Paysafe full-year revenue ahead of expectations

(ShareCast News) - Global payment provider Paysafe Group issued an unaudited trading update for the year to 31 December on Thursday, reporting continued strong momentum during the second-half as it focused on building a portfolio of payment-related products and services to meet industry needs.The FTSE 250 firm said it expects to exceed the $1bn revenue milestone for the year, ahead of the upper end of the guidance range and current market expectations.It also expects FY 16 adjusted EBITDA to reach $300m for the first time, with implied adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of revenue marginally ahead of expectations.Paysafe's board said strong business performance throughout the year led to the group raising guidance twice in 2016, resulting in a $110m - or 13% - upgrade to revenue expectations over the last 12 months from $868m to a range of $970-$990m.Adjusted EBITDA expectations were also raised by $40m - or 15% - from $252m to a range of $287-$293m.That represented an adjusted EBITDA margin expectation of 29.6%, compared to 24.9% delivered in FY 15.In addition to growth in adjusted EBITDA, the board said it continued to demonstrate strong cash conversion, enabling it to capitalise on market conditions with an inaugural share buy-back programme announced in December, without compromising the pursuit of bold mergers and acquisitions opportunities."We have delivered another excellent financial performance and expect to surpass $1bn in revenue, an impressive milestone of which we are extremely proud," said Paysafe president and CEO Joel Leonoff."Our ongoing momentum underpins our confidence in our growth prospects for 2017."Leonoff said the company has longstanding expertise in the payments industry, and made targeted investments in both technology and its risk and compliance processes through the year."We are well prepared for the additional levels of customer due diligence expected as part of forthcoming regulatory requirements, including anti-money laundering legislation in Europe."Operating amid regulatory change is simply business as usual for Paysafe.He explained that the company continued to execute on its vision to offer feature-rich and relevant payment solutions that address the specific needs of the businesses and industry verticals it operates in."We have big ambitions this year as we focus on building a payments business with unrivalled capabilities, reach and relevance to enable us to capitalise on the opportunities ahead."