Q3 Trading Update

RNS Number : 8880B

Plus500 Limited

12 October 2015

 

12 October 2015

Plus500 Ltd.

("Plus500" or "the Company")

Q3 Trading Update

Plus500, a leading online service provider for retail customers to trade CFDs internationally, provides a trading update for the three months ended 30 September 2015.

In the nine months to 30 September 2015, revenue was $207.9m. Key customer and revenue metrics for the nine and three month periods ended 30 September 2015 were as follows:

	FY2014	9 months to 30 Sept*		%Growth	3 months to 30 Sept*		%Growth
		2014	2015		Q3 2014	Q3 2015
Revenue	$228.9m	$162.4m	$207.9m	28%	$56.2m	$80.9m	44%
Number of new customers1	66,553	47,523	69,333	46%	14,850	17,047	15%
Number of active customers2	105,976	85,101	117,569	38%	43,547	52,727	21%
ARPU3	$2,160	$1,908	$1,769	-7%	$1,290	$1,534	19%
AUAC4	$921	$826	$1,142	38%	$1,005	$1,468	46%

*Unaudited

[1] A customer who has deposited real money into their own account for the first time

[2] A customer who makes at least one trade using real money on the Trading Platform during the relevant period

[3] Average revenue per user

[4] Average user acquisition cost 

Plus500 sees further growth as it benefits from continued investment in marketing and technology

In Q3 2015, the Company continued to experience strong growth worldwide as revenues and the average revenue per user ("ARPU") increased in almost all countries compared with the equivalent period in 2014. Geographically, the vast majority of trading occurred in Western Europe. Revenue from Western European countries accounted for 75% of total revenue in the quarter (Q3 2014: 70%). Overall, in Q3 2015, 90% of total revenues were derived from regulated markets whereas in unregulated markets the Company operates with legal opinions. 

The Company has attracted new customers and saw ARPU increase to $1,534, representing an increase of 19% over the same period last year.

The Company's proprietary trading platform has been core to this strong growth, enabling Plus500 to adapt rapidly to changing market conditions and offer customers additional opportunities to trade CFDs. The Company saw growth from trading in both commodities and equities due to the ongoing market volatility caused by the evolving global macro environment.

The Company has also seen benefits from its continuing significant investment in marketing, attracting a greater number of high value customers. This is due to the strength of the Company's proprietary automated marketing platform, which operates across multiple advertising channels, as well as other initiatives such as the sponsorship with Atlético de Madrid which has assisted in promoting the Plus500 brand to a larger audience. The Board is comfortable with the increase in average user acquisition cost ("AUAC") in order to gain high value customers.

During Q3 2015, the Company has added CFDs on options to its range of financial instruments in order to keep its innovative and competitive edge, and to increase the possibilities of its customers to be able to choose from a growing array of diverse financial instruments.

Research and Development

The Company continues to invest in R&D in order to maintain its competitive advantage. Over the year, the Company has experienced an increased use of mobile and tablet devices to trade. During Q3 2015 the Company launched its proprietary Apple Watch app which will enable the Company to reach a wider audience.

Additionally, the iOS app was updated to be fully compatible with iOS 9, on the same day Apple rolled out the new operating system. The Android version has also been updated and has seen a step up in its usability.

The Company believes that these developments contributed to the higher ARPU.

Regulatory update

The Group continues to be the subject of regulatory scrutiny. However, throughout the period Plus500 has continued to work with, and provide any requested information to, the relevant regulators in the jurisdictions that it operates in but is currently not the subject of any restrictions on its business operations. The Group has also been working closely with its professional advisors to review and, where necessary, improve the regulatory aspects of its trading model.

Merger Agreement 

As previously announced, the statutorily required regulatory assessment of the Acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of November 2015.

Outlook

The Company entered Q4 2015 with positive momentum. The continuing market volatility, focused marketing strategy and ongoing improvement in technology are expected to be significant contributors to the Company's ability of gaining new customers at an attractive cost. The Company is now also actively targeting high value customers. As a result, the Board still expects revenues to be ahead of 2014 but with profitability still not expected to match that of last year.

Enquiries

Plus500
Elad Even-Chen, Finance Director, VP Business Development and Head of Investor Relations	[phone] [e-mail]
Liberum
Clayton Bush/Christopher Britton/Josh Hughes	[phone]
MHP Communications
Reg Hoare/Tim Rowntree/Kelsey Traynor	[phone]

About Plus500

Plus500 has developed and operates an online trading platform for retail customers to trade CFDs internationally over more than 2,000 different underlying global financial instruments comprising equities, ETFs, foreign exchange, indices, commodities and options. The Company enables retail customers to trade CFDs in more than 50 countries. The trading platform is accessible from multiple operating systems (Windows, smartphones (iOS, Android and Windows Phone) and tablets (iOS, Android and Surface)) and the internet. The Directors believe that the success of the Company to date has been primarily due to the proprietary technology it has developed and continues to develop to support the trading platform. The trading platform has been designed to be as intuitive and easy to use as possible. The trading platform has been localised into over 31 languages. The Directors believe that this emphasis on technology, together with the Company's targeted online marketing strategy, has helped to differentiate the Company from its competitors.

www.plus500.com

 

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