MPS Client Newsletter
Data as at 30 June 2026
Quarterly Update · Q3 2026
Model Portfolio Service Market Update
Welcome to our quarterly newsletter for MPS clients — your update on everything we've been working on, alongside some genuinely useful insights into the UK Model Portfolio Service market, powered by FE fundinfo data covering 1,504 models across 78 providers. Expand each section below to explore the market overview, sector performance, Crown Rating analysis and the latest from the AdviserAsset Directory.
New Model Providers
A warm welcome to the following providers, who have joined the MPS Directory this quarter — their model portfolio ranges are now live on the FE fundinfo database alongside everyone else covered in this newsletter.
Dimensional
Julius Baer
Sentinel IM
“At MAIA, we are focused on providing excellent service to our IFA clients by delivering clear, unbiased information on our MPS proposition in a timely manner. By adding our portfolios to the FE Analytics MPS Directory, this allows IFA's to research, compare and assess our MPS proposition against its peers using a trusted platform. Furthermore, supporting them in selecting the most suitable investment solution for their underlying clients.”
— Simon Jackson, Investment Manager, MAIA Asset Management
“It's great to see our Sustainable Offshore Portfolios added to FE AdviserAsset and MPS directory. The offshore advice space is a largely untapped market for sustainable MPS, and this gives advisers easier access to the transparency and detail they rely on when recommending sustainable solutions to clients.”
— Sophie Kennedy, CEO, EQ Investors
“We're pleased to make our Core Range Portfolios available on the MPS Directory. Providing advisers with access through a trusted research and analysis platform enhances the visibility and accessibility of our investment solutions, enabling them to efficiently compare, assess and select portfolios that best align with their clients' objectives.”
— Geoff Brooks, CEO, Alpha Beta Partners
New Ranges Added
We've also added new ranges this quarter for four providers already on the MPS Directory:
Sparrows (SCore Equity & Responsible Equity Range)
P1 (Wealth Accumulator Range)
Tatton (Classic Equity & Income Equity Range)
“At Binary Capital, we're committed to equipping financial advisers with the tools, insights and support they need to deliver outstanding client outcomes. We're pleased to announce the expansion of our presence on the FE MPS Directory, making our faith-based Islamic model portfolios available through a platform advisers already know and trust. By broadening our offering, which already includes our Passive and Core ranges, advisers can more easily research, compare and evaluate Binary Capital's solutions alongside the wider market, helping them save time, make informed investment decisions and identify the portfolios that best meet their clients' needs.”
— Binary Capital
Headline Statistics
Total Models
1,504
Across 78 providers
Providers
78
Avg 19.3 models each (median 14)
Average Annual Charge
0.20%
Range: 0.00% – 0.75%
Underlying Funds Used
2,252
Avg OCF 0.53% at fund level
Avg 1yr Performance
+16.8%
Range +2.5% to +55.4%
Models by Investment Style
Based on model classification across 1,504 portfolios
Active mandates remain the largest single category at 34% of models, but ESG/Ethical and Passive approaches together now account for 45% of the universe — a reminder that low-cost and responsible-investing mandates are now mainstream in UK MPS.
Average Portfolio Weight by Asset Class
Simple average allocation across all 1,504 models
US Equities is by far the largest single exposure at 18.6% on average, roughly double the weight of UK Equities (9.1%) — underlining how global-first asset allocation has become the default starting point for most model portfolios.
Provider Size Distribution
Number of providers by total model count
6
1–5 models
22
6–10 models
24
11–20 models
23
21–50 models
3
50+ models
The market remains fragmented: the median provider runs just 14 models. Only 3 providers run more than 50 — Parmenion Model Portfolios, Quilter WealthSelect Managed P, Tatton are the largest ranges by model count.
Models by UK MPS Sector
Distribution of the 1,504 models across the seven FE fundinfo MPS risk sectors
Largest Model Portfolio Ranges
Top 10 providers ranked by number of models on the FE fundinfo database
Underlying Holdings Universe
Fund Groups Represented in Holdings Universe
Top 10 fund groups by number of distinct funds offered in the reference universe — not weighted by how much of each model they make up. See the real, usage-weighted ranking below.
This counts how many distinct funds each group has in the reference universe — a measure of range breadth, not actual usage. For the real, portfolio-weight-based ranking of fund groups (i.e. who actually gets used, and by how much), see “Most Used Fund Groups — by Portfolio Weight” further down this section.
