PensionBee recently announced that it has reached £5.0 billion in assets under administration (AUA) and 250,000 invested customers, demonstrating significant growth and a strong position in the UK pension market.
PensionBee is a leading online pension provider in the UK that aims to simplify pension management by helping its customers combine old pensions, make new contributions, invest according to their goals and objectives, and ultimately access their pensions from the age of 55.
Growth
The company attributes its growth to a combination of high customer retention, strong net inflows, supported by excellent customer service, a scalable tech platform, and innovative products that are tailored to their customer’s needs.
This success didn’t happen overnight, however.
The business can trace its roots back to 2014, when Romina Savova, (Pension Bee’s CEO) tried to move her workplace pension.
Something she found frustrating, time-consuming and expensive to do. Having been through that process, she thought there had to be a better way.
So, in conjunction with Jonathan Lister Parsons, she quit her job and set about creating Pension Bee. Which went live in 2016, offering products from BlackRock and State Street Advisors, securing former Prudential CEO Mark Wood, as its Chairman.
Differentiation
PensionBee differentiates itself by focusing on customer-centric features and transparency.
It offers a user-friendly online platform that’s integrated into some banking apps, a range of investment plans including fossil-fuel-free and impact investing options, and a commitment to clear communication.
PensionBee’s mission is to make pension management easy and accessible, helping people confidently save for a happy retirement.
These milestones underscore PensionBee’s growing influence in the UK pension sector.
They reflect the company’s success in attracting and retaining customers, and its potential for further expansion.
The future
While specific plans weren’t detailed in the milestones press release, PensionBee’s continued focus on customer service, technology, and product innovation suggests a commitment to further growth and helping more individuals achieve their retirement goals.
Because the UK pension market is significant with assets under management estimated to be worth £3.35 trillion in 2024.
That figure is expected to grow to around £4.11 trillion by 2029 according to data from Mordor Intelligence.
That increase will be driven by demographic trends in the UK which is experiencing population growth but also population ageing.
Competition
PensionBee sits in what is known as the “D2C platform” where firms provide a range of third-party products directly to their retail customer base.
That puts PensionBee in direct competition with Hargreaves Landsdown, AJ Bell and many others.
For comparison, Hargreaves Lansdown has 553,000 SIPP (or self-invested pension plans) accounts and some £45.00 billion of AUA between them.
Hargreaves Lansdown is the biggest of the UK’s D2C platforms, but they are challenged by rivals like AJ Bell, which in 2023, had 317,000 customers and £11.12 billion of assets under management in its SIPP product.
In eight years PensionBee has become a significant player within a highly fragmented market.
However, having experienced the very best, and the very worst of service from pension providers myself, over the last 18 months.
It seems clear to me that leveraging their customer-focused strategy should allow PensionBee to address a far larger share of the market going forward.
- Looking for a pension? Compare the best private pensions in the UK.
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