The Investment Association: Growing European investment in UK asset management industry underlines importance of a Brexit deal

13 September 2018

The UK asset management industry grew to a record £7.7 trillion, maintaining its standing as the second largest asset management centre in the world, according to the latest figures published by the Investment Association, the trade body that represents UK asset managers.

Key 2017 findings:

The Brexit context

The importance of the UK’s financial services sector to the UK and European economy has come into sharp focus as the date for the UK exiting the EU rapidly approaches.

The UK’s status as a preeminent global centre of asset management expertise has seen AUM from overseas clients increase by almost a fifth to £3.1 trillion, over half of which (£1.8 trillion) is from European investors.

In Europe, the UK remains the largest centre of asset management (larger than the next three countries - Germany, France and Switzerland - combined), where it manages 35% of AUM. 

Investors are engaging UK based fund managers to invest around the globe. In 2017, 70% of equities managed in the UK were overseas, up from 49% a decade ago. The same theme is evident in fixed income markets where overseas bonds now represent 42% of all fixed income assets - up from a third in 2011.

The asset management industry also makes an important contribution to export earnings, responsible for 6% of UK net service exports, and the value of export receipts has risen seven times in the last 20 years. [...]

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