Futu Holdings Limited (“Futu” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: FUTU), a leading tech-driven online brokerage and wealth management platform that provides investment services through its proprietary digital platforms Futubull and moomoo, today announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021.
The financial results show that Futu secured a solid performance in the fourth quarter, with a revenue of US$205.5 million and a Non-GAAP adjusted net income of US$68.4 million.
Revenues continued to grow, with brokerage commission and handling charge income up 19.3% to US$109.9 million, interest income up 83.3% to US$79.2 million, and other income (including wealth management and corporate services) slightly down 2.2% to US$16.4 million on a year-over-year basis.
As of year end, Futu revenues totaled US$912.3 million, up 114.9% year-over-year, and Non-GAAP adjusted net income was US$373.0 million, up 113.3% year-over-year.
As of quarter end, users of Futu’s two proprietary digital platforms, moomoo and Futubull, exceeded 17.40 million, up 45.8% year-over-year. They cover more than 200 countries and regions worldwide; the number of registered clients grew to 2.75 million, up 93.8% year-over-year; the number of paying clients reached 1.24 million, up 140.8% year-over-year. The company also maintained a high quarterly client retention rate of 97%.
What is noteworthy is that Futu exceeded its full-year paying client guidance by adding approximately 728,000 paying clients in 2021. In the fourth quarter, around 90% of new paying clients came from Hong Kong SAR, the US and Singapore. Quarter-end client assets reached US$52.3 billion, up 43.0% year-over-year.
In addition, Futu’s total trading volume was US$157.2 billion in the fourth quarter and US$787 billion for the full year, approximately 1.77 times the 2020 volume. Daily Average Revenue Trades (“DARTs”) reached 543,806, up 17.6% year-over-year.
HK Paying Clients Increased by Over 100% YoY for 7 Consecutive Quarters
Having established itself in Hong Kong, Futu is a tech-driven digital fintech company that delivers unparalleled investing services through its proprietary digital platforms, Futubull and moomoo to investors worldwide.
In Hong Kong, Futu continued to reinforce its position as the leading retail brokerage with a robust increase in market share recent years. In the fourth quarter, the number of paying clients in Hong Kong grew by 108.7% year-over-year, achieving triple-digit growth for the seventh consecutive quarter. Futu is not only popular among young investors, but also gradually gains traction among mature investors, making it the top-of-mind platform trusted by investors of all ages in Hong Kong. Among paying clients in Hong Kong, those aged 40 or above accounted for more than 30%.
Futubull Community stays the second-largest social investing community in Hong Kong in terms of active users and UGC content, leading the social investment trend. Based on trading day data in 2021, an average Hong Kong user spent as long as 38.4 minutes on the Futubull app. On an average trading day, there were 368,000 active Hong Kong users in the online Community, and 120,000 pieces of UGC content were produced.
moomoo Gained Market Share Steadily in the US and Singapore
In the fourth quarter, moomoo further increased its visibility in markets such as the US and Singapore, and won wide recognition among investors with its unique user experience and excellent customer service.
In the US, moomoo has become a popular tech-driven brokerage platform for local investors, with the number of users soaring and its local market share gradually expanding. In the fourth quarter, moomoo won the “2021 Best Active Trading App” award by Investing Simple, and was also named the “2021 Best for Active Traders” by Benzinga, a well-known US financial website.
In Singapore, moomoo’s market share grew to record high. According to Population Pyramid’s Population of Singapore 2021 data, the number of moomoo users in Singapore as of the fourth quarter has accounted for 1/10 of Singapore’s adult population over the age of 20. moomoo further penetrated among high-income and well-educated people in Singapore, and the asset management scale under Futu in Singapore increased by 25.7% quarter-over-quarter.
moomoo has been committed to helping investors enrich their investment knowledge since its inception. As of the fourth quarter, more than 300 investing videos and infographic courses have been launched on the moomoo App and website, covering stocks, options, funds, and other financial instruments in catering diversified learning objectives.
At present, moomoo has become the pioneer in promoting financial literacy in Singapore, and has established cooperation with more than 30 local financial institutions, unicorn companies, and universities to jointly enhance public awareness of gaining financial and investing knowledge. In the fourth quarter, moomoo joined hands with the Singapore Exchange, SAFRA, Nasdaq, etc., to hold online seminars in encouraging new generation to pick up financial management knowledge and skills.
