Cryptocurrency surge propels 500 into the main market

Aim-listed online trading platform hopes listing upgrade will attract new investors

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While most online trading platforms were initially nervous about offering speculators exposure to the volatile cryptocurrency market, Plus500 had no such qualms. The Aim-listed company was among the first to offer derivatives based on bitcoin several years ago, and today offers numerous ways to invest in cryptos.

This early bet on the embryonic marketplace has paid off. As the hype around cryptocurrency gathered last year, new customers flocked to the Plus500 platform, boosting its financial performance even amid warnings from regulators that the company “specialises in toxic products”.

Nevertheless, over the past 18 months, Plus500’s shares have rocketed more than 300 per cent. Now worth nearly £2bn, the company is riding the crypto wave to London’s main market in spite of misgivings about the market from financial watchdogs. It will upgrade its listing on Tuesday as part of efforts to attract new investors, joining the ranks of long-established rivals IG Group and CMC Markets.

It is a bold move for a company that has been dogged by regulatory and reputational challenges since it was founded in Israel a decade ago. Critics argue that Plus500, a sponsor of football club Atlético de Madrid, is overly reliant on luring inexperienced traders to its platform and point to a string of regulatory hiccups. As recently as last year, the company agreed a settlement with Belgium’s financial regulator.

Its move to the main market also comes at a tough time for the online trading sector more broadly, as regulators clamp down on risky speculative products to protect amateur traders from heavy losses. Meanwhile, excitement around cryptocurrencies is dying down.

But Plus500 argues that it has matured in terms of governance and compliance as it seeks to win new investors.

When the company first floated on Aim in 2013 with a market capitalisation of about £150m, “people questioned” Plus500’s valuation, said Asaf Elimelech, chief executive. Today, he flags its recent share performance. “We have delivered to investors what we promised.”