Investment platform AJ Bell has released its January list of most popular ISA investments among do-it-yourself (DIY) investors – here are the findings.
Individual savings accounts (ISAs) continue to be a popular savings method in the UK, with an allowance of up to £20,000 in the 2024-2025 tax year, and tax-free interest earned on the funds. This applies to both capital gains or income from investments in ISAs, as well as interest on cash.
There are four types of ISAs, namely cash, stocks and shares, innovative finance and lifetime ISAs, which all serve different purposes.
So which are the most popular ISA investments?
Passive investing beats active
In January 2025, AJ Bell DIY customers took on a higher amount of risk, while spreading out their investments across funds, investment trusts and shares on the AJ Bell platform.
Among funds, tracker funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) were the most popular.
Based on net flows, Fidelity Index World, Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, HSBC FTSE All World Index, Vanguard LifeStrategy 100% Equity and L&G Global Technology Trust were the most popular funds.
Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell, said in an email note: “Exposure to global markets and the tech sector topped the list of places investors deployed money, suggesting they started the new year hoping for broad-based gains on equity markets or a third year in a row for tech sector strength.
“Investors use ISAs for lots of different reasons, some saving for a specific goal and others simply squirreling money away for another day. The one thing that unites all these different people is the ability to protect your capital gains and dividends from the taxman.”
Coatsworth also pointed out: “The top five most popular funds were all passive vehicles – index funds or ETFs tracking an index – which reinforces the view that more people are turning their back on active managers. It’s very hard for a fund manager to outperform the market year in, year out, and investors are increasingly opting for the lower-cost passive route which simply moves in line with a specific market or index.
“Certain investors are still happy to lean on an expert in the hope of added gains. Investment trusts remain popular with DIY investors and this type of investment is universally an actively managed one.”
JPMorgan Global Growth & Income continues to top investment trusts
Coming to the most popular investment trusts for ISA investments, JPMorgan Global Growth & Income took the top spot once again among AJ Bell DIY investors in January. Other popular investment trusts included Scottish Mortgage, The Renewables Infrastructure Group, Law Debenture and 3i Group.
Coatsworth said: “JPMorgan Global Growth & Income has been a firm favourite among AJ Bell customers for some time and it is once again at the top of the most popular investment trusts list. Providing exposure to growing companies and with decent income offers the best of both worlds to investors.
“Over five years, JPMorgan Global Growth & Income has returned 113% versus 110% from the US index. No other global equity income investment trust has kept pace with the S&P 500 over those five years, let alone come anywhere close. It’s no wonder that investors remain big fans of JPMorgan Global Growth & Income.”
Soaring artificial intelligence demand driving Nvidia popularity
Nvidia topped the list of most popular shares in January, mainly driven by its consistently robust performance in the last two years, boosted by increased demand for AI.
Other popular shares included National Grid, GSK, MicroStrategy and Advanced Micro Devices.
Coatsworth highlighted: “Nvidia was the most popular share among AJ Bell DIY investor customers in January, based on net flows of money on the platform. Having delivered stellar gains in 2023 and 2024 amid excitement around AI, investors buying shares in 2025 are taking the view there is still a significant opportunity for Nvidia to grow its earnings at a high rate.
“The second most popular share was National Grid, which is the polar opposite to Nvidia – stodgy and boring with no exciting narrative. Instead, it’s all about scooping up regular dividends.
“Electricity transmission may lack the sparkle of Nvidia’s stellar AI opportunity, yet to some people the idea of sitting back and collecting a steady stream of income from dividends is much more satisfying. National Grid offers a 4.7% dividend which puts it on the cusp of the top quartile yields for FTSE 100 stocks.”
Although Nvidia saw a surge in DIY investments in January, there are increasing concerns about the outlook of the company following rival Chinese AI app DeepSeek launching its latest model recently.
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