Online brokerage firm Tiger Brokers posts first quarterly Non-GAAP profit since listing

AUCKLAND, New Zealand, Nov. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Tiger Brokers (listed as "UP Fintech Holding Limited" NASDAQ: TIGR), a leading online brokerage firm focusing on global Chinese investors, posted its first quarterly Non-GAAP profit as a listed company, driven by a sharp rise in interest-related income and business line diversification.

According to the latest unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2019, the firm's total revenues were US$15.3 million, up 67 percent year-on-year. The Non-GAAP net income of the company was US$0.7 million, as compared to a Non-GAAP net loss of US$2.8 million in the same period last year, which means on Non-GAAP basis, the company has achieved its first quarterly profit since going public, marking a major milestone towards long-term profitability.

"We are pleased to report that our company delivered strong growth in the third quarter of 2019," said Tianhua Wu, CEO of Tiger Brokers. "Interest-related income in this quarter nearly quadrupled over the same period of last year to US$7.0 million. Net interest accounts for 40% of net revenue this quarter while same period last year only accounted for 20% of net revenue. Commission only contributed 45% of net revenue this quarter while last quarter was 78%, which indicates the company has started to diversify its revenue source and become less reliant on trading commission."

Statistics in the financial report also pointed out that, as of September 30, the overall number of Tiger's customer accounts reached approximately 607,000, up 33% year-on-year, and the total account balance reached about US$3.8 billion, up 47% compared to the same period last year.

Other revenues reached US$2.1 million, an increase of 1259.7% from US$0.2 million in the third quarter of 2018. "The increase was spurred by the increased revenue generated from IPO distribution services, promotional services and employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) administration services," said Tianhua Wu.

On October 16, 2019, the company received approval for conducting new businesses, including underwriting, private placements, mergers and acquisitions, mutual fund retailing, as well as selling group participant services from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). This will help the company expand its global capabilities to keep up with increasing demand for capital markets services, such as those from Chinese ADR issuers, and will allow Tiger to commence providing underwriter or selling group participant services, private placements of securities, M&A advisory services, including fairness opinions, and mutual fund retailer services in the U.S.

As of now, the company has obtained 21 various licenses in the United States, Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and Hong Kong SAR.

"The third quarter was notable for Tiger as we reached several milestones in our international expansion and completed a key acquisition," said Tianhua Wu. "We have begun to onboard clients in New Zealand and also obtained a capital markets services license in Singapore; we look forward to providing Singapore clients access to global markets through our award winning Fintech platform, Tiger Trade, very soon."

About UP Fintech Holding Limited

UP Fintech Holding Limited, commonly known as Tiger Brokers in Asia, is a leading online brokerage firm focusing on global Chinese investors. The company's proprietary mobile and online trading platform enables investors to trade in equities and other financial instruments on multiple exchanges around the world. The company offers innovative products and services as well as a superior user experience to customers through its "mobile first" strategy, which enables it to better serve and retain current customers as well as attract new ones. The company offers customers comprehensive brokerage and value-added services, including trade order placement and execution, margin financing, IPO subscription, ESOP management, investor education, community discussion and customer support. The company's proprietary infrastructure and advanced technology are able to support trades across multiple currencies, multiple markets, multiple products, multiple execution venues and multiple clearinghouses.