IG earnings surge by 25pc in volatile markets
IG Group – Britain’s biggest spread betting firm – met expectations with a 25 per cent rise in profits after volatile markets during the European sovereign debt crisis encouraged customers to place more bets.
The company had a pretax profit of £157.6m in the year to 31 May, up from £125.9m the previous year, and broadly in line with the £155.1m pencilled in by analysts.
IG had said in a trading statement last month that it was on course for a profit of about £157m.
It takes spread bets on equity, commodity and foreign exchange markets, allowing customers to profit from falling as well as rising prices, and typically experiences a spike in betting volumes when markets fluctuate sharply.
Chief executive Tim Howkins said: “We are well placed competitively and have extended our market lead in several of our key markets over the last year.
“We have demonstrated continued growth from our UK business and strong growth from both Europe and Australia, which are now businesses of significant scale. I look forward to the coming year with confidence.”
The company’s stock has risen 78 per cent since the beginning of the year.