Advice firms buying investment companies (previously called investment trusts) via adviser platforms hit 2,157 in the third quarter of 2021.

This compared to 1,983 in the previous quarter, according to the data compiled by Matrix Financial Clarity.

In Q3 purchases of investment companies amounted to £279m, 18% higher than in the same quarter of 2020 (£236m).

The previous record was 2,014 firms in the third quarter of 2016, when demand for investment companies spiked after the gating of several open-ended property funds following the EU referendum.

Purchases of investment companies in the first nine months of 2021 totalled £968m, compared to £754m in the same period of 2020, an increase of 28%.

Total purchases for 2020 were £1.05bn.

Nick Britton, head of intermediary communications at the Association of Investment Companies, the investment company trade body, said: “Since the Retail Distribution Review we’ve seen an upward trend in the number of firms buying investment companies on adviser platforms – from around 600 in 2012 to over 2,000 in these latest figures.

“The rising popularity of investment companies with advisers and wealth managers shows growing appreciation of their structural advantages, from the ability to deliver consistent income to their flexibility in accessing property, infrastructure and other alternative assets.”

Transact continued to be the dominant adviser platform for investment company purchases. The platform accounted for 42% of all purchases in Q3.

The most-purchased investment company sectors in Q3 were Global (17% of purchases), Flexible Investment (11%), Infrastructure (7%), UK Equity Income (6%) and Asia Pacific (4%).