James Christopher Gundy
Group CEO & Executive Director
It’s been another busy 6 months at Braemar, and our results show the continued benefit of our diversified business model. In May, earlier this year, we presented a refreshed strategic framework with clear short- and medium-term targets to provide a road map for the future growth of the business. And I am pleased to report that we have delivered against our 1-year targets on a number of fronts.
We opened our first office in Cape Town, establishing a base in Africa that expands our global footprint to 19 offices across 13 countries. We also made some strong senior hires across the globe in what remains a competitive market. This included a new Head of Dry Cargo in Singapore and an experienced Global Head of Tanker Operations to help globalize our operations team. Complementary acquisitions continue to be actively identified and evaluated.
Alongside this, we continue to strengthen our Security business to provide further growth opportunities. In May, our U.K. Organized Trading Facility, or OTF, went live. We are also making progress with our application for an EU OTF and to operate within the Dubai International Financial Center. Our team are well placed to take advantage, building on our established positions in coal, natural gas and freight derivatives.
Grant Foley
Group CFO & Director
Our financial performance in the first half was robust against a challenging market backdrop. Group revenue was GBP 63.9 million, and underlying operating profit before acquisition-related items was GBP 5.6 million, reflecting softer chartering rates, particularly in tankers and dry cargo and a weaker U.S. dollar. Our diverse revenue streams helped offset lower Chartering
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