BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - As expected, the financial services provider Hypoport has made a recovery start to the current year thanks to an upturn in real estate finance and gains in market share. The company, which is listed on the SDax, announced in Berlin on Thursday that the volume of finance brokered via its Europace platform had increased by a double-digit percentage year on year in the first quarter for the first time since the collapse of the real estate finance market. Overall, the brokered volume on Europace climbed by 11.6 percent to 18.4 billion euros. In particular, business with savings banks and cooperative banks grew strongly. Following the growth in the first three months, CEO Ronald Slabke confirmed the annual targets. "We see our forecast of a noticeable upturn in the market in 2024 as a whole confirmed by the successful first quarter."/zb/mis