping £1.3 trillion, according to a new study.
Analysts Fundscape said it recorded the largest annual increase in platform funds on record with gross flows reaching £191bn, beating the highs of 2021 (see below).
Adviser platforms spurred much of the growth, producing £97bn in gross sales and almost £100bn of asset gains during the year.
Also in the top five for adviser platform sales were Nucleus, Transact, Aviva and AJ Bell.
Across all channels, Aegon was the leader in gross sales taking 22.5% of gross sales with Hargreaves Lansdown in second place followed by AJ Bell (see below)
Source: Fundscape
Despite the growth during last year the final quarter of 2025 showed a sharp setback as speculation ahead of the Autumn Budget “unsettled advisers”, Fundscape said. The Budget cast “a long shadow over platform flows,” it commented.
Due to Budget uncertainty many investors delayed decisions or withdrew funds altogether and the impact was immediate. SIPP net flows fell sharply to around £1.3bn in Q4, well below the £3bn+ quarterly run rate earlier in the year and the lowest level since 2012, Fundscape said.
While pension flows weakened, bonds recovered with advisers turning to bonds as they repositioned portfolios ahead of possible pension tax changes. Gross onshore bond sales reached £1.2bn in Q4 – the strongest quarter on record and 48% higher than a year earlier. For the full year, bond sales rose to £3.7bn, up from £2.3bn in 2024.
Fundscapem, which surveyed 18 platform firms, said its analysis suggested another defining feature of 2025 was the growing concentration of flows among a relatively small number of platforms.
Quilter was the “clear standout”, generating £8.7bn of net flows – just under half of all retail advised platform net flows for the year. In the final quarter, Quilter captured more than a third of all net flows across the platform market.
Aviva and Transact completed the top three, each delivering consistently strong quarterly flows on the back of service and proposition.
Fundscape said: “The result is an increasingly polarised market, with a handful of large platforms consolidating flows while smaller players struggle to keep pace.”
Bella Caridade-Ferreira, CEO of Fundscape, said, “This (2025) was the year of the Budget, the bonds and the battle for advisers. Markets helped, but the underlying driver remains the same. Investors need advice more than ever as the financial landscape grows more complex. When advisers and clients are left guessing about tax policy, money does not disappear, it moves elsewhere.
“Now that pension rules have been clarified, pent-up demand should make for a strong first quarter in 2026, though geopolitical tensions could dampen confidence and get in the way. Over the longer term, the outlook is more positive. People are living longer, care costs are rising and inheritance planning has never been more fraught. That complexity will continue to drive demand for advice and support the long-term growth of both the platform and advice industries.”
• The full Platform Report is a confidential report published by Fundscape and available from them. Visit www.fundscape.co.uk. A total of 18 platforms are included in the analysis. Platform coverage is estimated at 98% of the platform universe.
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