Most Used IA Sectors
Top 8 Investment Association sectors by number of underlying funds
Underlying Fund Legal Structure
Share of the 2,252-fund holdings universe by vehicle type
OEIC and ICVC structures together account for around 56% of the underlying fund universe, with ETFs making up 11.5% — reflecting continued growth in low-cost passive building blocks alongside traditional open-ended funds.
Most Widely Held Funds
Based on full underlying holdings breakdowns for 1,542 models on the FE fundinfo database (as at each model's most recent factsheet date). Reconciled against the 2,250-fund holdings reference universe by Citicode.
Most Widely Held Funds Overall
Top 12 funds ranked by number of models holding them · % shown is share of the 1,542-model universe
| # | Fund | Models Using | Avg Weight When Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | HSBC European Index C Acc HSBC Asset Management | 190 (12%) | 5.1% |
| 2 | HSBC American Index C Acc HSBC Asset Management | 172 (11%) | 10.5% |
| 3 | Fidelity Index US P Fidelity International | 165 (11%) | 9.3% |
| 4 | HSBC Global Government Bond Ucits ETF S2ch GBP HSBC Investment Funds (Lux) | 138 (9%) | 5.2% |
| 5 | Fidelity Index Japan P Acc Fidelity International | 118 (8%) | 4.8% |
| 6 | Royal London Short Term Money Market Y Acc Royal London | 118 (8%) | 4.9% |
| 7 | Fidelity Index UK P Fidelity International | 117 (8%) | 6.5% |
| 8 | BlackRock CIF Japan Equity Tracker D Acc BlackRock | 116 (8%) | 3.5% |
| 9 | iShares UK Equity Index D Acc BlackRock | 114 (7%) | 5.4% |
| 10 | Vanguard Gbl ST Bd Idx IPH I£ Vanguard (Ireland) | 113 (7%) | 6.0% |
| 11 | Vanguard Global Bond Index Hedged Acc GBP Vanguard (Ireland) | 106 (7%) | 7.3% |
| 12 | abrdn Global Corporate Bond Screened Tracker N Acc abrdn | 106 (7%) | 6.1% |
Usage is a genuine long tail: the top 10 funds account for only 7.1% of total portfolio weight across the universe, and it takes 227 different funds (of 2,250) to reach half of all weight held. No single fund dominates — but low-cost index building blocks from HSBC, Fidelity, BlackRock/iShares, Vanguard and L&G appear consistently at the top.
Most Used Fund Groups — by Portfolio Weight
Share of total portfolio weight across the 1,542-model universe, by fund house
Legal & General is the single largest fund group by portfolio weight (8.8%), appearing in 58% of all models — followed closely by Vanguard and Fidelity. The top 4 groups (L&G, Vanguard Ireland, Fidelity, BlackRock) alone account for roughly 30% of all portfolio weight in the MPS universe — this updates and supersedes the fund-count-based estimate in the Underlying Holdings Universe panel above, which only reflected how many distinct funds each group offers, not actual usage.
Most Popular Fund by Category
The single most widely held fund within each major asset category, by number of models
US Equity
11.3%of total weight · 145 funds
HSBC American Index C Acc
HSBC Asset Management
172 models10.5% avg weight
UK Equity
8.5%of total weight · 189 funds
Fidelity Index UK P
Fidelity International
117 models6.5% avg weight
Fixed Interest
21.7%of total weight · 377 funds
Royal London Short Term Money Market Y Acc
Royal London
118 models4.9% avg weight
Japan Equity
2.8%of total weight · 64 funds
Fidelity Index Japan P Acc
Fidelity International
118 models4.8% avg weight
Global Equity
11.0%of total weight · 245 funds
Vanguard Global Small Cap Inst+
Vanguard (Ireland)
97 models3.7% avg weight
Emerging Markets Equity
5.2%of total weight · 109 funds
L&G - Global Emerging Markets Index C Acc
Legal & General
105 models6.0% avg weight
Europe Equity
3.6%of total weight · 88 funds
HSBC European Index C Acc
HSBC Asset Management
190 models5.1% avg weight
Asia Pacific Equity
2.3%of total weight · 67 funds
Schroder Asian Income L Inc
Schroder UT Managers
84 models2.9% avg weight
The pattern holds across every category: the most popular fund in US, UK, Japan, Fixed Interest and Emerging Markets equity is consistently a low-cost index tracker from HSBC, Fidelity, BlackRock/iShares, Vanguard or L&G — even though 56.8% of models on the database describe themselves as Active or ESG mandates. This is the clearest evidence in the data that most MPS ranges use passive building blocks for core regional exposure and reserve active/satellite selection for smaller, more specialist slices of the portfolio (UK equity income, Asia Pacific, thematic and alternative strategies). Fixed Interest is the single largest category by weight at 21.7% of the universe, spread across 377 different funds — far more fragmented than equities, reflecting the wider range of duration, credit and currency choices within fixed income.
