Wealth management operations at South African insurance giant Old Mutual, reported an 86 per cent rise in adjusted operating profit (IFRS basis, pre-tax) from £106 million in 2009 to £197 million (around $317.4 million) for 2010.

The surge was attributed to sales growth, margin improvement and the cost reduction programme which delivered £35 million of run-rate savings.

Unit trust/mutual fund sales were recorded as £4.507 billion in 2010 versus £3.210 billion the year before, a rise of 40 per cent. Meanwhile APE sales were posted at £734 million, a 19 per cent increase on 2009, attributed mainly to sales in the UK and in Continental Europe, which improved by 28 per cent (£76 million) and 50 per cent (£52 million) respectively compared to 2009.

Net client cash flows were posted at £3.9 billion for 2010 versus £2.5 billion in 2009, a 56 per cent rise. Funds under management stood at £55.9 billion, a 19 per cent increase from 2009’s £46.9 billion.

Old Mutual's wealth management operations include Skandia Investment Group, Skandia UK, Skandia International and wealth management units in France and Italy.