Prism Holdings, the JSE-listed secure electronic payment technology and services provider, has for the first time generated most of its revenue offshore.
<B>Figures at a glance</B>
Prism Holdings results for the year to 30 June 2001
Previous year`s figures in parentheses:
Revenue: R314.64m (R131.45m)
Operating profit before depreciation and amortisation: R81.97m (R38.37m)
Attributable profit: R55.51m (R37.93m)
HEPS: 32.7c (16.1c)
Current assets: R206.85m (R116.24m)
Current liabilities: R123.84m (R36.08m)
Cash resources: R34.75m (R29.27m)
Net cash inflow from operating activities: R30.23m (-R2.53m)
The group has reported a 103% growth in headline earnings per share for the year to 30 June 2001, making it the sixth consecutive year that it has increased headline earnings by more than 100%.
CEO Alvin Els says 62% of the revenue of R314.6 million was generated outside of SA, reflecting the significant international expansion undertaken by the group.
"Only 38% of revenues were generated in SA, with the balance being hard currency-based revenue - US dollar and UK sterling - from the Asia-Pacific region (43%), Europe (17%) and the Africa-Middle East region (2%)," he adds.
Revenue growth of 139% was achieved despite competitive pressure in a slowing global economy, and an operating margin of 24% before amortisation reflects a strong contribution from proprietary intellectual property and significant penetration into the mobile commerce arena.
"These results should be seen as just the second step of a long process towards our goal of achieving global reach for Prism technologies and services in the secure payments space," Els says.
"Particularly gratifying is the fact that these financial results have been achieved against a backdrop of difficult trading conditions for IT vendors, and a global economic slowdown that has hurt some of Prism`s major customers.
"Our strategies, target markets and ongoing development of competitive intellectual property, position the group well for international expansion."
The company spent R217.7 million on acquisitions and settlement of prior-year acquisitions. It raised R137.9 million in the SA market for the purchases, while the balance was funded through working capital and short-term loans.
Els says the investments in bill payment and transaction service entities PayShop in the UK and Portugal, and the Telekom Malaysia joint ventures have proved valuable, with further technology orders placed on Prism and both businesses becoming fully operational in the first half of the 2002 financial year after successful controlled live testing.
LinkData has continued to generate strong recurring service revenues in Malaysia, while the acquisition of the security module and intelligent phone card terminal divisions of Nanoteq bolstered Prism`s position in Africa.
SJF has been integrated into the group`s business-to-business development initiative.
Looking ahead, Els says the revenue pipeline for the 2002 financial year is substantially more visible than at the start of any previous year.
"Despite technology market disappointments, growing demand for secure commerce across all available electronic transacting channels still underpins Prism`s growth expectations.
"Network operators are looking for ways to extract value from 2G and 2.5G licences through value-added services that Prism technology enables.
"Consistent, secure payment options across multiple channels are being demanded in First and Third World economies where convenience and security considerations are both very relevant. Prism has the capability to deliver on these needs in SA, in Southeast Asia, across Africa and the Middle East, and into Europe."
The Prism share was unchanged at 290c on the JSE at noon today.
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