Euroclear’s fund assets under custody increased 10 percent, according to its H1 results.
The results, released on 16 July, reported strategic initiatives and strong market conditions drove “excellent performance” in H1 2018.
Euroclear found operating costs were stable at €390 million, despite ongoing investments in regulatory initiatives, cyber security and corporate evolutions.
Expectations were unchanged regarding full year costs that were slightly lower than the prior year.
Operating income increased 8 percent to €670 million compared to H1 last year, however, value of securities held on behalf of Euroclear clients increased by 3 percent to €29.2 trillion.
Turnover, the value of securities transactions processed, was up by 7 percent to €394 trillion.
Banking and other income increased by 39 percent to €128 million, led by higher interest rates.
Euroclear also reported a net profit—an increase of 29 percent year-on-year, to €192 million.
According to Euroclear, this was due to good levels of operating performance, coupled with a slightly lower tax rate in Belgium following recent reforms.
Commenting on the results, Lieve Mostrey, CEO of Euroclear, said: “Euroclear has delivered another strong set of financial results. Business drivers, helped by market conditions and combined with our focus on managing costs, have driven an excellent first half performance.”
She added: “Euroclear is fully committed to delivering long-term performance and sustainable value for the benefit of all our stakeholders. As a network business at the heart of the capital markets ecosystem, we have a strong core franchise that we continue to evolve and innovate in line with the changing needs of our clients, and we are confident that we will deliver our strategy.”
