AltFi Fintech Index surges jumps 12 per cent in one week

The AltFi Fintech Index saw its second best week of 2023 last week with a return of 11.23 per cent. 

Between 30 October and 3 November, the index leapt almost twice the S&P 500’s 6 per cent rally. 

One of the best performers in the AltFi Fintech Index over this period was Lemonade which jumped nearly 50 per cent in one week off the back of improving the outlook for the digital insurance company as it aims for profitability.

The company wasn’t the only constituent of the AltFi Fintech Index to see good numbers this results season with SoFi jumping nearly 10 per cent last week, for example.

Much of the gains will likely relate to the improving macroeconomic mood after interest rates looked set to stabilise after the FOMC left US interest rates unchanged.

“Last week was one of the best on recent record for both stock and bonds. The S&P 500 gained nearly 6 per cent, erasing more than half of its correction (-11 per cent), while the US 10y Treasury gained 2 per cent and the 30y gained 4 per cent, now trading at 4.6 per cent and 4.7 per cent respectively,” George Lagarias, chief economist at Mazars said.

"The ostensible catalyst was the Fed’s second-in-a-row rate pause, accompanied by a commentary which led markets to believe that the US central bank is done with rate hikes for this cycle –and that we could possibly see rate cuts at some point mid-next year (we’ll get back to that).  A slightly-below-expectations labour market number on Friday helped further fuel those hopes,” he added.

Zip, one the index's worst performers in 2023 also had a big bounceback last week with its shares rising nearly 40 per cent. The ASX-listed 'buy now, pay later' (BNPL) platform was the AltFi Fintech Index’s biggest 2023 faller at the end of Q3.

The AltFi Fintech Index's best week in 2023 occurred between 6 July and 13 July when it popped 11.8 per cent.