he latest trading update from Plus 500 reveals a growing appetite for cryptocurrency exposure among contract-for-difference (CFD) traders.
Plus Bitcoin, Plus Ripple, Plus500
London Stock Exchange AIM-listed online brokerage Plus 500 (LON: PLUS) has announced it achieved record quarterly revenues in the final quarter of 2017 on the back of strong trading volumes in cryptocurrency CFDs. The Israel-based group also revealed it has seen increased interest throughout the year in the cryptocurrency category which it first introduced back in 2013.Asaf Elimelech, Chief Executive Officer of Plus 500, commented: “We are pleased to announce another strong period in both revenues and profits. Momentum in the business has continued to be strong with increased interest in our cryptocurrency CFD offering and record new and active customer numbers, demonstrating our ability to serve our customers’ trading needs through product innovation and technology leadership.”
Investors Are Happy
About 246,000 new traders joined the platform (up from 104,432 new clients in 2016) during the year which saw bitcoin rise from under $1,000 to over $19,000, another record for Plus 500. As a result, the company’s board now anticipates yearly profits for 2017 will beat previous market expectations. Following this report, the stock price of the brokerage jumped by over 20% on Wednesday and over another 6% on Thursday, completing a 192% surge compared with January 4, 2017.While cryptocurrency CFDs can expose brokers to major risks, requiring them to carefully manage their leverage, both traders and investors seem eager to have a relevant offering on the platforms. For example, The stock price of fellow online brokerage Gain Capital increased by about 26% after it announced last month that it was adding new bitcoin derivative instruments to City Index, its UK FCA regulated brand.