BME reported net profit of €135.5 million in 2012, down 12.7% year-on-year. The fourth quarter of 2012 closed with adjusted profit of €30.4 million, a year-on-year decline of 17.2%.
Operating costs in the quarter were down 2.4% to €23.7 million, putting total 2012 operating costs at €98.9 million, a slight increase of 0.6% from the costs posted in 2011 and clearly below the annual rate of inflation.
In 2012 revenue totalled €296.2 million, down 7.8% on 2011. In the fourth quarter, revenue came in at €67 million, down 12.8% from the same period in 2011.
The main financial performance indicators compare well with the sector media average. The efficiency ratio was 35.4% in the fourth quarter and 33.4% for the year. Return on equity (ROE) was 32% in 2012 and 29% in the fourth quarter.
The ratio of covered costs closed the year at 118%. This represents a 6 point improvement against the 112% ratio recorded for the full-year 2011 and continues beating the sector significantly.
EQUITIES
Revenue in the Equity business unit in 2012 totalled €108.6 million, down 18.5% year-on-year. EBITDA fell by 24.2% to €76.5 million in the period. Fourth quarter revenue and EBITDA were down against the previous quarter by 23.1% and 30.8% respectively, standing at €22.5 million and €14.4 million.
Over the full-year a total of €699.7 billion was traded, 24.5% less than in 2011. The number of trades executed during the same period was down 11.5%.
SETTLEMENT
Revenue for the settlement division, generated by settlements, registrations and other services to issuers, was up 0.2% in 2012 against 2011, reaching a total of €79 million. In the fourth quarter revenue was down 8.9% to €18.5 million. EBITDA in the fourth quarter was down 6.1% to €15.4 million. In the full-year, EBITDA stood at €64.9 million, which represents a 0.6% increase compared to the unit’s EBITDA in 2011.
The nominal trading volumes registered by Equity and Fixed Income markets, both private and public, reached €1.7 trillion by the end of 2012, representing growth of 2.5% against 2011.
LISTING
In the Listing division, fourth quarter revenue was down 18.6% to a total of €4.8 million, while full-year 2012 revenue was €21 million (-13.5%). EBITDA in the last quarter of the year stood at €2.3 million, with a decline of 33.5% against 2011, while the accumulated drop in the year was 22.1%, with EBITDA of €11.6 million.
In 2012 the equity market demonstrated that it represents a source of financing and recapitalisation for companies when access to bank finance or other sources of funding is restricted. The funding provided by the market to listed companies in 2012 grew 50.9% to a total of €28.5 billion. In the fourth quarter alone financing via capital increases and scrip dividends stood at €8.6 billion, representing a 366.5% increase against the €1.8 billion of such financing seen in the fourth quarter 2011.
MARKET DATA
In the fourth quarter 2012 BME’s Information division’s revenue stood at €8.2 million, meaning a decline of 9.4%, while the full-year figure was €34.3 million (+2.7%). In terms of EBITDA, the fourth quarter closed with a decline of 10.5% to €6.3 million, while the full-year figure showed an increase of 2.4% to €26.9 million.
The number of directly connected clients, as per the close of the year, remained unchanged against the close of the previous year. Total connections were down in the fourth quarter, closing the year with a 1.8% decrease against the previous year.
DERIVATIVES
Fourth quarter revenues for the Derivatives division stood at €6.4 million, representing an increase of 18% against the previous year. EBITDA, meanwhile, stood at €3.8 million in the quarter, up 43.2% against the 2011 figure. In full-year terms, revenue stood at €25.5 million and EBITDA €14.2 million, both up against the previous year by 8.1% and 15% respectively.
The trading volume of the various underlying assets in 2012 stood at 67.2 million contracts, practically matching the 2011 figure. However, the composition was different after Options contracts recorded strong growth while Futures contracts declined in volume.
FIXED INCOME
Revenue from trading Fixed Income securities in the fourth quarter stood at €1.9 million, up 12.9% against the previous year, while EBITDA grew 19.9% to €1.2 million. In the full-year 2012, revenue was up 12.8% to €9.1 million, while EBITDA stood at €6 million (+18.6%).
IT & CONSULTING
Revenue from the IT & Consulting division in the fourth quarter stood at €4.2 million, showing a decline of 11% against the previous year. The various services provided by the division generated revenue of €16.3 million in 2012, with a decline of 2.3% against the previous year.
Visual Trader is currently developing systems to allow its customers to access international derivatives markets, extending the number of markets that can be accessed via the VT network. In the last quarter BME, via its subsidiary BME Innova, won a contract put out to tender by the Algerian Treasury to modernise its public debt market. Work began this quarter and will continue until February 2014.
