Just three UK equity funds attracted inflows of more than £200m in the first half of the year, according to data from FE Analytics, while 12 suffered significant outflows.
In this series, Trustnet looks at the most and least popular funds in different asset classes. Having previously looked at bonds and Asia specialists, here we turn to UK funds.
Overall, investors pulled more than £2bn from UK-focused equity funds in the first half of 2026, according to data from Calastone. The last time these portfolios attracted net inflows over a full calendar year was 2015.
This continued selling is evidenced by the number of funds (11) with outflows of more than £200m, as the table below shows.
abrdn UK All Share Tracker was the most-sold UK fund of the first half, with assets under management (AUM) dropping from £2.6bn to £2.1bn.
This is despite the UK market performing relatively strongly in the first six months of the year. Performance added £194m in the first half, with the abrdn fund in the top-quartile of the IA UK All Companies peer group during this time. This was not enough for some investors with a net £699m withdrawn from the fund year-to-date.
It was one of four passive funds on the list below, alongside Vanguard FTSE U.K. All Share Index Unit Trust, Halifax UK Equity Tracker and Scottish Widows UK Equity Tracker. The remainder were active strategies.
Source: FE Analytics
The most-sold active fund was IFSL Evenlode Income, which was one of three in the list above to make a loss in the first half of the year.
Managed by Hugh Yarrow and Chris Moore, the fund invests in quality-growth companies with high returns on capital and strong free cashflows, an area that has largely underperformed compared with value and growth stocks.
Analysts at AJ Bell said the managers have a clear investment philosophy high-quality businesses
"We believe investors benefit from the disciplined nature of the investment process, which the fund manager consistently adheres too. Additionally, the long-term nature of the approach is another compelling feature," they said.
The recent poor performance (the fund is now in the bottom quartile of the IA UK All Companies sector over one and three years) has led to outflows, however, with a net £428m pulled from the fund in the first half of 2026.
Two other funds in the table above have also made a loss so far this year. Liontrust Special Situations, run by FE fundinfo Alpha Manager Anthony Cross, Matthew Tongue and Victoria Stevens, has haemorrhaged money in the past few years.
In August 2023 the fund had assets under management of £4.5bn. Today the figure stands at £747m after another £289m in net outflows left the fund between January and July.
It is another quality-growth portfolio, using the team's 'Economic Advantage' process to look for companies with a clear edge where management is aligned with shareholders.
Titan Square Mile analysts have given the fund an 'AA' rating, noting that the fund's quality bias means it can structurally absent from certain sectors, so "performance should be expected to deviate from the index at times".
"The strategy has endured a relatively tough period of performance more recently, but we retain our conviction in what we see a high quality proposition, that should perform well longer term."
WS Lindsell Train UK Equity has been the worst performer so far this year of the group above, with a 15.6% loss in 2026. Investors removed a net £369m from the fund in the first half of the year, taking its AUM to under £1bn.
Alpha Manager Nick Train's portfolio retains the backing of analysts at Barclays Direct Investing, who pointed to the team's philosophy of buying high quality companies at the right price and holding them for a long time.
Elsewhere, CT UK Equity Income was the only fund on the list above from the IA UK Equity Income sector, while Royal London UK Smaller Companies was the sole entrant from the IA UK Smaller Companies peer group.
Turning to those garnering investors' money, there were only three with net inflows of more than £200m.
Source: FE Analytics
Ninety One UK Franchise was the top of pile, with £234m in net new money added in the first half of 2026, taking its AUM to £439m. In a similar range, a net £224m was added to IFSL Titan Square Mile UK Equity, taking its AUM to £444m. Both funds reside in the IA UK All Companies sector.
The largest on the above list is Vanguard FTSE UK Equity Income Index, which is housed in the IA UK Equity Income peer group.
Analysts at RSMR said this passive strategy offers investors exposure to dividend paying companies in the UK, with low costs and low intended tracking error.
"Investors can use this passive index as a core holding to gain exposure to dividend paying companies in the UK. This fund can be used in income or growth portfolios," they said.