In the United States, moomoo also cooperated with the financial website Finder.com to roll out stock trading tutorial videos and articles to preparing beginners to advanced level, which has won wide praise from American users.
With Australian Financial Services Licence Acquired, Futu Now Holds 44 Licences Worldwide
In the fourth quarter, Futu announced that it had successfully acquired an Australian-based company, Futu Securities (Australia) Ltd. Futu Securities (Australia) Ltd holds an Australian Financial Services License (“AFSL”). The AFSL is a license granted and regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and with AFSL, Futu Securities (Australia) Ltd is now qualified to provide one-stop online brokerage services to local investors. Australia is the third international market that moomoo enters after the US and Singapore.
As of quarter end, Futu and its subsidiaries hold 44 licenses in the US, Hong Kong SAR, Singapore, Australia, and Europe markets.
Fund investors Increased by 231% Year-over-Year
In the fourth quarter, Futu’s another promising business, wealth management, maintained a rapid growth trend and the asset under management reached HK$18.8 billion (approximately US$2.41 billion), a year-over-year increase of 83.5%. The penetration rate of investors who currently hold fund units and investors who have subscribed to funds both achieved new records. As of quarter-end, the number of investors who hold fund units was 140,000, a year-over-year increase of 231.0%.
In the fourth quarter, AUM of private investment funds in Q4 continued to expand by 621.0% year-over-year and by 120.3% on a quarter-over-quarter basis.
Since its launch, Futu’s wealth management brand Money Plus has always adhered to highly quantitative fund selection methodology, continued to establish and strengthen cooperation with world-renowned financial institutions, and provided diverse and high-quality fund products for global clients. As of quarter end, 60 prestigious financial institutions have partnered with Futu Money Plus, of which 4 were newly onboared in the fourth quarter, including Fidelity International, AXA Investment Managers, and Natixis Investment Managers.
In the Singapore market, Futu has won the favor of numerous investors with a series of selected fund products and customized services. As of quarter end, Futu Singapore Pte. Ltd. (“Futu Singapor”) has entered partnerships with 20 world-class financial institutions, and fund AUM and the number of fund investors have increased by more than 400% quarter-over-quarter.
IPO Distributions and IR Service Corporate Clients Up 125% Year-over-Year
As a well-versed industry player in providing enterprise services such as IPO distribution, IR and PR services, and one-stop ESOP equity incentive programs through its corporate business brand Futu I&E, Futu has become the go-to choice for numerous companies worth over HK$100 billion.
As of quarter end, Futu had provided IPO distribution and IR services for 236 companies, a year-over-year increase of 124.8%. In the fourth quarter, Futu participated in a number of sought-after Hong Kong IPOs such as SenseTime, SF Intra-City, ANE Inc., and MicroPort MedBot. Among the newly listed companies in Hong Kong in 2021, all of which with a market cap of over HK$100 billion chose to cooperate with Futu I&E. Futu I&E IPO and IR service execution excellence was recognized by more and more industry leaders, with its brand and reputation further sustained.
Also, Futu’s IPO distribution business in Singapore made new progress. Futu Singapore was entrusted by Nikko Asset Management and served as one of its participating dealers for the listing of NikkoAM- StraitsTrading MSCI China Electric Vehicles And Future Mobility ETF on the Singapore Exchange. The ETF subscription amount via Futu Singapore ranked the first among retail brokers.
As of quarter end, Futu Enterprise Services had served 400 ESOP clients, a year-over-year increase of 151.6%. Clients include industry leaders in consumption, healthcare, cutting-edge technologies, TMT, and other sectors, such as HEYTEA, Zihaiguo, AInnovation, Advanced Manufacturing EDA and HuiGene Therapeutics.
Drawing upon more than 17 million individual investors and an active community ecology, Futu has successfully attracted over 800 companies to open an enterprise page. Among them, well-known public companies such as Hang Lung Properties, MicroPort Medbot, Xinyi Solar Holdings, China Feihe joined in the fourth quarter. Through the moomoo and Futubull communities, Futu has built a bridge of communications between listed companies and individual investors, promoting mutual understanding and positive interactions between the two sides.
