By Yadarisa Shabong
(Reuters) -British online trading platform IG Group on Thursday raised its dividend and announced a new share buyback after recording annual revenues of 1 billion pounds ($1.29 billion) for the first time, partly helped by strong U.S.
trading.
IG Group, which offers trading of asset classes such as indices, foreign exchange, stocks and commodities for its clients on its platform, said revenue at its U.S. trading platform ‘tastytrade’ grew more than 50%.
“About a third of all new accounts at tasty this year came from abroad, they came from outside the U.S., and that was a pure reverse inquiry business,” acting CEO Charlie Rozes said in an interview with Reuters.
“There is more growth to come internationally, certainly for tastytrade and I would say the group as a whole.”
IG Group made a significant expansion into the United States, with its acquisition of trading platform tastytrade in 2021.
The number of total active clients on its platform, however, dipped 6% to 358,300 against a more difficult economic backdrop, especially in the third quarter, it said.
That number still remained more than double of pre-pandemic levels.
Total revenue rose 5% to 1.02 billion pounds for the year ended May, it said, although adjusted profit before tax fell about 1% to 490.5 million pounds.
Analysts on average had expected pretax profit of 490.3 million pounds on revenue of 1.04 billion pounds.
($1 = 0.7746 pounds)
(Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Rashmi Aich)
