Shares in IG Group Holdings (LON: IGG) jumped sharply on Tuesday after the FTSE 250 company raised its full-year 2026 organic revenue growth outlook to 10-15%, based on a 2025 revenue base of approximately £1.10 billion – upgrading from prior guidance of high single-digit growth.
The trigger was a trading update released ahead of the company’s AGM, with organic total revenue for the three months to 31 March 2026 coming in at £331.2 million, up 19% year-on-year, while reported total revenue reached £339.9 million, up 21% year-on-year.
Chief executive Breon Corcoran said the company had delivered a strong first quarter with a fifth consecutive quarter of sequential growth, as quarterly active customers rose 12% year-on-year to 309,200.
First trades increased 63% year-on-year and 65% quarter-on-quarter, with the company pointing to increased marketing spend, new product launches and supportive market conditions as the key drivers. The group’s US operations through tastytrade continued to build momentum, contributing to total group assets under administration surpassing £20 billion across all platforms in April.
Assets under administration across IG’s organic platforms totalled £8.5 billion at 31 March 2026, up 23% year-on-year, rising to £9.3 billion by the end of April. Organic stock trading and investments net trading revenue grew 38% year-on-year, reflecting continued traction of IG’s zero-commission offering, while Freetrade, which added £4.0 billion in AuA by late April, expanded its mutual fund range to over 1,000 funds during the quarter.
On the product front, IG launched crypto perpetual futures and expanded its coin listings in the UK. Spot crypto revenue was heavily driven by the consolidation of Australian exchange Independent Reserve, while spot trading rollouts progressed in France and Singapore. An upgraded IG-branded stock trading proposition for UK customers is due later this month, adding fractional shares, mutual funds, fixed income, and a broader range of global stocks and ETFs.
The board confirmed it is conducting a strategic review evaluating routes to maximise shareholder value, including potential acquisitions, changes to the group’s domicile and listing venues, and possible combinations with other industry participants, with outcomes to be presented at a Strategy Update in autumn 2026.
At the AGM held earlier in the day, all resolutions were passed, with strong shareholder support for the annual report and accounts at 99.79% and the final dividend at 100%. Most director re-elections also received substantial backing, though resolutions concerning the disapplication of pre-emption rights saw lower approval rates of 83.74% and 88.57%.
The company’s £125 million share buyback programme, which commenced on 1 April 2026, had repurchased 987,160 shares at a cost of £14.9 million as of 15 May, with the first tranche expected to complete by 30 September 2026.