Plus500 launches share buyback as profits fall by a third
Plus500 has launched a share buyback programme despite profits slipping by more than a third in the 2021 financial year.
The FTSE 250 listed fintech saw net profits tumble 38 per cent from $500m in 2020 to $310m in the latest financial year, revenue also fell by almost a fifth to $718m.
Despite the blow to the company’s financials Plus500 revealed that it is launching a share buyback programme to purchase up to $55m of company shares to emphasise the board’s confidence in the future of the company.
Chief executive David Zruia, said “Plus500 delivered another excellent operational and financial performance in 2021 and we made significant progress with our strategic roadmap to develop our position as a leading global multi-asset fintech group.
“Our future growth will be delivered through continued development of our technology, particularly in relation to driving customer retention, successfully obtaining new operating licenses and launching new products,” Zruia added.
The company, which operates technology based trading platforms, has benefitted from the boom of retail trading and investment during the pandemic. While intake slipped year-on-year revenue in the latest financial year was double the figure for 2019.
In the latest financial year Plus500 was able to make its first acquisitions, snapping up Cunningham Commodities, a regulated Futures Commission Merchant, and Cunningham Trading Systems, a technology trading platform provider, which will enable the group to capture a share of retail futures and options on futures markets in the US.
Read more: Plus500 smashes expectations on booming trading activity