Performance Context
Average Cumulative Performance Across the Universe
Simple average across all rated models to 30 June 2026
1 Year+16.8%
3 Year+36.4%
5 Year+31.5%
The 5-year cumulative average (+31.5%) sits below the 3-year figure (+36.4%) because the longer window still captures the 2022 market drawdown, while the 3-year window begins after markets had already recovered. See Section 2 for the calendar-year breakdown by sector.
Classification Methodology
How Sectors Are Defined
Models are classified by their growth asset allocation — the combined weight of equities and property. Six risk-graded sectors span 0%–100% growth exposure. A small number of models don't fit a standard growth band and sit in an Unclassified category, which is excluded from the performance analysis below as it has no dedicated benchmark and spans too wide a mix of strategies for a meaningful comparison.
The Six Sectors
0%–15%, 15%–30%, 30%–45%, 45%–65%, 65%–85% and 85%–100% Growth. This gives a consistent basis for peer-group comparison of models with genuinely similar risk profiles, regardless of provider or underlying fund selection.
Benchmark Construction
Each sector is tracked by a dedicated FE fundinfo benchmark index, calculated daily since June 2021. These benchmarks underpin both the performance comparisons in this section and the Crown Rating scoring in Section 3.
Coverage
1,504 models on the FE fundinfo MPS database are mapped to a sector; the vast majority sit within the six growth-based sectors shown below, with a small residual classified Unclassified (see Market Overview for the full split). Data covers 78 providers as at 30 June 2026.
Sector Benchmarks at a Glance
0%-15% Growth
52
models
3YR RETURN
+16.3%
15%-30% Growth
167
models
3YR RETURN
+22.6%
30%-45% Growth
219
models
3YR RETURN
+27.8%
45%-65% Growth
354
models
3YR RETURN
+33.5%
65%-85% Growth
322
models
3YR RETURN
+41.8%
85%-100% Growth
296
models
3YR RETURN
+50.7%
Sector Benchmark Returns
FE fundinfo MPS sector benchmark returns · calendar year and cumulative to 30 June 2026 (2026 is year-to-date)
| Sector | 2021 (H2) | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 YTD | 3yr Cum. | 5yr Cum. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0%-15% Growth | +0.5% | −7.8% | +5.4% | +3.5% | +5.5% | +2.0% | +16.3% | +8.8% |
| 15%-30% Growth | +1.7% | −9.3% | +6.4% | +4.5% | +7.3% | +3.7% | +22.6% | +14.2% |
| 30%-45% Growth | +2.5% | −9.6% | +7.0% | +6.0% | +8.7% | +5.2% | +27.8% | +20.2% |
| 45%-65% Growth | +3.5% | −9.1% | +7.6% | +7.3% | +10.0% | +7.1% | +33.5% | +28.2% |
| 65%-85% Growth | +4.2% | −9.1% | +8.6% | +9.5% | +11.9% | +9.7% | +41.8% | +38.2% |
| 85%-100% Growth | +4.4% | −8.9% | +9.3% | +11.6% | +13.9% | +12.3% | +50.7% | +48.4% |
2022 was the only calendar year of loss across every sector, as rising rates hit equities and bonds simultaneously. Growth-oriented sectors (65–100%) have since rebounded strongly, while more defensive sectors (0–30%) show a smoother, lower-amplitude path — exactly as their risk mandate would suggest.
