(Alliance News) - Network International Holdings PLC on Monday said its profit fell sharply in 2020 but it has experienced an improvement in demand toward the year-end.
The FTSE250-listed payments solutions provider said revenue for 2020 declined by 15% year-on-year to USD284.8 million, with profit from continuing operations falling by 90% to USD5.6 million. Pretax profit for the year was down to USD10.3 million from USD64.0 million year-on-year.
Network International noted that its performance was hurt by the Covid-19 pandemic, but said it ended the year with positive momentum across both business lines. Merchant Solutions revenue fell by 29% year-on-year in 2020, while Issuer Solutions revenue was down 7.1%.
The company reported total processed payments volume of GBP33.54 billion, down 23% on the prior year, but said total number of transactions rose by 0.8% to 758.1 million.
"Network has made great strides during a challenging year; seeing a number of new business wins, strong demand for online payment acceptance, and the expansion of our capabilities through the launch of the digital product platform in partnership with Mastercard Inc. Whilst trading and revenue was naturally subdued during the year we started to see a number of positive indicators as we exited 2020, including the progressive recovery of volumes and transactions and a pickup in the pace of new business," said Chief Executive Nandan Mer.
Going forward, the company said, whilst the fluidity of the pandemic creates some uncertainty, it expects 2021 total revenue to return to the level recorded in 2019.
Network International shares were trading 2.8% higher in London on Monday at 368.20 pence each.
By Evelina Grecenko; evelinagrecenko@alliancenews.com
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Network International (NETW)