EToro (ETOR) doubled its commitment to crypto even as digital asset activity weakened in the first quarter and into April.
Revenue from cryptoassets fell 38% from the previous quarter to $2.15 billion, the company said in its first-quarter earnings report released Tuesday. Net trading revenue from crypto derivatives fell 57% to $33.4 million, while total net income increased 37% to $82.4 million.
The trading platform said the decline in crypto activity extended into April, with the total number of crypto trades falling 32% year-on-year and the amount invested per trade fell 22%. Despite the downturn, CEO Yoni Assia expressed a bullish outlook.
“We expect later this year to start seeing crypto rise back to, you know, near all-time highs, and that will drive crypto engagement,” Assia told CNBC, adding that the platform’s data suggests that when markets fall, “retail investors on eToro are actually buying the dip.”
The company said it activated its BitLicense to begin trading in New York, three years after it was granted, and it completed the $70 million acquisition of crypto wallet provider Zengo, closed on April 30.
“The acquisition of Zengo, a leading crypto wallet self-storage provider, meaningfully advances our strategy to bridge traditional finance with on-chain infrastructure, prediction markets, perpetuities and the broader crypto ecosystem,” Assia said in the report.
Etoro stock was down 0.61% in pre-market trading on Wednesday.
