Cardiff-headquartered pensions and employee benefits consultancy Quantum Advisory has published the latest results from its quarterly Fiduciary Management (FM) Dashboard, part of its ongoing ‘State of Play’ reporting series.
The update, covering the period to 30 June 2025, highlights continued growth in assets under management (AUM) across the fiduciary market, with larger pension schemes increasingly moving to Fiduciary Management (FM) or Outsourced Chief Investment Officer (OCIO) models.
Over the past year, five new mandates exceeding £500 million in AUM have been awarded, including those for the Aga Rangemaster Group Pension Scheme and the Plumbing and Mechanical Services UK Industry Pension Scheme.
Total assets for UK defined benefit (DB) pension schemes now stand at £114 billion. This figure does not yet include the Shell Pension Fund, which announced earlier this month that it will move to fiduciary management, representing an additional £11.5 billion. The BT Pension Fund, with assets of £36 billion, is also expected to feature in future reporting.
While new FM mandates have grown only modestly, with high single-digit appointments in the past 12 months, the pipeline of schemes exploring the model remains strong. The pace of growth is being tempered by schemes progressing towards buyouts, but demand for fiduciary solutions continues to hold firm.
Paul Francis, Principal Investment Consultant at Quantum Advisory, said:
“While risk reduction and reallocation dominated last quarter’s results, we’re now also seeing the FM market evolve structurally. Larger schemes are increasingly adopting FM or OCIO arrangements, but smaller schemes still make up the bulk of the market by number — two-thirds of fiduciary-managed schemes have assets under £100 million, and half are below £50 million.
“The growth in mandates is encouraging, but it’s clear the market must work hard just to hold its ground, given the move to buyouts. That said, interest in fiduciary models remains high, especially as market complexity increases.”
Francis also pointed to the regulatory landscape, referencing new guidance from The Pensions Regulator (TPR) published in June. The guidance, titled New models and options in defined benefit pension schemes, reflects the growing variety of endgame strategies available to well-funded schemes.
Anne-Marie Gillon, Principal Investment Consultant at Quantum Advisory, added:
“TPR’s guidance has reinforced what many trustees already suspected: there’s no longer a one-size-fits-all approach to the endgame. As fiduciary providers broaden their service offerings, schemes need to dig deeper into the specifics — how well a provider understands their objectives, how agile their strategy is, and how much genuine oversight is built in.
“It’s important trustees and employers cut through the noise, so they can stay aligned with both market opportunities and their long-term goals.”
