Ignis profits rise to £19m in first half

Ignis grew its IFRS operating profit for the first half of 2012 to £19m, compared to £18m during the same period last year, despite difficult trading conditions and continued investment in the business.

During the period, Ignis reported net inflows of £927m driven by strong gross sales into the group's Absolute Return Government Bond fund, UK Property fund and Liquidity funds. Total assets under management at 30 June 2012 stood at £73.6bn. Ignis CEO, Chris Samuel, said: "Ignis has made considerable progress since we outlined a new strategy for the business in late 2009. The first six months of 2012 provide further evidence of this progress. "Investment performance, with 84% of our assets under management beating benchmarks or peer groups, was pleasing and net sales of £927m, notwi...