Swissquote published its annual results for 2022, reporting net revenue of CHF 408 million and a pre-tax profit of CHF 186.4 million, which was in line with the previously announced tentative figures. However, the figures dropped by 13.6 percent and 16.5 percent, respectively, from the peak achieved in the previous year.

Despite the double-digit decline in revenue, the pre-tax only dropped marginally to 45.7 percent from 47.3 percent. The net profits declined by 18.6 percent to CHF 157.4 million with a profit margin of 38.6 percent, which is down from 40.9 percent.

Swissquote Sets Record with Client Number

Thursday’s announcement pointed out that “both net revenues and pre-tax profit reached the second-highest levels in history and highlight the strong customer base and product mix in a challenging market environment.”

Indeed, the Swiss trading platform added 51,099 new clients last year, about 8,000 of which were onboarded inorganically. At the end of the year, the total number of traders on the platform hit 538,946, which was a jump of 10.5 percent, with an average deposit of almost CHF 100,000 per client.

Though the client assets on Swissquote decreased 6.6 percent to CHF 52.2 billion, the trading platform Trading Platform In the FX space, a currency trading platform is a software provided by brokers to their respective client base, garnering access as traders in the broader market. Most commonly, this reflects an online interface or mobile app, complete with tools for order processing.Every broker needs one or more trading platforms to accommodate the needs of different clients. Being the backbone of the company’s offering, a trading platform provides clients with quotes, a selection of instruments to trade, real In the FX space, a currency trading platform is a software provided by brokers to their respective client base, garnering access as traders in the broader market. Most commonly, this reflects an online interface or mobile app, complete with tools for order processing.Every broker needs one or more trading platforms to accommodate the needs of different clients. Being the backbone of the company’s offering, a trading platform provides clients with quotes, a selection of instruments to trade, real Read this Term received net new monies of CHF 7.7 billion (CHF 1.7 billion inorganically).

Lower Trading Income

In 2022, a challenging market environment slowed down most of Swissquote’s revenue streams. Net income from fees and commissions decreased 7.6 percent, and net eForex income plummeted 14.3 percent due to lower volumes. Net income from crypto assets took a massive dent, declining 72.9 percent to CHF 27.7 million.

The net trading income on the platform decreased 23.8 percent due to a lower turnover in asset classes traded in foreign currencies. Only the net interest income increased by 242.6 percent, riding on the rising interest rates across major currencies.

“The diversification of revenue streams enabled Swissquote to benefit specifically from the change in short-term interest rates,” the broker noted.

Meanwhile, the operating expenses of the Swiss company fell 13.2 percent to 215 million, resulting from effective cost management over several months. However, the company has significantly increased its headcount, mostly in tech-related roles.

Bullish Outlook

Despite the slow market of 2022, Swissquote is bullish about its expected performance in the ongoing year. The company is targeting a net revenue of CHF 495 million, which was 21 percent higher for 2023, along with a 23 percent gain in pre-tax profit at CHF 230 million.

“Despite a cautious stance, Swissquote expects to deliver all-time high results in 2023,” the company added. “Swissquote’s medium-term target for 2025, i.e., a pre-tax profit at CHF 350 million, is confirmed.”

The outlook seems to be based on the expansion efforts of the Swiss broker. It obtained a Cyprus Investment Firm (CIF) license last year to boost its presence in the European Economic Area (EEA) member and gained access to the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), a stock exchange based in the United Arab Emirates. Furthermore, it launched a cryptocurrency exchange last year.