The UK is the single biggest domestic platform market in Europe with €298 billion in assets under management in the third quarter of 2013, according to new research from London-based consultancy The Platforum.

The UK is the single biggest domestic platform market in Europe with €298 billion($413 billion) in assets under management in the third quarter of 2013, according to new research from London-based consultancy the platforum.

The report, which covers 10 different markets and draws on data from 41 European platforms, also found that European open architecture platform assets stood at €1.2 trillion in the third quarter of 2013, representing growth of 25 per cent since the same period in 2012.

According to the report the top ten platforms by assets under management in Europe are UBS Fondcenter, Allfunds Bank, Credit Suisse Fund Lab, Cofunds, BNP Paribas Securities Services, FIL FundsNetwork, Societe Generale Securities Services, State Street, Swisscanto, and Fund Channel.

The report noted that all of the big ten were owned by banks, asset managers or life companies, raising questions about the future viability of global platforms as standalone businesses or independents.

“2013 was a year when cross-border fund net sales were particularly strong. This cross-border growth is replicated by those international platforms, including Allfunds, Fund Channel, MFEX, RBC I&TS and UBS Fondcenter, working in multiple jurisdictions, which grew by 39 per cent as a group. Platforms are scaling up and 2013 was a story of the big, the international and the brand," said Holly Mackay, managing director of The Platforum.

Price war

The findings come as rival platform providers in the UK look to undercut each other on management charges following the introduction of the Retail Distribution Review last year.

As a result of the RDR's ban on trail commission, a number of firms, including Fidelity, Barclays Stockbrokers and Hargreaves Lansdown, have announced new charges as they move to the new model, which does not include commissions, fees, or rebates, ahead of the April deadline.

Earlier this year, Mackay said that while some had referred to the platform price changes as a price war, it was in fact more like an "epic price pub brawl".

"The good news for investors is that there has been a general reduction in charges across the market. The bad news is that there is still confusion pricing out there, especially for platforms supporting shares, funds and SIPPs, and it’s still very hard for investors to work out what any platform will actually cost to use," said Mackay.

“For providers supposedly at war, there’s actually not that much between the top platforms for customers. Barclays is competitively priced in general, although smaller SIPP investors with shares will find this a pricey option. Fidelity’s ‘all-in’ fee makes it a nice, easy-to-understand option for fund investors but it is not a good option for those with shares. Hargreaves will suit accounts with both an ISA and a SIPP and some of their Wealth 150 funds,” Mackay added.