Plus500 Shares Tank 10% After Bosses Cash Out £67M Following 13-Year Hold

Plus500 (LSE: PLUS) executives completed a £67.1 million share sale today (Tuesday), triggering a sharp selloff that erased up to 10% of the company's market value before stocks recovered slightly to trade down 6% at 4,430 pence.

CEO David Zruia, CFO Elad Even-Chen and CMO Nir Zats sold a combined 1.5 million shares at £44.78 each to Goldman Sachs International as principal, with Panmure Liberum intermediating the transaction. The block represents 2.14% of Plus500's issued share capital.

Just last month, Zruia and Even-Chen each received Plus500 shares worth £8.5 million under the company's 2026 deferred bonus scheme. Now they're liquidating positions they've held since the broker's 2013 IPO, their first-ever sales in 13 years.

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Even-Chen offloaded the largest block at 940,000 shares, reducing his stake from 2.2 shares to 1.3. Zruia sold almost 451,000 shares, cutting his holdings to the same 1.3 million-share position. Zats disposed of 109,000 shares, leaving him with 131,000 shares representing 0.2% of the company.

Shares Jumped 20% in 2026

The executives' timing becomes more striking when examining what happened to their bonus shares. According to Finance Magnates Intelligence estimates, the company’s shares rose roughly 20% between the grant date and Tuesday's sale.

That means Zruia and Even-Chen each saw their £8.5 million bonus awards grow to approximately £10.2 million before the selloff, a gain of £1.7 million each in under a month. Zats watched his £120,000 award climb to around £144,000.

These remain paper gains; the bonus shares are subject to vesting restrictions and can't be sold immediately. Still, the numbers show how much value just this portion of their holdings accumulated in a single month, driven by favorable market conditions and Plus500's strong performance.

Lockup Doesn't Calm Markets

The three executives agreed not to sell additional shares for 365 days following the transaction, subject to waiver by Panmure Liberum. That lockup period hasn't reassured investors.

The stock has climbed over 200% since 2024 and remains up 22% year-to-date despite Tuesday's decline. Shares opened down 10% before trimming losses, though the chart now shows a sizeable downward gap.

The sale occurred just days after Plus500 launched a $100 million share buyback program as part of $187.5 million in total shareholder returns announced with its 2025 results.

The company reported record performance, with average customer deposits more than doubling to $26,900 and its non-OTC business crossing $100 million in revenue.

Zruia and Even-Chen each earned $4.97 million in total compensation for the last financial year, including $1.09 million in fixed salary and $3.9 million in variable pay. The bonus shares they received in January pushed their total recent compensation higher.

Expansion Continues

Plus500 has been executing an expansion beyond its core CFD business. The company recently launched prediction markets in the US offering Kalshi's event contracts under its Plus500 Futures brand, completed a $20 million acquisition of Mehta Equities in India, and acquired an Indonesian broker.

The London-listed company reported in January that half its revenue now comes from customers trading over five years, demonstrating improved customer retention. It posted earnings of $792 million and EBITDA of $348 million for 2025, both ahead of analyst expectations.

BlackRock holds approximately 6% of Plus500 shares, making it the largest shareholder, while JPMorgan owns 5.1%. Artemis Investment Management and Capital Group have also taken stakes above 5%.

The company held approximately $800 million in cash on its balance sheet as of December 31, 2025, providing capital for both the buyback program and continued geographic expansion. Whether that financial strength will offset insider selling concerns remains unclear as the stock digests Tuesday's decline.