Saxo Bank Group, a Danish investment bank specializing in online trading and investment, published its annual report for 2022 on Friday, reporting a 6% decline in its net profit. The figure came in at DKK 711 million compared to DKK 755 million in 2021.
The online trading platform provider’s trading-related and interest earnings during the period decreased by 2% year-over-year (YoY) to approximately DKK 4.4 billion. In addition, Saxo Bank’s client assets dropped 9% to DKK 584 billion “affected by the negative trends in the global equity markets during 2022.”
“The net profit for 2022 was impacted by lower trading activity following the macroeconomic situation, which created uncertainty for clients who traded less, resulting in a decrease in net profit,” Saxo Bank explained.
However, the company noted it generated a higher interest income as a result of rising interest rates, adding that this contributed to partly offsetting the decrease from lower trading. In total, 64 million trades were executed on Saxo Bank’s platforms in 2022.
Retail Trading Loses 2021 Momentum
Additionally, details in the report show that the total number of new trading clients onboarded by Saxo Bank dropped 40% to 157,000 in 2022. In the prior year, the Danish broker admitted 263,000 new clients. Regardless, the broker boasted record-high client numbers with 876,000 clients at the end of last year.
“The growth in total clients was driven by the Saxo Institutional business, whereas total Investor clients remained stable and total Trader clients experienced a decline,” Saxo Bank noted.
Saxo Bank Speaks on BinckBank’s Acquisition
Meanwhile, Saxo Bank noted that it has migrated more than 400,000 clients from the Dutch lending platform BinckBank, which it acquired in August 2019, to its platform. It described achieving the feat in three years as “a true success.”
“We are now seeing increased client satisfaction in the Netherlands, Belgium and France as they get to know our platforms, products, services and prices better. That is win-win," Kim Fournais, Saxo Bank’s CEO, explained.
What’s Saxo Bank’s Goal for 2023?
Meanwhile, Finance Magnates reported that Saxo Bank’s overall trading volume dipped 9.6% month-over-month in January 2023, reaching $375.6 billion. Moreover, the Danish online broker’s forex volume declined by 5% to $115.2 billion. However, in the annual report, the company noted that it is “in a strong position” to deliver value to its clients and stakeholders.
“A successful 2023 will mean that we see growth across our Direct and Institutional business from offering our multi-asset platforms with timely, relevant and actionable content, and dedicated trading, investment and asset management products and services at competitive prices,” Fournais added.
