IG boom on lockdown trading frenzy

IG GROUP has enjoyed a record year as clients new and old flocked to its trading platforms in lockdown.

The online and spread betting house welcomed 100,000 new customers in the last three months, taking the total to nearly 240,000.

For the year to May, IG saw trading revenue soar 36% to £649 million, while profit lept 52% to £240 million.

Chief executive June Felix, who arrived in October 2018 said it has been “a very successful year, tremendous on many fronts” with staff shifting seamlessly to work from home.

Today there were 10 staff in the City head office out of a usual 800.

Asked how much of the boom was down to Covid, she replied: “We don’t know. Markets have been so active, so exciting.”

The new clients are the same as the old ones, she said, typically men between 30 and 50 years old who work in financial services somewhere.

The UK, Europe, Singapore and Australia remain the key markets.

The divi for the year is held at 43.2p.

Felix said in a statement: “I am particularly proud of how our people have worked together through the Covid-19 pandemic to support our clients, their colleagues, and the broader communities in which we operate. Their performance during this extraordinary time has demonstrated that they are a credit to the business, and a key asset.”