Volatility is a gift for trading platforms, so it comes as little surprise that online trading group CMC Markets’ chief executive Lord Cruddas and head of global strategic partnerships David Fineberg have each acquired around £139,000 worth of shares.
Cruddas, the company’s founder, bought 23,011 shares at an average of 604p, while Fineberg bought 23,300 at 598p.
The purchases follow a July 1 trading update in which CMC lifted its guidance for net operating income in the year to March 31 2027 to at least £550mn — well ahead of its previous £460mn to £480mn range — with guidance for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of £250mn. The group put the upgrade down to growth in its business-to-business platforms, which allows income to rise against a largely fixed-cost base. Operating costs, excluding variable pay, are still expected to be about £280mn.
This builds on a strong 2025-26, and CMC has had a decent story to tell so far.
Net operating income rose by 15 per cent to £393mn, with pre-tax profit up 20 per cent to £101mn. The Australian stockbroking arm also delivered record net operating income of A$140mn, up 32 per cent. The full-year dividend was lifted by 21 per cent to 13.8p, in line with a policy of paying out half of after-tax profit.
A large part of the investment rests on a partnership with Australian bank Westpac, CMC’s largest institutional deal, covering around A$39bn of assets under administration across half a million share-trading accounts. This is due to launch in 2027. In the meantime, the combination of Middle East turmoil and presidential Truth Social posts will keep trading accounts busy.
CMC reports half-year results in November.