ASX Rides Global Market Volatility to Strongest Profit Growth in Years
Synopsis
Heightened trading activity pushed ASX's annual underlying profit to A$536.4 million, with futures and options volumes rising 14.4% and shares climbing almost 10%.
Key Highlights
- ASX up 5%, Annual underlying profit climbs as trading activity rises with market volatility.
- 18.6% rise in markets division revenue; 14.4% increase in futures and options volumes.
- Underlying net profit for the year climbed to A$536.4 million from A$510 million.
- ASX rises as much as 9.9%, biggest intraday gain since March 2020
Australian stock exchange operator ASX said on Thursday that annual underlying profit rose more than 5% because of higher trading activity due to global market volatility offset lower listing revenue.
For the year to June 30, net profit after tax (before significant items) rose to A$536.4 million from $510 million a year earlier. Final dividend was of 104.7 Australian cents a shares.
Volatility Drives Trading Activity
ASX said trading activity also showed up in the demand for post-trade services and global market volatility and increased overall during the year. Its markets division saw revenues increase 18.6%, and futures and options volumes grew by 14.4%.
The ASX said global events made for exceptionally active and volatile markets in the second half of fiscal 2026. The exchange achieved its highest monthly futures trading volume and second most executed trades day all-time for equities.
ASX shares gained as much as 9.9% to A$61, their largest intraday percentage climb since March 17, 2020.
Technology Spending Raises Costs
ASX booked total expenses of $557.4 million, up 21.1 per cent due primarily to higher expenditure on technology modernisation, and new technology capabilities and costs linked to an ongoing corporate regulator inquiry.
The exchange has also invested heavily in its CHESS clearing platform after multiple outages and the scrapping of a previous upgrade.
The better results come as ASX seeks to restore confidence after the company faced oversight from regulators over some operational failures and analysts downgraded its outlook following a review by ratings agency S&P.
ASX announced last week that Anthony Attia from Euronext would start as the ASX chief executive on 1 September.
Source: Reuters
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