FILE PHOTO: Dealers work on the IG Group trading floor in London, Britain June 30, 2015. REUTERS/Neil Hall
January 27, 2022
(Reuters) -IG Group on Thursday reported a growth in half-yearly profit, albeit slower than a year earlier, and the online trading platform added fewer new active clients, as market volatility spurred in part by the COVID-19 pandemic eased.
Client activity, which surged to unprecedented levels in early 2020 on peak volatility, slowed last year as vaccination drives and government stimulus helped calm investor nerves. Higher volatility leads to higher trading volumes, helping trading platforms like IG.
The British mid-cap company brought in 53,600 new clients during the July to November period, compared with 60,800 a year earlier when it saw strong growth as people stuck at home during lockdowns, and with more savings, tried their luck with trading.
IG, created by spread-betting pioneer Stuart Wheeler in 1974 to let people bet on the price of gold, also said it will pay an interim a dividend of 12.96 pence per share.
Its shares rose nearly 3% in early trade.
The London-listed firm posted an 8% rise in pre-tax profit to 245.2 million pounds ($329.23 million) for the six months ended November 2021, compared with 227.8 million pounds a year earlier.
($1 = 0.7448 pounds)
(Reporting by Sinchita Mitra in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
Source: One America News Network
