Argentex Group PLC (LON:AGFX), a provider of foreign exchange services, saw a significant increase in underlying earnings in its first year as a listed company.
Profit before tax in the year to the end of March 2020, shot up to £10.2mln from £2.1mln the previous year on revenue that rose to £29.0mln from £21.9mln the year before as foreign exchange passing through the Argentex system topped £12bn – up 32.3% year-on-year.
Argentex revealed 380 new corporate clients traded during the period, lifting the number of active corporate clients to 1,212, up 12% on the previous year.
The Spot and Forward product range denominated by dollar, sterling and euro continues to be the bedrock of Argentex's offering but the year also saw increasingly become interested in foreign exchange options, thus demonstrating the group's ability to serve the broadening needs of clients and the gradual move towards a more diversified revenue stream.
The group has declared a maiden dividend of 2p, in line with the group’s policy of paying out 30% of retained profit after tax (after adjusting for exceptional items).
"It has been an excellent first year trading as a listed business in which we have continued to generate double-digit revenue and profit growth supported by an expanding, increasingly active and high-quality client base,” said Carl Jani, the co-chief executive officer (CEO) of Argentex in the results statement.
Harry Adams, Argentex's other co-CEO, said the group’s growth trajectory had been set against some of the most unprecedented markets recently recorded.
“Investment in our proprietary systems and technology has served us well as the client demand continued during the recent sustained period of extreme volatility," he declared.
