AMP says Australian wealth management unit's outflows slow

(Reuters) -AMP Ltd on Thursday reported lower outflows at its Australian wealth management unit in the third quarter, largely due to the end of a government program that allowed people to tap the early release of their pensions to tide over the pandemic.

Net cash outflows at AMP's main wealth management business was A$1.4 billion ($1.05 billion) in the three months to September, lower than A$1.8 billion in the same period last year.

However, assets under management at the unit was little changed at A$131.2 billion as the broader market situation improved, the company said.

In last year's third quarter, the Australian wealth unit saw outflows of A$692 million due to the Early Release of Super (ERS) program that the government scrapped at the end of 2020 as the country fared better than initially thought against the pandemic.

AMP has suffered from persistent outflows since a government-backed inquiry revealed a series of scandals that the 172-year old firm has been looking to make amends for and regain trust.

It is undergoing a restructuring, with plans to spin off its asset management arm's private markets business in the first half of next year.

The asset management arm, AMP Capital, reported outflows of A$12 billion for the quarter, a sizable jump from A$2.4 billion a year earlier, as it lost its New Zealand wealth management mandate, which accounted for A$9.2 billion.

($1 = 1.3301 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Harish Sridharan and Arundhati Dutta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)