LSEG boss hails ‘growing momentum’ of Pisces as profit soars
The boss of London Stock Exchange operator LSEG has hailed the “growing momentum” of its new Pisces venue as it reported a jump in profit.
Chief executive David Schwimmer said the new private markets venue, which recently saw some of its first major transactions, was “opening up significant new market opportunities.”
Earlier this month, autonomous driving startup Wayve became one of the first companies to use the venue for its employee secondary share sale, followed by another from London fintech Moneybox.
LSEG reported a 6.9 per cent rise in turnover to £4.8bn for the first six months of the year, while pre-tax profit soared by almost a third to £1.3bn.
Alongside Pisces, LSEG is also gearing up to launch its new round-the-clock securities venue, dubbed LSE 24, in a bid to boost liquidity and lure retail investors away from other 24-hour venues like crypto exchanges.
“We are combining all of this innovation with a material improvement to margins and exceptional cash flow growth,” Schwimmer said.
The FTSE 100 firm completed a record £2.1bn share buyback in the first half of the year, with another £1.4bn to come in 2026. LSEG upped its dividend by 17 per cent to 55p.
Earlier in the year, LSEG was one of a number of London tech and data stocks that suffered a sharp sell-off amid investor fears their margins would be eroded by the rise of the major AI firms.
But the firm has since doubled down on its profitability and use of AI, with the stock up by around five per cent since the start of the year.