The Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, on Thursday, presented its unaudited financials for the nine months ended September 30, 2021, its first post-demutualization, showing marginal growth in top and bottom line, even as fees from penalties paid by non-compliant quoted companies soared by 367.61%.
According to the result, revenue for the period stood at N4.387bn, up from N3.784bn; while other income improved from N240. 149m in the corresponding period of last year to N471.829m; resulting in total income of N4.859bn, slightly above the N4.024bn earned in the previous 9-month period.
A breakdown of the revenue for the period showed that the group recorded a year-to-date listing fees of N425.28m, up from N376.561m, which when added to the N106.211m entrance levies, up from N101.648m, amounted to N529.491m from N478.209m. Transaction fees was flat at B1.794bn from N1.739bn; market data income rose to N253.849m from N246.149m; technology income dropped from N106.439m to N97.272m; and index licensing, N25.962m, compared to B25.198m. The group also earned N959.603m from its investment, by way of treasury and investment income, rental income from investment property, and dividends from subsidiaries and associates, compared to N1.078bn in the prior three quarters.
As part of other revenue, penalty fees jumped from N26.354m to N123.233m; while trading, membership, and licensing fees dropped almost 50% to N32.538m from N66.811m; which was more than compensated for by the nominal fees that soared from N11.261m to N569.693m; with other fees rising slightly from N1.243m to N1.94m.
Other income was mainly driven by the sundry income of N405.392m, a jump from N194.669m.
Staff cost climbed from N2.164bn to N2.403bn; depreciation and amotisation amounted to N420.498m against N427.293m in 2020; operating expenses inched to N1.325bn, compared to N1.104bn; resulting in total expenses of N4.149bn, a rise from N3.697bn.
Operating profit for the period stood at N710.305m, almost double the previous N327.95m.
Share of profit-equity accounted investees slipped marginally to N1.017bn from N1.037bn; bringing profit before tax to N1.727bn, slightly better than the N1.365bn reported in the preceding nine months. The income tax expense, which the exchange is paying for the first time since inception having just migrated from a members-only to a profit-making entity, stood at N217.83m from nil in last year; resulting in profit after tax of N1.509bn; marginally better than the previous N1.365bn. The net profit translated to Earnings Per Share of 75 kobo.
