Anxiety around a potential Grexit and volatility in the Chinese economy helped spread betting company IG Group grow first quarter revenues 24%, the firm reported. It called its results “strong” for the three months to 31 August 2015 as revenues stood at £106 million, a marked improvement on the £85.6 million posted in the corresponding period last year.
It enjoyed 23% growth in its core market, the UK and Ireland, which accounted for around half of its business. It also posted 13% growth in continental Europe, 21% growth in Australia and a 54% hike in the rest of the world.
In a statement the UK-based firm said: “In what is traditionally a relatively quiet period for the business, the financial markets presented a range of trading opportunities for clients, responding to news flow, including around the Greek eurozone membership debate and the current state of the Chinese economy.
“Although the performance was good in all months in the quarter, client activity levels were at their highest during the second half of August.”
At a group level, active client numbers were ahead of the same quarter in the previous year by 19%.
IG Group added: “This strong start to the year positions the business well to deliver against full year expectations.
“However, it is impossible to predict the market conditions for the rest of the year and therefore too early to draw many conclusions.
“IG has a clear strategy and will continue to execute against its priorities, which this financial year include rolling out the stockbroking offering to additional countries, launching ETF portfolios, delivering further improvements in the client conversion process and moving the mobile interface forward.”
