(Photo by Zahid Izzani/The Edge)

KUALA LUMPUR (April 30): Stock exchange operator Bursa Malaysia Bhd said on Tuesday that its net profit rose 34% in the first quarter of the year, from a year earlier, thanks to higher trading activity and fees from listings and other services.

Net profit for the three months ended March 31, 2024 (1QFY2024) was RM75.03 million compared to RM56.17 million over the same period last year, Bursa Malaysia said in an exchange filing.

Revenue for the quarter climbed nearly 20% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM187.2 million, from RM156.5 million.

“Bursa Malaysia is well-positioned to continue developing the marketplace and make further progress on our strategic plans,” said Bursa Malaysia chief executive officer Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift. “The exchange is cautiously optimistic in meeting all five headline key performance indicators for the financial year ending 2024,” he added in a separate statement.

During the quarter under review (1QFY2024), earnings were primarily driven by a 23% increase in the Securities Market’s operating revenue to RM123.1 million, from RM100.0 million in 1QFY2023.

Meanwhile, total operating expenses increased by 8.6% to RM87.1 million in 1QFY2024 from RM80.2 million in 1QFY2023, mainly attributed to higher staff costs and technology expenses.

Trading velocity also rose by eight percentage points to 39% in 1QFY2024, from 31% in the preceding corresponding quarter.

Additionally, listing and issuer services grew by 8.9% to RM16.3 million from RM15.0 million, while depository services witnessed an 18.3% increase to RM15.5 million in 1QFY2024 from RM13.1 million a year earlier.

The Derivatives Market’s operating revenue rose by 12.7% to RM31.8 million from RM28.3 million in 1QFY2023, driven primarily by the rise in average daily contracts (ADC) in both crude palm oil futures (FCPO) and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Futures (FKLI), which collectively propelled the Derivatives Market’s ADC higher by 18.0% y-o-y to 84,222 contracts in 1QFY2024.

The growth in ADC led to an 18.2% increase in derivatives trading revenue, rising to RM25.4 million in 1QFY2024 from RM21.5 million a year earlier.

On the Islamic Market front, operating revenue remained stable at RM4.5 million, mirroring the previous corresponding quarter’s performance.

Meanwhile, the data business segment demonstrated significant growth, with operating revenue having increased by 21.9% to RM19.0 million in 1QFY2024, from RM15.6 million in 1QFY2023.

At noon break on Tuesday, Bursa Malaysia’s shares settled unchanged at RM7.45, valuing the company at RM6.03 billion.