What happened
Shares of Silvergate Capital (SI 2.50%) traded more than 14% higher as of 2:05 p.m. EDT, after the bank reported stellar earnings for the second quarter of the year.
So what
The bank, which helps facilitate transactions between institutional traders and crypto exchanges through its Silvergate Exchange Network (SEN), reported diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.80, up 65% from the previous quarter and 283% from the second quarter of 2020. Both EPS and revenue of $42.5 million in the quarter smashed expectations from analysts.
The bank grew net interest income by 32% from the previous quarter and nearly 90% year over year, due to higher securities levels and growth in its specialized lending product, SEN Leverage, which is a line of credit in U.S. dollars collateralized by Bitcoin. Silvergate also grew digital currency fee income by $4 million in the quarter, and overall had more than $12 million in fee income in the quarter, its most ever.
Silvergate Capital added another 120 customers to SEN, and while total transactions declined in the quarter, total transaction volume reached nearly $240 billion in the quarter, up roughly 45% from the previous quarter.
Image source: Getty Images.
Now what
I think what was so impressive about the results is that Silvergate had record profits while the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies struggled in the second quarter. Silvergate seems to have traded more or less in line with Bitcoin recently, so its great to see such a phenomenal quarter without having to rely on a surge in Bitcoin.
While the stock may still be impacted by the price of Bitcoin right now, I definitely like the fundamentals behind the business and see a bright future long term.
