LCG praises investments as revenue, profit rise in H1

London Capital Group (LCG) has cited the impact of its investment strategy as the main reason behind year-on-year growth across number of key financial verticals during the six months to June 30.

Revenue in the first half amounted to just over £12m (€13.7m/$16.1m), which represents an increase of 7% on the £11.2m posted in the corresponding period last year.

Gross profit jumped 18% year-on-year from £9.2m to £10.9m, while adjusted earnings before interest, tax, deprecation and amortisation (EBITDA) was also up 55% to negative £961,000, compared to a loss of £3.1m in the first half of 2016.

Elsewhere, adjusted loss before tax in the period improved from £3.4m to £1.8m, while statutory loss shortened by 48%, dropping from £3.5m to £1.7m.

Basic loss per share from continuing operations at the firm came in at £0.0048, compared to £0.0526 last year, while diluted loss per share from continuing operations improved from £0.0526 to £0.0046.

Charles-Henri Sabet, group chief executive at LCG, said: “The results are extremely encouraging and continue to demonstrate how LCG’s performance is improving following its investment in technology, product offering and branding.

“This improvement has been achieved against the background of challenging trading conditions in the first half of 2017.

“During this period, the group has seen strong revenue growth primarily due to increased client acquisition and participation as well as revenue capture compared to prior periods.

“This has enabled LCG to grow despite the lack of volatility in the market resulting in a benign trading environment.”

Sabet added: “The outlook for the industry continues to remain uncertain given the changing regulatory landscape.

“This is anticipated to have an impact on the industry and affect the services that can be offered to clients, particularly with regard to the levels of leverage that can be offered.

“However, the precise impact of this will not be known until the regulatory authorities have finalised their conclusions.

“LCG remains committed to ensuring the highest standards of regulatory compliance and welcomes changes that will improve and protect client outcomes”.

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