Assets under management (AUM) across the fiduciary management (FM) market continued to rise in Q2, driven by larger schemes increasingly adopting FM or outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) models, according to research from Quantum Advisory.

In its latest Fiduciary Management Dashboard, the consultancy reported that five new mandates exceeding £500m in AUM have been awarded over the past 12 months, including those for the Aga Rangemaster Group Pension Scheme and the Plumbing and Mechanical Services Industry Pension Scheme.

This continued the trend from the first quarter of 2025, which saw total AUM for mandates exceed £1bn, increasing from £93bn in the first quarter of 2024 to £112bn.

However, the latest report noted that net growth in fiduciary mandates has remained modest, with new appointments in the high single digits over the past year, as the pace of adoption is being tempered by schemes progressing towards buyout.

Indeed, the market continued to be dominated by smaller schemes, with two-thirds having assets of less than £100m.

Despite this, the report stressed that the pipeline of schemes considering fiduciary management was "strong", which it said suggested "sustained interest" in the governance model.

Overall, the total assets of UK defined benefit (DB) pension schemes stood at £114bn, although this figure does not yet include the Shell Pension Fund and the BT Pension Fund, which recently announced their moves to fiduciary management.

Quantum Advisory principal investment consultant, Paul Francis, claimed that while risk reduction and reallocation dominated last quarter’s results, we’re now also seeing the FM market evolve "structurally".

He warned that while the growth in mandates was “encouraging,” it was clear that the market would have to work hard to hold its ground, given the shift toward buyouts.

“That said, interest in fiduciary models remains high, especially as market complexity increases,” he added.

Francis also pointed to the regulatory context, noting: “These trends are unfolding against a backdrop of shifting regulatory expectations.

“The Pensions Regulator’s (TPR) new guidance, new models and options in DB schemes reflect the growing range of endgame strategies available to well-funded schemes and the increasing importance of choosing the right fiduciary partner for scheme-specific needs,” he explained.

Echoing this, Quantum Advisory principal investment consultant, Anne-Marie Gillon, said that 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, such as how well a provider understands their objectives, how agile their strategy is, and how much genuine oversight is built in," continued Gillon.

She also stressed the importance of trustees and employers “cutting through the noise”, so they can stay aligned with both market opportunities and their long-term goals.”

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