Alpha FX upbeat after 'exceptionally strong' fourth quarter

The AIM-traded firm said that as a result, revenue for the year ended 31 December was now expected to top £77m, representing a year-on-year increase of 67%, and ahead of previous analyst expectations set following the December update.

It said that included £1m of recharges to clients of bank costs that mainly arose in the second half of the year.

Underlying operating profit was also expected to be ahead of the most recent analyst expectations, the Alpha FX board said.

In its interim report, the company expected second half margins to be impacted by an acceleration in hiring, the normalisation of travel and entertainment spend, and investments in new offices.

While those investments were carried out as planned, the “exceptionally strong” revenue performance in the second half had served to partially offset the anticipated fall in margins.

Following the strong end to the fourth quarter, the directors of Alpha FX said they were looking to another year of strong growth, with an update on their outlook to be provided with the full-year results in March.

“In 2021 we started to see the benefits of the investments we made in decentralising our operations and the day-to-day running of the business, empowering our management teams to strengthen our position in FX risk management and build out new and innovative propositions in our alternative banking operations,” said founder and chief executive officer Morgan Tillbrook.

“This strategy, together with the recovery in many of our clients' markets, has delivered strong revenue and profit growth across the group.

“With the vast addressable markets across both our divisions and a highly talented team driven by our strong group culture, we remain excited by the prospects for 2022 and beyond.”

At 1205 GMT, shares in Alpha FX were up 2.54% at 2,184p.