A return to organic growth lifts operating margin to 17.4% of turnover, at the top of the range announced on the 30th January, 2008

Positive signs for 2008

Paris, March 10, 2008 - The Board of Directors of GL TRADE has approved the Group's accounts for 2007.

A stronger than expected return to growth in 2007

After a transitional year in 2006, GL TRADE has broken through the symbolic level of €200m in turnover.  The Group generated 7% organic growth at constant exchange rates, ahead of the 5% target set at the beginning of the year.

The acquisitions made over the course of the year more than made up for the disposal, at end-2006, of the non-strategic Fermat distribution business.  They supplemented organic growth to help the Group report total turnover growth of 10%, despite the weakness of the dollar and of Asian currencies against the euro.  At constant exchange rates, turnover would have grown by more than 13%.

An increase in organic growth was one of the main targets for the whole Group throughout the year.  The performance obtained was, to a large extent, the fruit of the structure put in place at the end of 2006.  The full-matrix structure, organized by region and by product line, is better adapted to the Group's market and more tightly concentrated on its marketing and production targets.  The structure is backed by an ever richer product offering, spanning from Front to Back Office and covering all asset classes.

As a continuation of the strategy pursued for several years now, the acquisitions made in 2007 added to organic growth.  They helped enrich the Group's offering of Front to Back products for multiple asset classes and to strengthen its international presence. 

The acquisition of FNX, effective since March 1st, 2007, strengthened GL TRADE's position in the USA and Asia, in the fields of Capital Markets and Risk Management Solutions (FNX had 2007 turnover of €11.5m, with €9.7m consolidated over 10 months).  The acquisition on 1st July of Swiss company Infotech, which specializes in the distribution of market data and financial information, mainly in Switzerland and the UK, has complemented GL TRADE's existing businesses in this field.  This company had a 2007 turnover of €13.1m, of which €6.8m was consolidated over 6 months.  Decision Software, a US company specializing in bond management solutions, was acquired on 15th November 2007.  It had a 2007 turnover of €3.2m, with €0.3m consolidated over one and a half months.

Controlled profitability

As in every previous year, profitability remains a priority for GL TRADE.  Thanks to efficient management of resources, productivity gains in more mature business areas are re-invested in the expansion and enhancement of the Group's products and in its acquisitions.  The Group's goal is to maximize turnover growth whilst maintaining an operating margin (before goodwill) of between 17% and 18% of turnover.

Current operating profit, before amortization of goodwill, was €35.4m, or 17.4% of turnover (from 17.8% in 2006), in line with the targets the group had set for itself.  This margin was affected by the profits at businesses acquired over the course of 2007, where margins have not yet been brought up to GL TRADE's usual standards.  Excluding acquisitions [Nyfix Overseas, FNX, Infotech and DS], the Group's margin was 20.8% (from 18.4% in 2006).

Net financial charges increase by €0.5m.  The Group's debt increased by €24m to finance acquisitions, resulting in a €1m increase in interest costs; this was partly offset by a reduction in foreign exchange losses from €0.8m in 2006 to €0.2m in 2007.  The sale of the non-strategic business, of distributing the Fermat product, generated an additional net profit of €1.8m.

Net profit was 22% higher at €23.8m.

Earnings per share were also up 22% at €2.47.

Outlook:  Positive signs for 2008

In 2007, the GL TRADE Group returned to organic growth whilst also stepping up the pace of acquisitions.  Its performance was better than it had expected, and the signs for 2008 are good.  Its sales activity, which is not directly affected by the sub-prime crisis, means that it can set a target of 10% organic growth, with an operating margin of 18% without any new acquisition.

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A meeting to present 2007 results and 2008 prospects will be held on Wednesday, March 19th 2008 at 4:00pm at GL TRADE, 46 rue Notre Dame des Victoires, 75002, Paris, in the Salle Antilles.

Forthcoming events

First quarter turnover 2008:  13th May 2008.

About GL TRADE

GL TRADE provides the international financial institutions with multi-asset software solutions to cover the entire order flow from the front to the back office for the buy and sell side: Trading & Order Management, Connectivity to 140 markets, Execution Management System, Treasury and Risk Management, Settlement, Network and Market Data. Headquartered in Paris, GL TRADE has presence in 26 cities worldwide and employs more than 1,400 people. GL TRADE is listed on Euronext Paris (ISIN FR 0000072084) and is part of SBF 250. GL TRADE also joined Next economy segment. Additional information about GL TRADE at www.gltrade.com.