Recent rumors have surfaced about significant layoffs at Futu Holdings, a prominent brokerage firm. A social media post claimed that Futu plans to cut 40%-60% of its workforce by the end of the year, attributing the move to strategic direction changes. The post mentioned that affected employees would receive minimal severance and no year-end bonuses. An employee corroborated the abrupt nature of the layoffs, noting colleagues were unexpectedly called into meetings and subsequently left the company.
Efforts to verify these claims with Futu and the original poster have not yielded any responses. Despite the layoff rumors, Futu reported robust financial results for the third quarter of 2024. The company achieved a total revenue of HKD 3.436 billion (approximately USD 442 million), marking a 29.6% increase year-over-year. Under Non-GAAP measures, net profit reached HKD 1.398 billion (around USD 180 million), a 20.8% rise compared to the previous year.
Futu's user base continues to grow, with registered users on its platforms Futu NiuNiu and moomoo reaching 24.12 million, a 14.4% increase. The number of clients with accounts rose to 4.28 million, up by 22.8%, and clients with assets increased to 2.2 million, a 33.1% growth. In the third quarter alone, the number of new clients with assets surged by 138% to 154,000.
Founder and CEO Li Hua attributed the platform's increased activity to strong U.S. stock performance and rising Chinese assets. He anticipates adding over 550,000 new paying clients in 2024. Furthermore, CFO Chen Yu announced a special dividend of USD 2 per American Depositary Share (ADS), totaling USD 280 million, to celebrate the company's fifth anniversary on NASDAQ.
