The Group expects to report revenue of £195.6m, an increase of 25% from £156.7m reported in the comparative period. Excluding the Group's Sports business, which was closed during the period, the Group achieved like-for-like revenue growth of 28%. This strong growth in the Group's financial business was driven by a 15% increase in active clients and an 11% increase in revenue per client.
Equity market volatility spiked up sharply in early August before settling back somewhat, while remaining higher than in the previous year. Trading conditions during Q2 were less exceptional than those in August, which was a record revenue month for the Group. Revenue in the second quarter for the Group's financial business was up 26%, driven by a 13% increase in active clients and an 11% increase in revenue per client.
The Group's underlying performance was again driven by continued growth in the UK as well as strong growth in revenue and active client numbers in its international markets of Europe, Australia and Rest of the World.
PBT margin for the period was ahead of the previous financial year, reflecting that costs, other than performance related bonuses, are largely fixed in the short term. Management considers that investment in IT and marketing capability has played a significant part in the growth of both active clients and revenue per client in the current period and that continued investment will further drive long term growth. The Group is therefore currently recruiting in both IT and marketing and the impact of this investment will result in a full year margin closer to that achieved in the prior year.
