Plus500(LSE: PLUS) posted$242.1 million in revenue for the first quarter, up 18% year-over-year, andtold investors to expect full-year 2026 revenue and EBITDA to come in ahead ofcurrent market expectations. TheLondon-listed multi-asset broker said higher customer engagement, a shifttoward higher-value client cohorts and continued growth in its US futures andprediction markets operations drove a quarter-on-quarter revenue jump of 24%.Singapore Summit: Meet the largestAPAC brokers you know (and those you still don't!)Plus500 Q1 Revenue Climbs18%EBITDAreached $95.7 million, up 19% on the quarter and2% on the year, for a 40% margin. The company said the modest year-on-yearEBITDA figure reflected a deliberate $16 million increase in customeracquisition spending, alongside roughly $4 million in additional paymentprocessing costs tied to record deposits, which totaled $1.8 billion in thequarter. Cash on hand slipped to over $780 million from $801.6 million atyear-end.The outlookupgrade reverses the tone from the same quarter last year, when Plus500 reported a 16% drop in new customer sign-upsand a 5% year-over-year revenue decline, though the company still liftedguidance then on a quarter-on-quarter basis. This time the numbers are pointingin the same direction across the board.Customer Income HitsFive-Year HighThestandout figure from the trading update was customer income of $270.6 million,a metric Plus500 describes as a leading indicator of client activity on itsplatforms. The number was 53% higher than a year earlier and the highestquarterly reading since 2021, a period that captured the pandemic-era retailtrading boom. Customertrading performance came in at negative $38.9 million, meaning clients mademoney on the Group's book, which Plus500 said it expects to even out over time."CustomerIncome reached a five-year record high in Q1 2026, driven by the continuedexecution of our strategic shift toward higher-value customers, as well asheightened market volatility," CEO David Zruia said in the statement.Total customer deposits of $1.8 billion marked a record for any quarter at thefirm.ARPUslipped 3% to $1,535, which the company attributed to the higher weighting ofnewly acquired customers in the quarter. Average user acquisition cost fell 5%quarter-over-quarter and 1% year-over-year to $1,196, even with the step-up inmarketing spend.US Business Revenue Climbs45%, Prediction Markets Go LivePlus500'sUS arm, built around its2021 purchase of Cunningham Commodities, generated about $35 million inrevenue in the quarter, up 21% sequentially and 45% compared with the sameperiod a year earlier. The business now accounts for roughly 15% of grouprevenue and 18% of new customers, with customer funds in the non-OTC booktopping $900 million at the end of 2025.The companylaunched a retail-facingprediction markets platform in the US in February, distributing eventcontracts issued by Kalshi under the Plus500 Futures brand. A next-generationversion with an expanded product suite is planned for the second quarter.Plus500 also continues to act as the clearing partner for the CME Group and FanDuelevent-contracts venture, which went live earlier this year.Zruia saidthe Group expects to announce "additional strategic partnerships"across its B2B futures and prediction markets businesses in the short to mediumterm, without providing specifics.Board Signals Higher FYNumbers, Stock Still Below February Peak"Reflectingthe strong momentum across the business and our growing, increasinglydiversified global footprint, the Board expects FY 2026 revenue and EBITDA tobe ahead of current market expectations," Zruia added. Plus500 didnot quantify the uplift relative to consensus. The company delivered $792.4million in revenue and $348.1 million in EBITDA for full-year 2025.Plus500shares have traded off their February highs after the company's three topexecutives, including Zruia and CFO Elad Even-Chen, sold a combined £67.1million of stock in a block trade days after the launch of a $100million buyback, triggering a 10% intraday drop. The stockis still up more than 200% since the start of 2024, supported by capitalreturns totaling roughly $2.9 billion in dividends and buybacks since the 2013IPO.This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.