JSE posts record financial results
The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) said it delivered strong financial results for the year ended December 2013, lifting profit by 68% to a high of R507 million.
Revenue was up to R1.6 billion, from R1.4 billion, with profit from operating activities up to R578 million, from R406 million in 2012.
Group earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) increased by 42% to R578 million and headline earnings per share (HEPS) advanced 36% to 645 cents, despite the impact of the impairment of legacy technology (2013: R48 million; 2012: R75 million).
The Board declared both an ordinary and a special dividend for the year ended December 2013 at 350 cents (2012: 250 cents) and 50 cents per ordinary share, respectively.
Personnel, technology and technology related costs (depreciation) are the principal components of the JSE’s cost base, accounting for 64% of the group’s largely fixed cost base, it said.
“I’m particularly pleased with the progress we made towards achieving our five year plan of providing integrated trading and clearing across all of our five markets by 2017,” said JSE CEO, Nicky Newton-King.
The group said that phase 1 of the move to T+3 was successfully implemented during 2013, with Phase 2 due in the second half of 2014 and Phase 3 due in 2015.
The construction of its co-location centre will offer clients access to the JSE “at unprecedented speeds”.
Co-location will offer 24 times faster access into the equity market with a latency of 100 microseconds compared to 2,400 microseconds which is the current fastest latency of JSE members located in Sandton.
The JSE said that a series of other strategic and technology investments remains under consideration by executive management and the Board. “Such investments must, of course, contribute to the future profitability of the group,” it said.
The capital expenditure for these 2014 investments is projected at about R170 million.
The JSE said that priorities for 2014 include launching Phase 1 of the co-location facility to host client trading systems, while it will also implement Phase 2 of the move to T+3.
It will also move towards an integrated trading and clearing system. “This will result in both the move of all trading onto the technology currently used for the Equity Market and the introduction of a new clearing technology for all markets,” the JSE said.
It added that it will also advance the development of an electronic trading platform for the SA Government bond market with National Treasury and other market participants.
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