FTSE 250 movers: Vesuvius craters, Plus500 scores on licence win
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,371 -1.08% at 1515 GMT.
Online trading platform Plus500 said on Monday that it has secured a licence from the Dubai Financial Services Authority in "the significant and high growth market" of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Plus500 said the new licence, effective immediately, offers a "major" growth opportunity for the company by allowing it to expand its offering to customers across the UAE.
Chief executive David Zruia said: "We are delighted to have received licence authorisation from the DFSA in the UAE and we are excited to bring our market-leading technology capabilities to customers in the region. This is the latest realisation of our strategy to enter new markets, develop new products, and deepen engagement with our customers.”
He noted that since 2020, the company has successfully obtained licences in the US, Japan, Estonia, the Seychelles and the UAE, including through acquisitions.
Molten metal flow engineering and technology firm Vesuvius said it had been hit by a cyber attack involving “unauthorised access” to its systems.
“Immediately upon becoming aware of unauthorised activity on our networks, we have taken the necessary steps to investigate and respond to the incident, including shutting down affected systems,” the company said on Monday.
We are working with leading cyber security experts to support our investigations and identify the extent of the issue, including the impact on production and contract fulfilment.
“We are taking steps to comply with all relevant regulatory obligations in light of the information that emerges from our ongoing investigations.”
Just Group said on Monday that under IFRS 17 accounting standards, it remains committed to targeting 15% growth in underlying operating profit a year over the medium term.
In an update on the new accounting standards issued for insurers, which kicked in last month, the company said its target to deliver a greater than 10% return on equity will also continue under IFRS 17.
There will be no chance in strategy, growth ambition, capital, cash or dividend policy, it said.
"IFRS 17 is an accounting change and does not affect the underlying economics of our business or our strategy," it said.
The company - which specialises in retirement products and services - said it expects shareholder value to be broadly unchanged. The capital strength of the new group remains unchanged, along with its new and existing business cashflows. The dividend policy and the group’s creditworthiness are also unchanged.
Virgin Money was hit by downgrade to ‘equalweight’ at Barclays.
FTSE 250 - Risers
Fidelity Special Values (FSV) 288.00p 0.00%
FDM Group (Holdings) (FDM) 843.00p 0.00%
Sequoia Economic Infrastructure Income Fund Limited (SEQI) 86.80p 0.00%
Serco Group (SRP) 151.40p 0.00%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 2,836.00p 0.00%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 171.00p 0.00%
IP Group (IPO) 66.10p 0.00%
The European Smaller Companies Trust (ESCT) 168.00p 0.00%
Savills (SVS) 1,045.00p 0.00%
Spirent Communications (SPT) 228.40p 0.00%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
ASOS (ASC) 916.00p 0.00%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 245.40p 0.00%
Digital 9 Infrastructure NPV (DGI9) 86.90p 0.00%
Schroder Oriental Income Fund Ltd. (SOI) 277.50p 0.00%
AVI Global Trust (AGT) 201.00p 0.00%
CLS Holdings (CLI) 159.20p 0.00%
Genus (GNS) 2,892.00p 0.00%
JPMorgan Global Growth & Income (JGGI) 472.50p 0.00%
Law Debenture Corp. (LWDB) 837.00p 0.00%
Molten Ventures (GROW) 376.40p 0.00%