Asset class view
- Net flows were negative for the second consecutive month (-£31.54bn; -£10.53bn ex-MMFs)
- Money market funds (MMFs) fared best (+£4.1bn), with the largest outflows were from equity funds (-£35.36bn)
Active v passive
- Actively managed funds suffered outflows of £4.16bn (-£8.25bn ex-MMFs) and passives shed £27.38bn
- Bond funds were the most successful passive asset class (+£721m: +£532m MF; +£189m ETF)
Classifications
- Money Market GBP saw the highest inflows for the month (+£3.93bn)
- Equity US funds suffered their worst ever outflows (-£19.03bn: +£1.9bn active; -£20.93bn passive)
Sustainable fund flows
- Sustainable funds saw outflows of £9.81bn, compared to conventional funds’ redemptions (-£21.73bn)
- MMFs were the only sustainable asset class in the black, by just £8m
Asset manager view
- Schroders was the most successful manager over July, netting £1.72bn, particularly to mixed assets (+£1.04bn)
Flows by Asset Class
Three-Year Flows
Chart 1: Asset Class Flows, 36 Months, to July 2025 (£bn)
Source: LSEG Lipper
In aggregate, total YTD mutual funds and ETF flows were -£34.46bn (-£45.7bn ex-MMFs).
The global equity rally that began in mid-April continued into July as US trade deals with key trading partners supported markets. This, however, flies in the face of what we see in chart 1. Equity funds have the largest YTD redemptions (-£31.35bn). July sees the largest monthly ever equity redemptions by UK fund investors, the next largest being -£14.56bn in September 2022. Most of this is the result of moves within a small number of funds: £38.1bn redeemed from five funds; £33.53bn from just two of those. So, this is likely a very large gear shift by a limited number of investors.
Bond funds have suffered the next largest YTD redemptions (-£9.76bn), despite the mixed fortunes of the asset class. Global government bond yields rose over July amid concerns over fiscal discipline and central bank independence. The 10-year Treasury yield climbing from 4.24% to 4.37%. Lower duration in higher yield and investment grade has provided an attractive combination, as corporate bonds outperformed sovereigns, supported by resilient earnings and improved sentiment. The UK and US were the stand-out IG and HY markets, reflecting slower policy easing, according to FTSE Russell analysis, with absolute yields remaining well above pre-Covid levels in all major credit markets.
YTD mixed asset flows were also in the red (-£4.8bn), along with real estate (-£655m).
On the plus side over the year, MMFs attracted £11.25bn, commodity funds £665m, and alternatives £219m.
Active versus Passive
Chart 2: Asset Class Flows, Active and Passive, July 2025 (£bn)
Source: LSEG Lipper
Net flows were negative for the second consecutive month (-£31.54bn; -£10.53bn ex-MMFs). Actively managed funds suffered outflows of £4.16bn (-£8.25bn ex-MMFs) and passives shed £27.38bn. As stated above, that’s the highest level of redemptions on record, albeit from a concentrated number of funds (and, therefore, presumably a concentrated number of investors).
MMFs fared best (+£4.1bn), followed at some distance buy alternatives (+£623m), then mixed assets (+£517m: +£432m active; +£85m passive), and commodity funds (+£14m: +£5m active; +£9m passive).
On the other side of equation, real estate funds faced small redemptions (-£3m). More significantly, bonds suffered outflows
(-£1.44bn: -£2.15bn active; +£721m passive). Last month we pondered if the negative flows for passive bond funds (-£4.25bn) signalled an end to the asset classes’ active-to-passive rotation. Not yet, it seems.
The largest outflows were from equity funds (-£35.36bn: -£7.16bn; -£28.2bn passive).
ETFs and Passive Mutual Funds
Chart 3: Passive Asset Class Flows, Mutual Funds v ETFs, July 2025 (£bn)
Source: LSEG Lipper
Of the £27.87bn of passive redemptions in July, mutual funds saw outflows of £27.38bn, while ETFs netted £489m.
