Euroclear, a Belgium-based securities Clearing firm, today announced its financial performance for 2020 and reported a 12% jump in business income, compared to FY 2019. The operating income remained flat at €1.43 billion due to the impact of lower interest rates.
According to the official press release, business income rose to €1.28 billion but interest, banking and other income dropped by nearly 48% to €150 million, mainly due to the negative impact of the lower interest rate environment.
Euroclear reported that the operating costs jumped by 5% to €862 million due to investments in technology upgrades. Business income operating margin jumped 4.3 percentage points to 32.7%. Additionally, net profit remained flat at €432 million.
Commenting on the financial results, Lieve Mostrey, Chief Executive Officer at Euroclear, said: “Euroclear has delivered a robust performance in what was an unprecedented year for global financial markets. The resilience shown by our systems and people, combined with ongoing strategic progress, yielded stable financial results, in spite of some strong interest rate headwinds. I am especially proud of our teams for their remarkable efforts and dedication. As we move into 2021, we will use this momentum to further meet the evolving needs of the global financial industry.”
Resilient Numbers
The post-trade services provider processes 276 million netted transactions last year equivalent to €897 trillion. Moreover, Euroclear reported an increase in volumes of debt issuance.
“Value of securities held on behalf of clients at year-end increased 5% to EUR 32.8 trillion. Fund assets under custody rose 8% to €2.6 trillion as Euroclear’s FundsPlace offering from asset managers and ETF issuers continue to grow, reflecting industry growth and demand for the international distribution model. Benefits of Euroclearability attractive to both international investor and issuer communities. Global Reach assets under custody rose 7% to EUR 1.3 trillion. Euroclear’s Collateral Highway mobilised an average of EUR 1.5 trillion by year-end, which is up 17% compared to 2019,” the official announcement states.
Finance Magnates earlier reported about the appointment of Michael Carty as CEO of Euroclear UK and Ireland.
