Alpha FX publishes a full year trading update

Darren Sinden

The business was also able to expand its operations in 2020 establishing a presence in Amsterdam and bolstering headcount in both front and back-office operations

FX risk management business Alpha FX published a trading update this morning for the full year 2020, and it showed a strong finish to the second half of the year for the group.

Alpha confirmed that the company had seen a slowdown in business in the early part of the year, as its corporate customers trimmed or put their activities on hold. Thanks to the downturn in global trade bought about by the pandemic and associated lockdowns.

However, in the second half of 2020 business rebounded within its FX risk management and alternative banking divisions. To the extent that the company was able to grow its base of corporate customers by 16% over the year, adding just over 100 new customers.

The business was also able to expand its operations in 2020 establishing a presence in Amsterdam and bolstering headcount in both front and back-office operations. It created 16 new jobs in the back office and four in the front, and Alpha FX intends to grow staff numbers further as the business continues to gain traction.

In terms of revenues, management expects full-year 2020 to generate around £46.0 million and forecasts that operating profits will be slightly ahead of expectations. However, the company also warned that with the UK and parts of Europe back in lockdown, a slower start to business in 2021 is expected.

Alpha FX is setting up an operation in Malta, through which it will service its European derivatives clients post Brexit. This new operation is expected to be up and running by the end of Q1 2021.

However, until then the group will have to forgo some business from clients in EU states, where reverse solicitation is not permitted. Alpha FX estimates this to be less than 1% of its overall business.

The company also intends to reinstate its dividend and will announce further details when it publishes full-year results in March. The company remains debt-free and has £48.0 million of free cash on its balance sheet.

Commenting on the update Alpha FX founder and CEO Morgan Tillbrook said that: “Despite the challenges faced, the team ensured 2020 was another consecutive year of strong growth across all divisions of the business.”

Mr Tillbrook added “The lifeblood of Alpha’s success is our people and I am extremely proud of our team for rising to the challenge to deliver in the way they have. It is a real privilege to lead the group and I believe the progress made this year will set us in very good stead long into the future.”

Shares in Alpha FX, which are listed on the London Stock Exchange have traded lower this morning, down by some 4.90% at £13.50. However, the stock had previously enjoyed a sustained rally, rising from a Covid crash low of £5.15 to trade at £14.50 ahead of today’s news.

So whilst it may have been better to travel than arrive, shareholders will no doubt be pleased with the company’s overall performance.

The stock has been upgraded this morning by their brokers Liberum, who have raised their Alpha FX target price to £15.00 from £13.50, raising their profit forecasts by 6.0% in 2020 and 2.0% in 2021. Liberum believes that further upgrades could be justified once the current lockdown comes to an end.

Read this next

Digital Assets

Centralized exchanges are 10 times more popular than DEXs in Western Europe

Western European traders are found to prefer centralized exchanges over decentralized ones as CEX traffic outpaces DEXs by a factor of ten.

Market News

Stock Market Analysis: Is NVDA Losing Its Leadership?

Since the beginning of the week, the S&P 500 Index (US500) has seen a modest increase of about 0.58%, whereas NVDA’s share price has experienced a decline of approximately 3.8%. This recent divergence raises concerns among Nvidia stock investors — could it signify a loss of NVDA’s market leadership?

Industry News

ESG: Australian regulator wins first greenwashing court case against Vanguard

Vanguard admitted that a notable portion of the securities within both the Index and the Fund did not undergo the promised ESG scrutiny.

Fintech, Uncategorized

BitMEX integrates HALO from Solidus Labs for cross-market surveillance

“The recent approval of the Spot Bitcoin ETF has piqued the market’s interest. As a result of price volatility, the trading volumes for crypto derivatives have gone up substantially. HALO, with its advanced technology and crypto-native detection architecture, will enable BitMEX to smoothly and safely scale trade surveillance across its increased trading volumes and provide the necessary safeguards for new product launches.”

Reviews

IUX Broker Review

IUX, recently rebranded from IUX Markets, stands as a multi-asset Forex broker recognized for its regulatory compliance across various jurisdictions.

Industry News

Horizon Software rebrands to Horizon Trading Solutions

“Horizon Trading Solutions has seen accelerated global growth over the past year to meet the rising demand for our trading solutions and built-for-purpose technology offering. The choice to rebrand represents a key part of this development, while maintaining our heritage and history in the industry.”

Market News

USDJPY has surged to levels last witnessed in 2022. Should we consider opening a short position?

The recent resurgence of the US dollar has propelled USD/JPY to new heights, touching levels not seen since 2022. This surge comes against the backdrop of stable short-term yields and ongoing economic data that fails to signal a significant slowdown, prompting questions about the extent of current monetary easing measures.

Digital Assets

DED Trends on Twitter After Memecoin Snapshot Announcement

Polkadot-backed community coin #DED, made it to the trending charts on X, demonstrating community’s engagement and interest behind the memecoin. 

Digital Assets

BlockDAG Presale Nears $10 Million Amid Toncoin’s Momentum, Green Bitcoin’s Presale, and the Rise of Other Top Cryptos

This article will examine three top trending topics: Toncoin’s potential, Green Bitcoin’s innovative presale, and BlockDAG’s sustainable mining approach. These cryptocurrencies take centre stage for their uniqueness and innovation.

<