The revenue and other income reached the highest ever value for HKEX for the period ending on 31st Dec 2018, coming in at HK$15.9 billion in 2018, an increase of 20 per cent year-over-year. The net profits reached HK$9.31 billion ($1.19 billion) from HK$7.4 billion in 2017.
Further breaking up the revenue numbers, the listing fees increased by 63 per cent to HK822 million, while trading fees rose 64 per cent to HK 2.5 billion, year-over-year.
While presenting the result, HKEX CEO Charles Li and Chairman Laura Cha have given a grim outlook for the year 2019 because of geopolitical and economic uncertainties. The exchange operator also revealed its three-year strategy in which it will continue to broaden its focus away from equity trading.
Charles Li in a statement said:
“The market outlook for 2019 looks set to be more challenging, but we are confident that HKEX is very well placed to continue to be the financial gateway to and from China, that our business is strongly positioned to capitalise on growth opportunities and that we will continue to be globally attractive and competitive,”
“We intend to transform ourselves from being a leading global exchange not only by virtue of our size but also in terms of our product range, reach, global relevance, regulatory standards, market efficiency and technological innovation,”
While commenting on the result, Li said:
“This was an excellent year for the Company. Record volumes in our Cash Market, record volumes in our Derivatives Market and a world-leading IPO market that welcomed 218 companies, including 7 under our new listing chapters, resulted in a 26 per cent uplift in profit for the year.”
“With our continued focus on Fixed Income, Commodities and Currency (FICC) as well as innovative technologies, we successfully concluded our Strategic Plan 2016-2018 with a set of major achievements, putting us in an excellent position to embark on the next phase of our journey.”
