AIM- a market full of opportunity

At the end of September 2021 there were 835 companies on AIM, with the total market value of London’s growth market £149 billion. This compares to 836 companies at the end of August 2021, when AIM’s market value was also £152 billion. September also saw a reduction in the number of AIM companies valued at over £1 billion falling to 28 from 30 in the previous month.

The AIM index as a whole fell 3.8% in the month, underperforming the UK index of 100 largest main market companies, which was only 0.46% lower. Looking at these numbers year-to-date AIM trails behind the FTSE 100 with 7.5% return against 9.69%.

However, this doesn’t tell the full story. AIM is a market with many growth focussed and successful businesses at the higher end but given its smaller company start-up nature it is also a market with companies yet to come into their own and even others which are yet to make a profit. In fact, since the start of this year, AIM has welcomed 61 newcomers coming from a broad range of sectors with market capitalisations extending up to £1 billion.

AIM is a stock pickers market which is clear from the consistently strong performance made by AIM portfolio managers in the space. For example, our own Fundamental Asset portfolio has returned 20.7% year-to-date.

Interested in hearing more about AIM as one of the world’s most successful growth markets? Then why not watch our webinar session to hear more: Is AIM heading for a fall… or is its outperformance set to continue. 

Inheritance Tax Receipts

Inheritance tax (IHT) planning is a growing area helped recently by the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak’s, decision to freeze allowances until 2026.

Official figures from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) have revealed that IHT receipts for April to August this year were £2.7bn – £0.7bn higher than the same period a year earlier.

There are a few reasons for this. Yes, the IHT nil-rate band has not risen since 2009 and yes, the majority of wealth in the UK is owned by over 60s which is the age bracket where Covid-19 resulted in more deaths than usual. But more significantly, estate values have risen in the last year mainly due to strong investment returns and property value rises. Expect this to rise farther. Inflation and house price rises are expected to continue and with the freeze on allowances more and more people will find themselves with an IHT issue as we move towards 2026.

You can find out more about the benefits of investing in AIM for IHT planning purposes in our free report available from the link here.

The Fundamental AIM IHT Portfolio is a discretionary investment management service where clients can obtain 100% mitigation from Inheritance Tax, benefit from the capital growth afforded by the AIM market and retain control of their assets.

You can find out more about Fundamental Asset Management’s high performing AIM IHT ISA and AIM Inheritance Tax portfolio service, which has been delivering exceptional investment returns for more than 17 years, from the link here.