Freetrade Suffers Trading Volume Drop in 2023 despite Revenue Boost

Trading volume on Freetrade, a stockbroking platform based in the UK, dropped to £3.4 billion in the 15 months ended 31 December 2023, compared to £3.6 billion in the previous 12 months. The company's latest Companies House filing is for 15 months as it is making January to December its fiscal year, changing it from October to September.

A Good Year for Freetrade Despite Challenges

Although net funding increased by £240.2 million in the 15 months, it remained lower than the £598.4 million in the previous 12 months. There was also a net equity funds outflow of £22 billion in 2023.

“Despite strong macroeconomic headwinds… and significantly lower marketing spend, cash and assets that customers have deposited and transferred into their Freetrade accounts continued to increase each month,” the filing stated.

Freetrade further highlighted that the total assets under administration increased by 30 percent with the growth in “high-value customers.” It also witnessed an improvement in equity markets from a positive market movement of £137.5 million in assets under management in the 15 months.

The latest Companies House filing further revealed that the total number of users on the Freetrade platform increased by 9 percent in 2023, reaching more than 1.45 million.

Revenue Diversification Paid Off

Meanwhile, Finance Magnates reported earlier that Freetrade’s revenue jumped by 45 percent to £21.6 million in the 12 months ending on 31 December 2023, compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. The company highlighted the revenue increase due to the diversification of its revenue streams. Although it offers a commission-free model, its revenue from subscriptions jumped by 9 percent.

Further, the UK-registered company narrowed its losses by 64 percent to £13.9 million. It endured a loss of £38.8 million in the previous 12 months.

“As a result of the continuation of cost-saving measures introduced in the previous fiscal year, Freetrade significantly reduced overall expenses during the period, positioning itself as a nimble and efficient growth business,” the filing added. “This reflected in the significant reduction in losses before taxation.”

Freetrade is also expanding its industry presence and recently agreed to acquire the UK customer base of Australian rival Stake.