KUALA LUMPUR: Faced with a challenging period for global markets, Bursa Malaysia Bhd
said its first-quarter (1QFY25) net profit came in at RM68.42mil, less than RM75.03mil in 1QFY24, while revenue was slightly lower at RM184.38mil against RM187.2mil in the year-ago quarter.
Earnings per share slid to 8.5 sen from 9.3 sen previously.
Meanwhile, Bursa Malaysia's total operating expenses increased 6.7% to RM92.9mil during the quarter as the Centeralised Sustainability Intelligence platform - launched in June 2024 - incurred higher technology expenses and subscription costs.
Bursa Malaysia CEO Datuk Fad'l Mohamed noted that external factors that impacted equity markets in the first quarter of the year.
“The first quarter of 2025 proved to be a challenging period for global markets, weighed down by external factors affecting equity market performance.
"Notwithstanding the headwinds, Malaysia’s capital market remains resilient, supported by strong economic fundamentals and the government’s clear policy direction, supported by outlined national roadmaps in key growth areas," he said in a statement.
He added that the 16 initial public offerings (IPO) on the market to-date was promising, and puts the Exchange on track to meeting its full-year target of 60 IPOs.
Bursa Malaysia reported a smaller turnover of securities in 1QFY25 - the average daily trading value for on-market trades and direct business trades declined 11.9% to RM2.8bil in 1QFY25 against RM3.2bil in 1QFY24.
Trading velocity during the quarter dropped six percentage points to 33%, while there were two less trading days in 1QFY25 compared to 1QFY24, which also contributed to the decrease in operating revenue.
The securities market's operating revenue during the quarter dipped 7.2% to RM114.3mil compared to RM123.1mil in 1QFY24.
The derivatives market on the other hand saw a 13.7% increase in trading revenue to RM28.9mil during the quarter, underpinned by an increase in average daily contracts traded for crude palm oil futures.
There was also a 12.1% increase in revenue contribution from conference and exhibitions to RM7.1mil, driven by the higher number of pariticipants at the Palm and Lauric Oils Price Outlook Conference & Exhibition.
Operating revenue from the Islamic Market jumped 23% year-on-year to RM5.5mil, mainly owing to higher Bursa Suq Al-Sila trading revenue.
Revenue from Bursa Gold Dinar improved to RM600,000 in 1QFY25 from RM200,000 in the year-ago quarter while the data business semgent posted a 2.1% increase in operating revenue to RM19.4mil.
