PSE nets P255 million on strong revenue growth

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) recorded an uptick in its net income in the first quarter, driven by higher trading- and listing-related revenues.

From January to March, the PSE registered a 5.1-percent improvement in its net income to P254.67 million from last year’s P242.38 million.

The PSE said that its financial performance during quarter takes into account its acquisition of additional shares in Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corp. (PDS). 

Its operating revenues for the three-month period surged by 82.7 percent year-on-year to P645.49 million, fueled by an increase in trading and listing-related revenues to P222.60 million and P171.19 million, respectively. 

The company said that trading-related revenues were boosted by the consolidation of transaction revenues from the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp and the Philippine Depository and Trust Corp. (PDTC) as well as the 5.1 percent increase in trading value in the equities market.  

Revenues from additional listings and a higher cap on listing maintenance, meanwhile, contributed to gains in listing-related revenues. 

Further, depository securities account fees from PDTC contributed P139.28 million to the overall increase in revenues.

PSE’s net income was curbed by a decline in other income, which fell by 73.2 percent to P32.23 million from P120.17 million on lower returns from financial assets amid market volatility.

Total operating expenses for the quarter climbed by 93.8 percent to P339.14 million from P174.99 million on the consolidation of PDS costs.

PSE president and CEO Ramon Monzon said the acquisition of PDS gives the company another stable revenue source.

As of May 15, PSE’s shareholdings in PDS stood at 91.6 percent.

“But more than the consolidation of PDS numbers into PSE’s financial performance, this integration has always been intended to introduce synergies between the two exchanges to enhance the domestic capital market infrastructure,” Monzon said.

The PDS acquisition forms part of PSE’s three-year strategic agenda which seeks to provide investors with an integrated facility to trade fixed income, equities and other products under a unified marketplace.

This month, PSE said it is set to introduce the new version of the PSE EASy mobile app. 

“Aside from share subscription during initial public offerings and follow-on offerings, payment for subscribed shares can also be done through the platform via online payment channels,” it said.

The PSE said that account registration in PSE EASy is free but the local small investor creating an account should already have a stock market account with a PSE-accredited stock brokerage firm.

Both PSE EASy and PSE EQUIP mobile applications can be downloaded through the AppStore and Google Play.