SMN
CMC Markets (LON:CMCX), a UK forex and spreadbetting broker, that went public earlier this year issued a trading update ahead of its annual meeting to be held on Wednesday in London.
According to the company statement, the Group continues to make progress in its strategic initiatives and notes improvements of key indicators of future trading activity. For example, in the five months to August 31 2016, the number of its new clients rose 19% and the active clients increased by 9%, compared to the same period of 2015. Client money balances also rose – by 21%.
At the same time, however, the value of client trades continued to be lower than the prior year and CMC Markets expects that its operating income for the six months to September 30, 2016, will also be lower, compared to the same period of 2015. The company notes that this is mostly due to the low market volatility, which provides fewer trading opportunities for its clients and the situation is similar with many of its main competitors.
The trend of increasing client base and decreasing value of trades was first noted in CMC Markets’ Q2 2016 issued in July.
In the current statement, signed by CMC Market’s CEO Peter Cruddas, the broker says it is confident that the net operating income will improve in the second half of the financial year, thanks to the group’s larger funded client base, growing institutional offering and new product development. CMC Markets will also continue to focus on cost control.
“With a strong, growing client base and clear strategy the Group remains focussed and confident of achieving the target of £220m Net Operating Income by 2020,” CMC Markets notes in conclusion.
Meanwhile, a recent study of SMN found that the price of CMC Markets shares rose 16% since its IPO in early February.
CMC Markets was set up back in 1989 and now it runs offices in 14 countries across the globe, focusing on the markets in the UK, Australia, Germany, and Singapore. The broker offers trading in more than 10,000 financial instruments, including forex, shares, indices, commodities and treasuries via its proprietary trading platform Next Generation.
