IG Group buoyed by volatile forex and equity markets
BRITAIN’S largest spread-betting company, IG Group, said it will report an underlying profit for 2010 up by a quarter, helped by increased volatility in forex and equity markets.
The company, which takes spread bets on financial markets – allowing customers to benefit from falling as well as rising prices – said it had benefited from unstable markets in the last few weeks of the year, boosting client activity and the rate of new accounts opening.
IG said it expects to report an underlying pre-tax profit of £157m for the year ending 31 May, up from £125.9m last year, and ahead of analyst expectations.
Group revenue is expected to be 16 per cent higher at £298m, helped by a 65 per cent hike in revenues at its Australian business and UK revenues – its largest market – seen rising by eight per cent to £165m.
“The final quarter, despite starting with low levels of volatility, showed strong revenue growth, up 24 per cent on the corresponding period of the previous year,” the group said in a trading statement yesterday.