JDC Group AG (DE:A8AG) has completed a refocusing of its core financial services advice and sales offering over the past two years so as to position the group for growth. The group has wholeheartedly adopted a digital strategy to meet the demands of end-customers for a better, more efficient and more convenient service, to support its broker pool members to do the same, and has created a platform from which to profitably consolidate existing contract portfolios in an IFA market that is expected to shrink.
Meeting the challenges head on
Alongside its direct-to-customer, high net worth advice and sales offering, JDC operates one of the largest broker pools in Germany. Subdued end-customer activity, increasing regulation and internet-based competition has pressured the traditional broking sector and many individual IFAs are expected to leave the market in coming years. JDC has remodelled and digitalised its offering so as to combat these pressures and build on its existing strong market presence. Its digitalised sales and administration support to IFAs and their end-customers is aimed at organically growing end-customer activity and attracting more of the remaining IFAs to the JDC pool. Crucially, JDC has built a solid platform to support the profitable consolidation of contract portfolios from exiting IFAs.
Management guides to continuing strong progress
Accretive acquisitions of contract portfolios in 2016 are significantly driving growth, although organic measures of customer activity (new brokers joining the pool and transfers of customer contracts onto the JDC platform) are also positive. Q117 revenues grew 14% y-o-y with profitability sharply improved. Management guides to double-digit revenue growth and a doubling of EBITDA with further gains in 2018.
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