Interim Management Statement

RNS Number : 9805C

IG Group Holdings plc

09 September 2008

 



9 September 2008

IG GROUP HOLDINGS PLC

Interim Management Statement

IG Group Holdings plc ('IG' or 'the Group') issues this Interim Management Statement in accordance with the EU Transparency Directive and revised UK Listing Rules. Unless otherwise stated, trends and figures highlighted below refer to the three months ended 31 August 2008 and the corresponding period last year.

Group revenue for the quarter was approximately £53m compared to £41m for the corresponding quarter in the prior year, an increase of 29%.  

Operating costs were in line with management expectations and, in particular, both bad debts and betting duty as a percentage of revenue were lower in the first quarter of the current year than they were in the preceding year as a whole. 

Client recruitment levels in the financials business have continued to be strong in the quarter, albeit with the expected softening during the August holiday season in Europe.  The total number of spread betting and CFD accounts opened in the quarter was 45% higher than in the corresponding quarter in the prior year.

The Group's newer businesses in France, Spain and the USA, together with its Singapore, German and Italian operations which were established in 2006 continue to experience rapid revenue growth.  These businesses contributed 12% of the Group's revenue in the quarter and in total, non-UK revenues represented 30% of total group revenues during the quarter compared to 22% in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year.    

The Group continues to evaluate new markets as part of its strategy to further strengthen and extend its geographic reach.

The Group has made a strong start to the financial year with sustained high client activity levels.  While it remains impossible to predict future trends in volatility or customer reaction to changing market conditions, the board remains confident in the Group's prospects for the current financial year and that IG is competitively positioned for further growth.

For further information please contact:

IG Group                                            020 7896 0011

Tim Howkins, Chief Executive

Steve Clutton, Finance Director

Financial Dynamics                             020 7269 7200

Robert Bailhache

Nick Henderson

 

END

 

 

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