London Stock Exchange’s US bet pays off
PROFITS at the London Stock Exchange (LSE) soared in the first quarter, after its US expansion with the acquisition of the Russell firms.
The bourse reported profits of £602.9m, up 79 per cent on the year.
Excluding the Russell Investment Management unit which it is selling, the remainder of the busiess saw profits slip one per cent on the year.
The LSE bought the Russell group of businesses last year, but wants to sell the investment management arm. It is expected to be worth around $1.5bn (£969m).
But it is keeping the Russell Indexes business, which is a closer fit with its traditional operations.
Those new indices generated revenues of £33.8m in the quarter – a substantial contribution to the group, as the FTSE information unit brought in £51.2m of revenue, up 12 per cent on the year.
Meanwhile its capital markets business saw its revenues rise seven per cent to £85.9m, on an 11 per cent rise in fees in primary markets, and a 12 per cent rise in income from secondary markets activity in Italy.
“We remain focused on realising integration and efficiency benefits, as well as developing the many opportunities across the group arising from our extended geographic reach and product range,” said chief executive Xavier Rolet.
“The group is well placed to build on its success as the only major, international open access market infrastructure business, working with its customers to drive innovation and deliver market efficiencies.”