XTB Quarterly Profit Quadruples to PLN 213.7M, Beats Forecasts Despite Lower Trading

XTB reported a fourfold year-on-year increase in third-quarter net profit to PLN 213.7 million (about $54 million), the Warsaw-listed broker said on Wednesday. The preliminary figure exceeded the PLN 200.8 million average of five analyst forecasts by 6.4%, though it was less than half the PLN 492.2 million earned in the second quarter, a decline analysts had anticipated as markets calmed.

Revenue rose 65.9% year on year to PLN 623.3 million, even as clients traded 18.3% fewer contracts for difference (CFDs) measured in lots. XTB earned PLN 301 per lot, nearly double the PLN 152 of a year earlier, with commodity CFDs contributing 70.8% of its gross result on financial instruments.

The comparison base was weak: a year earlier, profit fell 74% to PLN 53.2 million and revenue dropped 20% amid low market volatility.

XTB quarterly profit: Revenue growth outpaces listed rivals

Among the three listed CFD providers that have reported for the July-September quarter, XTB posted the fastest revenue growth. IG Group expects revenue about 14% lower year on year after retaining a smaller share of client trading as income, while Plus500's revenue rose 11% to $203.2 million and it raised its full-year outlook. XTB's growth was about six times Plus500's, by calculation, though its revenue remained 37.2% below the PLN 992.3 million of a second quarter in which profit beat forecasts and the shares hit a record.

Commodity CFDs drive trading result

XTB said the quarter brought less activity on financial and commodity markets than the first half, with volatility staying high in commodities and markets calmer on stock indices. The slowdown had started earlier: XTB's average monthly trading volume fell 26% in the second quarter from the first, according to FM Intelligence's Broker Volumes data.

Commodity CFDs, led by gold, crude oil, natural gas and silver, generated 70.8% of the gross result on financial instruments, up from 48.5% a year earlier and 60.5% in the second quarter, FM Intelligence data show. Index CFDs fell to 12.0% from 32.4%, while stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), grouped as other instruments, rose to 12.3% from 8.3%.

Client growth and higher marketing costs

XTB added 335,704 new clients in the quarter, up 51.4% from a year earlier and slightly above the 333,292 added in the second quarter. Its client base reached 3.14 million, while active clients rose 70.3% to 1.57 million. Net deposits rose to PLN 5.65 billion from PLN 3.23 billion a year earlier, the company said.

Operating costs increased 23.2% year on year to PLN 397.6 million, mainly because marketing spending rose by PLN 45.8 million to PLN 187.3 million. Costs fell by PLN 22.1 million from the second quarter as online marketing was cut.

After the quarter closed, XTB began what it calls its biggest advertising campaign on October 1, featuring footballer Zlatan Ibrahimović and boxer Tyson Fury on four continents. The company said it signed up more than 100,600 new clients in the first 27 days of October, against its goal of an average of 250,000 to 290,000 a quarter in 2026. It still expects 2026 operating costs up to about 30% higher than in 2025, with marketing up about 50%.

Nine-month profit nearly double full-year 2025

For the first nine months, net profit reached PLN 1.24 billion, against PLN 463.3 million a year earlier and PLN 644.2 million for all of 2025. The first half had already brought a record 703,333 new clients, though CFDs generated 96% of the trading result.

The Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) said in August that its review of how firms sell CFDs to Polish clients was still open.

XTB will discuss the figures at a results conference on Thursday and publish its full quarterly report on November 20.