Naspers, which claims to be the largest primary listed company on the JSE, says it is “just getting started” with its AI-powered lifestyle ecosystem as it reports its “best results ever” in its 2026 financial year.
This ecosystem, which connects its e-commerce, payments, travel and classifieds businesses through artificial intelligence (AI), became profitable during the 2026 fiscal year to end-March.
Naspers, which derives the bulk of its income from its international Prosus arm, says the 2026 financial year was one of delivery in terms of “strong results, disciplined capital allocation and accelerating AI innovation”.
The company reported revenue of $10.8 billion, with core headline earnings – its measure of after-tax operating performance – growing 14% to $3.6 billion. The company reported core headline earnings per share of 455 US cents, up from 366 US cents the prior year.
Inside the numbers
After adjusting for last October’s 5:1 share split, core headline earnings per share rose 24%, supported by stronger operating performance across the group and higher contributions from Tencent. Free cash flow also improved substantially, from $1 billion to $1.5 billion.
Fabricio Bloisi, CEO of both Prosus and Naspers, says these results are the company’s “best ever” and the result of its AI ecosystem. Revenue substantially overshot its target of more than $7.3 billion, a figure unveiled last November when it reported its interim results.
“We said we would deliver results, innovation and discipline. We delivered all three. Prosus is much more than it was a year ago – and we are just getting started,” says Bloisi.
Peter Takaendesa, chief investment officer at Mergence Investment Managers, says Naspers and Prosus, when stripping out Tencent, delivered strong results this financial year, with strong profit growth and record free cash flow generation. Investors approved of the results, with Naspers’s shares gaining 4.33% as of mid-morning, while Prosus was up 3.51%.
Naspers, which invested $32 million in Tencent in 2001, has reduced its stake from 33.2% in 2018 to about 23% – held via Prosus – through a series of sales used to fund its open-ended share buyback programme. It says the Chinese technology giant remains the cornerstone of its portfolio and highlighted its potential to benefit from advances in agentic AI.
AI at the core
The JSE-listed company says AI was embedded across its businesses, from automating operations to powering customer-facing services, with its ToqanClaw platform now serving more than five million restaurant partners globally.
ToqanClaw is powered by its proprietary Large Commerce Model, which uses data generated across its e-commerce, payments and services businesses to train AI models that better understand customer behaviour, automate tasks and personalise services.
During a recent “Prosus Forward” presentation, Prosus said AI was no longer just a tool, but increasingly becoming the foundation of how the business operates. Rather than relying solely on internet-trained large language models, it is using proprietary commerce data to develop AI systems tailored to its own platforms and customers.
“At Naspers, we are building something fundamentally different, an AI-powered lifestyle ecosystem that gets smarter and stronger with every interaction,” says Bloisi. “Eighteen months ago, this was a vision. Today the integrated ecosystem is a reality, and it’s scaling fast. The more we grow, the greater the opportunity ahead.”
Home-grown
Locally, its Takealot Group reached full-year profitability in what Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa, group executive director of Naspers and Prosus, says is a “defining moment for South Africa’s digital economy, and proof of what long-term backing of a home-grown business can deliver”.
Takealot, South Africa’s largest online retailer, was founded in 2010 and operates an e-commerce marketplace selling millions of products, supported by a nationwide delivery network and collection points.
“In 15 years, it has built the infrastructure and trust South African e-commerce needs and today serves millions of customers while supporting tens of thousands of livelihoods,” says Mahanyele-Dabengwa.
AutoTrader has launched its AI-powered AutoTrader Intelligence platform, while Property24 has introduced AI-powered home search through ChatGPT. Mahanyele-Dabengwa says these operations are “setting the pace in local AI innovation”.
Growing and growing
Naspers is linking iFood, iFood Pago and Despegar through AI to encourage customers to use more of its services in Latin America. In India, it expanded its ecosystem through new investments in Rapido and ixigo, while integrating PayU more closely with its portfolio companies.
In Europe, it is applying the same strategy, integrating OLX and Just Eat Takeaway.com and using AI to improve customer experiences.
CFO Nico Marais says the company will deploy capital by investing in iFood and Just Eat Takeaway.com, which will strengthen its food ecosystem, continue its buyback programme and actively build Prosus Plus. “Our fundamentals are strong, our strategy is clear, and we are confident in our ability to keep delivering value for shareholders.”
Takaendesa says the company’s outlook is a bit clouded by the increasing investment required to compete in food delivery in Brazil and Europe. “The market will likely focus on how deep the investment cycle will go in financial year 2027 and if there is any evidence that the investment is yielding the intended business momentum.”
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