Bursa Malaysia Posts 18% Jump In Its Profit After Tax And Minority Interest (Patami) Of Rm45.1 Million In First Quarter Of 2014

Bursa Malaysia Berhad (“Bursa Malaysia” or “the Exchange”) registered a PATAMI of RM45.1 million, up by 18 percent for the first quarter ended 31 March 2014 (“1Q2014”) compared to the same period last year on the back of higher operating revenue. On an annualised basis, the return on equity recorded an increase from 18 percent in 1Q2013 to 23 percent in 1Q2014.

Dato’ Tajuddin Atan, the Chief Executive Officer of Bursa Malaysia said, “Over the past three years, our operating revenue has continued its upward path. We have spent the last three years strengthening our foundations to position us for future growth and our efforts will continue well into this year. Among our key milestones to date is the revamp of participantship structure in which we have created a single trading right to encourage greater participation from the broader market. This move would enable Trading Participants to trade all categories of products on the derivatives market.”

Bursa Malaysia’s operating revenue was up by 13 percent to RM115.1 million in 1Q2014 boosted by double digit growth in trades from the securities and derivatives market. For the year under review, the securities market’s average daily trading value (“ADV”) grew by 26 percent to RM2.16 billion as a result of higher trading participation from retail investors due to our targeted outreach activities and continued support by domestic institutions. Derivatives market’s average daily contracts (“ADC”) grew by 11 percent to 50,046 contracts largely driven by the increase in the activities of the crude palm oil futures (FCPO) contracts. The FCPO contracts hit a new high on 12 March 2014 with 71,678 contracts traded on the back of higher volatility in CPO prices. From the Islamic market perspective, Bursa Suq Al-Sila (BSAS) recorded a 40 percent increase in its ADV to RM5.1 billion on the back of higher domestic and foreign participation due to the consistent engagement and outreach activities undertaken.

Despite an increase in the operating expenses of 10 percent due to higher investment in talent, the cost to income ratio was optimised at below 50 percent.

Bursa Malaysia’s 1Q2014 PATAMI of RM45.1 million was up 33 percent compared to the preceding quarter ended 31 December 2013 (“4Q2013”). Its operating revenue increased by 11 percent from RM103.9 million to RM115.1 million in 1Q2014. The ADV for securities market’s on-market trades was up by 23 percent to RM2.1 billion while ADC traded for the derivatives market increased 20 percent to 50,046 contracts. On the Islamic market front, the ADV of BSAS increased by 9 percent to RM5.1 billion.

Dato’ Tajuddin said, “Moving into the new quarter, Bursa Malaysia will unveil several initiatives as part of our efforts to engage younger Malaysians between the ages of 25 to 35. In the pipeline is the launch of our e-initiative, a digital and inclusive platform to grow retail participation through the offering of accurate and objective information. We are also working towards initiating the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Index to improve our visibility in the regional space.”   

The financial results for the quarter ended 31 March 2014 are available on Bursa Malaysia’s website.