Passive bonds funds were the most successful (+£721m: +£532m MF; +£189m ETF), followed by mixed assets (+£85m: +£83m MF; +£2m ETF)
Flows by Classification
Largest Inflows
Chart 4: Largest Positive Flows by LSEG Lipper Global Classification, July 2025 (£bn)
Source: LSEG Lipper
Money Market GBP saw the highest inflows for the month (+£3.93bn).
Source: LSEG Lipper
Mixed Asset GBP Balanced (+£1.59bn), with two share class allocations alone netting more than £1.9bn (see table below). Mixed Asset GBP classifications fared well this month, with Aggressive attracting £799m, Conservative £353m, and
Flexible £145m.
Source: LSEG Lipper
Despite the large outflows for the asset class as a whole, Equity Europe ex UK (+£473m: +£116m active; +£357m passive) and Equity Emerging Markets Global (+£428m: +£438m active; -£11m passive) were popular classifications. However, UK investors seem to have been slower than their Continental counterparts in latching on to European equities over 2025.
Bond Global GBP was the most popular fixed-income classification (+£837m: +£138m active; +£699m passive).
There was a lower appetite for USD-denominated fixed income funds than normal this month, although Bond Global High Yield USD—one of the best-performing fixed income categories—attracted £185m, and Bond USD Government was in positive territory (+£73m)—as was Bond USD Mortgages (+£53m), which doesn’t usually make much of a dent on the figures.
Largest Outflows
Chart 5: Largest Outflows by LSEG Lipper Global Classification, July 2025 (£bn)
Source: LSEG Lipper
Over July, Equity US funds suffered their worst ever outflows (-£19.03bn: +£1.9bn active; -£20.93bn passive)—in line with what we’ve seen from investors across Europe. The redemptions were concentrated on few funds, indicating that this is the action of a small number of large investors. Flows over H1 had been net positive, and July’s redemptions put YTD net flows (-£8.89bn).
Similarly large but concentrated redemptions for Equity Global (-£1.21bn: -£7.92bn active; -£4.17bn passive), with YTD flows now -£1bn.
UK equity funds collectively saw outflows of £1.94bn (-£1.15bn active; -£780m passive), despite the FTSE 100 outperforming the global market over the month. It was a similar story for Equity Japan, which suffered large redemptions as it outperformed
(-£2.45bn: +£84m active; -£2.45bn passive).
Despite the good performance for UK corporate bond indices over the month, Bond GBP Corporates suffered the worst fixed income redemptions (-£3.03bn: -£2.47bn active; -£554m passive).
Sustainable Fund Flows
Chart 6: Sustainable Asset Class Flows, July 2025 (£bn)
Source: LSEG Lipper
Looking at chart 6, the story seems to be that while flows for sustainable funds are bad (-£9.81bn), they could be a whole lot worse, given the outflows for conventional funds (-£21.73bn). MMFs were the only sustainable asset class in the black, and then by pocket change (+£8m). Sustainable equity saw the largest outflows (-£8.95bn sustainable/-£26.41bn conventional), followed by bonds (-£774m sustainable/-£663m conventional), then mixed assets (-£85m sustainable/+£602m conventional).
Rather than look at which sustainable asset classes fared best (or least-badly) this month, the below tables show the asset classes where individual funds have taken the most, led by equity, where there were substantial inflows despite overall outflows.
Source: LSEG Lipper
Similarly, Sarasin sustainable mixed assets funds in particular have done well, despite net redemptions for the asset class.
Source: LSEG Lipper
The Sustainable Fund Flows section has a narrower and stricter focus than those which indicate some form of ESG strategy in their fund documentation—to a smaller group of sustainable funds, defined as all SFDR article 9 funds plus all Lipper Responsible Investment Attribute funds reduced to those containing indicative sustainable keywords in the fund name.
Flows by Promoter
Chart 7: Largest Positive Flows by Promoter, July 2025 (£bn)
Source: LSEG Lipper
The top 10 fund promoters attracted 64.9% of the total inflows for the month.
Schroders was the most successful over July, netting £1.72bn, particularly to mixed assets (+£1.04bn), equity (+£389m), and bond funds (+£314m).
Source: LSEG Lipper
Insight followed, with inflows of £1.57bn, largely to MMFs (+£1.5bn).
Source: LSEG Lipper
