Interactive Brokers Reports First Rise in DARTs Since February

Photo: Bloomberg

Electronic brokerage firm Interactive Brokers LLC (NASDAQ:IBKR) said its trading volumes jumped in June from a month earlier, an indication that confidence by investors in the financial market is rebounding after being fairly moribund in the second quarter.

Rising volatility has improved the trading volumes, with June data showing the first monthly rise since February. But it is not clear whether that will be enough to offset recent drops and how it could affect margins for the multi-asset broker and market-maker.

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During June 2018, the number of DARTs were reported at 799,000, a rise of 2.0 percent month-over-month from 698,000 in May 2018. Over a year-on-year basis, Interactive Brokers saw a more upbeat performance in its DARTs with June’s figure jumping approximately 17 percent relative to 683,000 reported back in June 2017.

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In terms of equity balance in customers’ accounts during June 2018, the figure totaled $134.7 billion, an increase of 29.0 percent year-on-year from $104 billion the previous year. However, Interactive Brokers hardly bested its May 2018 equivalent, having notched a zero change relative to the figures of the prior month.

Interactive Brokers’ ending client margin loan balances also came in at $47.6 billion in June 2018, or 2.0 percent higher month-on-month from $46 billion in May 2018. Across a yearly interval, the figure moved higher by 4.0 percent when weighed against $45 billion in June 2017.

Business highlights, according to the company’s press release, also showed that a total of 542,000 customer accounts were active at IB during June 2018. The figure was higher by 2.0 percent month-on-month when compared to May 2018 (532,800 accounts), and 27.0 percent higher year-on-year from 428,000 accounts.

On average, in June 2018 Interactive Brokers charged clients commission fees of $3.84 per order, including exchange, clearing and regulatory fees, with the key products metrics coming out at $2.38 for stocks, $5.23 for equity options and $6.58 for futures orders.