Jan 25 (Reuters) - St. James's Place reported an increase in assets under management on Thursday, buoyed by steady inflows from its well-heeled clients, although that slowed as risk appetite remained subdued.
Funds under management climbed to 168.20 billion pounds ($214.00 billion) by Dec. 31, compared with 158.57 billion pounds at the end of September and 148.37 billion pounds at the end of 2022.
Global financial markets have been fretting about an economic slowdown, while the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza coupled with uncertainty over interest rate cuts have further dampened investor sentiment.
Net inflows stood at 5.12 billion pounds for the year, compared with 9.78 billion pounds in 2022.
"While the need for trusted face-to-face financial advice remains as strong as ever, client capacity and confidence to commit to long-term investment have been impacted by the economic environment and short-term alternatives in the form of cash deposit and savings rates," CEO Mark FitzPatrick said in a statement.
Outside of the company's funds under management, net flows into its cash deposit service increased significantly during 2023, with client deposit balances totalling 3.9 billion pounds compared with 2.5 billion pounds at the end of 2022, the FTSE 100 group said. ($1 = 0.7860 pounds) (Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
