Legal & General Group Plc’s asset management arm saw assets fall by £132 billion ($168 billion) as clients pulled cash and rising interest rates eroded the mark-to-market value of its holdings.
Legal & General Investment Management, or LGIM, said net outflows were £19.3 billion in the six months through June, according to a statement Tuesday. Assets under management dropped to £1.16 trillion from £1.29 trillion.
The latest numbers mark a continued deterioration in its assets after the firm posted a decline last year following turmoil in its liability driven investment business. Operating profit in the asset management unit was £142 million in the six months through June, compared with £200 million in the same period last year.
Legal & General reported operating profit of £941 million in the period for the group operations, compared with £958 million a year earlier. Outflows from LGIM’s funds included pension risk transfers.
L&G fell in London trading, dropping as much as 4.4%. It was down 2.6% at 12:17 p.m.
The firm remains on track to “achieve our five-year ambitions,” according to Chief Executive Officer Nigel Wilson.
António Simões, who was regional head of Europe at Banco Santander SA, is set to lead the UK insurer starting Jan. 1, and will replace Wilson, who’s stepping down after more than a decade at the helm.
Read more: Legal & General Taps Outsider From Santander for Group CEO
Under Wilson’s leadership since 2012, Legal & General Investment Management grew to become one of Europe’s largest asset managers. Wilson also established Legal & General Capital, the group’s alternative asset platform, in 2013. The platform has enabled investments in infrastructure and housing projects across the UK.
(Updates share price move in the fifth paragraph)
