DGAP-News: Strong start to the year for comdirect

Strong start to the year for comdirect

• Good Q1 2018 pre-tax profit of EUR29.3m
• Very dynamic growth: 54k new customers, 51k new custody accounts
• Number of B2C trades at a record high: 5.9m in three months
• cominvest: over EUR300m in customer funds invested

Quickborn, Frankfurt/Main, Germany, 25 April 2018. The comdirect group closed the first quarter of 2018 with a pre-tax profit of EUR29.3m, exceeding the previous year's high level (EUR27.4m) by 7%. Pre-tax return on equity stood at 18.7% (previous year: 18.6%). "comdirect has made a successful start to the year," says Arno Walter, CEO of comdirect bank AG. "The very dynamic growth in customers, the record number of trades and the associated significant increase in income demonstrate that our investments in growth and new services are effective, whether with the trading offensive, the new comdirect app with chat transfer or our digital asset manager cominvest. We further strengthened our position in the first quarter as the top address for saving, investing and trading with securities and as a smart financial companion for an increasingly mobile generation of customers."

comdirect has already introduced a number of new services to the market in the second quarter. The new comdirect app now has a voice transfer function that works on android and iOS smartphones. Voice command enables customers to make transfers within a matter of seconds. comdirect has also introduced a smart risk assessment tool for customers with securities. Intuitive graphics help customers to obtain a good understanding of the risk in their custody account. An interactive tutorial provides beginners in particular with a quick introduction to the issue.

Record number of trades generates all-time high level of net commission income

Total income in the first three months amounted to EUR103.8m, 15.2% above that of the same quarter in the previous year (EUR90.1m). Income is affected by the high level of net commission income, which, at EUR74.0m, exceeded the previous year's value (EUR59.1m) by 25% and reached a record high. This was due to the high number of B2C trades in the first quarter of 2018, which, at 5.9m, was up 61% on the previous year (3.7m). According to Walter, "The number of trades is at a record level. On the one hand, we have more customers and, on the other, the customers have taken advantage of the volatility on the stock exchanges and traded very briskly. And this was seen across all customer segments: from active traders to long-term investors." Despite the persistent zero interest rate environment, net interest income after provisions for possible loan losses increased from EUR24.5m in the previous year's quarter to EUR26.1m. Other income stood at EUR3.7m (previous year: EUR6.5m).

The administrative expenses of EUR74.5m increased by 19% compared to the previous year's figure (EUR62.7m). In addition to higher sales expenses, reasons for the increase in particular included greater mandatory contributions for the deposit insurance scheme and the rise in other administrative and personnel expenses resulting from the integration of onvista.

Significantly faster growth in customers and custody accounts

In the first three months, the comdirect group's total number of customers climbed by 54k to 3.4m, and the number of custody accounts by 51k to 2.1m. As of the end of the first quarter, Assets under Control (AuC) stood at EUR90.8bn.

The number of customers in the B2C business line (comdirect bank AG, including the onvista bank division) increased by 52k to 2.4m in the first quarter. Over the same period, the number of custody accounts rose by 49k to 1.3m, and the number of current accounts increased by 23k to 1.5m. Total AuC grew slightly to EUR59.6bn, compared with EUR59.0bn at the end of 2017. The high net fund inflows of EUR2.5bn have compensated for the market price losses on the stock exchanges. According to Walter, "The customer growth has increased significantly. Our products have the power to win people over. In the case of the digital asset manager cominvest, we already have over EUR300m in Assets under Management after around ten months in the market. We will continue with this in 2018, persuading more people to invest digitally and encouraging them to take control of their own asset accumulation." comdirect recently launched a comprehensive online learning programme via the comdirect Academy to help private investors learn more about investing in securities. It communicates financial knowledge simply and conveniently via interactive elements and videos.

At around 1.05m, the number of customers in the B2B business line (ebase GmbH) remained stable in the first quarter. The seasonal closures of custody accounts for capital-building payments usual in the spring were approximately compensated for by new business. As of the end of the first quarter, total AuC stood at EUR31.2bn (end of 2017: EUR32.4bn).

Overview

Contacts for this press release
Annette Siragusano
Tel. +49 (0)41 06 704 1960
Email: annette.siragusano@comdirect.de

Ullrike Hamer
Tel. +49 (0)41 06 704 1545
Email: ullrike.hamer@comdirect.de
comdirect bank AG, Pascalkehre 15, 25451 Quickborn, Germany

Information for editorial teams
You can find more information about business development in the first quarter of 2018 here: https://www.comdirect.de/cms/ueberuns/de/investorrelations/veroeffentlichungen.html

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