Sector Performance — Indexed to 100 (30 June 2021)
Monthly series showing cumulative growth of £100 invested in each sector benchmark since June 2021
Calendar Year Returns by Sector
Benchmark return per sector, per calendar year (2026 is year-to-date)
Models by Sector — Ranked by 3-Year Performance
Top 5 models in each sector by cumulative 3-year return to 30 June 2026
#ModelProvider3yr ReturnCrown
1Low Volatility IncomeFEI Nexus Income+23.6%CCCCC
2Invesco Invesco Managed CautiousInvesco Model Portfolio+20.7%CCCC
3FEI Nexus Core DefensiveFEI Nexus Core+20.3%CCCCC
4FEI Nexus Blend DefensiveFEI Nexus Blend+19.9%CCCCC
5Schroder Active Portfolio 2Schroder Investment Solutions+19.8%CCCCC
How Crown MPS Ratings Work
Step 1 — Benchmark Assignment
Every model is assigned to a FE fundinfo MPS sector based on its growth asset allocation (see Section 2). This sector acts as the peer group and benchmark for performance evaluation.
Step 2 — Three-Factor Scoring
Each model is scored on Alpha (risk-adjusted excess return), Volatility (portfolio risk vs benchmark) and Consistency (frequency of outperformance) over a rolling three-year window.
Step 3 — Crown Assignment
Within each sector peer group: top 10% receive 5 Crowns, next 15% receive 4 Crowns, next 25% receive 3 Crowns, next 25% receive 2 Crowns, and the bottom 25% receive 1 Crown.
Important Notes
Ratings require a minimum three years of history — 211 of 1,513 models are currently unrated on this basis. Ratings are quantitative and backward-looking; they should be considered alongside qualitative due diligence.
Distribution Across 1,302 Rated Models
♛
1 Crown
323
24.8% of rated models
♛♛
2 Crown
324
24.9% of rated models
♛♛♛
3 Crown
325
25.0% of rated models
♛♛♛♛
4 Crown
197
15.1% of rated models
♛♛♛♛♛
5 Crown
133
10.2% of rated models
1,302 of 1,513 models carry a Crown rating — the remaining 211 lack the minimum three years of performance history required. Of rated models, 25.3% achieve a 4 or 5-Crown rating, reflecting genuine outperformance on alpha, consistency and risk control within their sector.
Crown Distribution by MPS Sector
Number of models at each Crown tier within each sector
Crown Distribution — Overall
Share of rated models by Crown tier across the full universe
Providers by 4+5 Crown Model Count
Top 12 providers ranked by combined 4 and 5-Crown models · % shown is share of that provider's rated models
Providers by 5-Crown Model Count
Top 10 providers by models achieving the highest Crown tier
Browse Models by Crown Rating
Every model in the MPS universe · filter by Crown Rating and/or MPS Sector to browse
1,513 models
#ModelProviderSectorCrown
Directory Overview
AdviserAsset is FE fundinfo's charge comparison tool for Discretionary Fund Manager (DFM) model portfolios. It lets advisers quickly compare the full costs and charges of a proposed model portfolio against a client's existing holdings or any competing model, side by side. That makes it a natural fit for due diligence — and increasingly important for suitability reporting, where advisers need to clearly disclose all costs and charges associated with a proposed investment solution against what the client already holds.
Portfolio Managers on AdviserAsset
8AM
Brooks Macdonald
Canaccord Wealth
ebi Portfolios
EQ Investors
FE Investments
Fundhouse
IBOSS
King & Shaxson
M&G
Quilter
Sarasin & Partners
Tatton Investment Management
Timeline
Vanguard
Get Your Models Listed
If you're a provider who would like your models to appear in AdviserAsset, there is no additional charge for MPS Directory clients. Please get in touch with us for details on how this works.
How AdviserAsset Works
▶
Watch: What AdviserAsset Can Be Used For
A short video walking through what this feature can be used for — watch on YouTube →
New MPS Style Fields
We've added five new database fields to the MPS dataset, flagging each model's investment style: Income, Hybrid, Active, Passive and ESG. They're available now across FE Analytics, FE FinXL and via datafeed, making it quick and easy for users to filter the MPS universe down to solutions with a specific style focus — no need to parse model names or dig into factsheets to work out which models qualify.
Income
Hybrid
Active
Passive
ESG
These fields sit alongside the existing sector, Crown Rating and charges data covered elsewhere in this newsletter, so a style filter can be combined with any of that criteria in a single screen. If you'd like help incorporating these fields into your existing screens or feeds, please get in touch.