Interactive Brokers posts a 14% drop in DARTs to 1.765 million

Interactive Brokers has reported a significant decline in the Daily Average Revenue Trades (DARTs). The electronic trading platform reported that DARTs dropped by 14% to 1.765 million in April 2023.

Interactive Brokers reports a 14% drop in DARTS in April 2023

In March 2023, Interactive Brokers reported 2.055 million DARTs, a 3% decline from the previous month. The figure reported in April was also lower than reported during the same period last year.

The electronic trading platform also reported that in April 2023, the average daily trades that generated fees or commissions dropped by 20%. In April, the number of accounts interacting with Interactive Brokers increased by 1% to 2.22 million. However, this metric was a 20% increase compared to April last year.

The amount of funds clients held in their trading accounts at Interactive Brokers at the end of April 2023 reached $342.1 billion. The figure was nearly the same as what was reported the previous month. However, the ending client equity had jumped by 5% compared to the same period last year.

The ending client margin loan balance, the money owed to the company by clients using leverage trades, came in at $39.5 billion, nearly the same as the company reported in March. However, this figure was a 16% drop compared to April last year.

The ending client credit balances for April 2023 came in at $99.2 billion, representing a gain of 3% compared to the previous month and a 9% increase compared to April 2022. This balance comprises $2.4 billion worth of insured bank deposit sweeps.

The broker also added that it generated an average commission of $3.18 for every cleared commissionable order. The amount includes exchange, clearing, and regulatory fees. The broker also provided a breakdown, explaining that it generated average commissions of $2.02 for every cleared commissionable order on stocks. Each order had an average of 1,105 shares.

The broker’s equity options and futures products had an average order size of 6.8 and 3.2 contracts, respectively. The average commission for equity options was $4.64, while the one for futures was $4.25 per cleared commissionable order.

Interactive Brokers posts record revenues

Interactive Brokers also posted record revenues of $1.05 billion in the first three months of 2023, an increase from the $976 million reported at the end of 2022. The adjusted figure reached $1.01 billion, an increase from $958 million reported towards the end of 2022.

The adjusted earnings per share reported by the trading platform gained from $1.30 per share during the previous quarter to $1.35 in Q1 2023, which failed to meet market estimates by around $0.06.

In early April, Interactive Brokers added Wise payment to its clients. In February, the trading platform became the first to offer algorithmic trading in Taiwan. The platform also launched Stock Yield Enhancement Programme (SYEP) Derivatives for its traders in Australia. The service was later halted by Australia’s financial regulator in March.