Wealth management group St James's Place plc has hailed a “good” start to 2019, reporting a record £103.5 billion of funds under management. 

The firm – which has several partner practices based in Cumbria around the Carlisle and Kendal areas – reported an 8.3 per cent in funds under management for the three months ending March 31 compared to the same period in 2018.

It attracted £3.61bn in gross inflows, and £2.18bn in net inflow, both slight down on the same period in the previous year, St. James's Place plc said in a statement published on the London Stock Exchange website.

Its annualised funds under management retention rate stood at 95.9 per cent, compared to 96.2 per cent in 2018.

St James's Place plc chief executive, Andrew Croft, said: “We have experienced a good start to the year. This performance demonstrates the resilience of our business through the current political and macro-economic uncertainty.

“Whilst uncertainty will inevitably impact investor sentiment from time to time, it does not change the long-term needs of individuals. 

“There remains both a growing market for trusted face-to-face advice in the UK and an advice gap that represents a major opportunity for us.

“Given the scale and quality of the St James's Place Partnership we are confident of both the resilience of the business in more difficult times and our ability to continue to grow the business over the medium to long term."