Last checked at 20 Jan 2022 07:00
20 January 2022
GetBusy plc
2021 Unaudited Trading Update, Significant New Customer Wins and Notice of Results
Accelerating ARR delivering growth slightly ahead of expectations
GetBusy plc ("GetBusy" or the "Group") (AIM: GETB), a leading provider of productivity software for professional and financial services, is pleased to announce an update on trading for the year ended 31 December 2021 and significant new customer wins.
Trading update
The Group made good strategic progress in the year, building on its established footprint of over 70,000 paying users across multiple market sectors and jurisdictions, coupled with continued double-digit growth in high-quality recurring subscription revenue.
Annualised recurring revenue ("ARR") growth was very strong in the final quarter, up 16% year-on-year at constant currency to £15.8m with encouraging contribution from both core and new products. Buoyant new business during Q4 together with strong customer retention and average revenue per user ("ARPU") growth from our monetisation and pricing strategy were the key drivers. 2021 recurring revenue growth is expected to be 13% at constant currency, up from 12% in H1 and total revenue is expected to be slightly ahead of market expectations*.
Net cash at the year-end was materially ahead of market expectations* at £2.7m, up 17% (£0.4m) on 31 December 2020, following very favourable deferred revenue movements during Q4 driven by annual contract renewals. Adjusted loss is expected to be in-line with market expectations* as the Group continues to make investments in customer acquisition and its capabilities to underpin long term growth.
GetBusy enters 2022 in excellent shape, well-positioned for an acceleration of growth as we execute our strategy of offering broadening productivity capabilities into expanding and attractive addressable markets.
Notice of results
The Group expects to announce its final results for the year ended 31 December 2021 on 1 March 2022.
Growth strategy update
During the year the Group continued to expand its product portfolio, both through internal development and acquisition, to capture the substantial market opportunity available. As the working world becomes more complex there is a growing requirement for organisations to adopt digital mobility and interoperability whilst operating within strict legislative and compliance frameworks and at the same time balancing the need to protect against emerging cyber threats. Growing businesses need GetBusy's specialist productivity software solutions to enable them to work securely and efficiently with their customers, suppliers and teams anytime, anywhere.
Our software suite now includes a range of tools and end-to-end workflows such as digital asset and document management, tailored templates, quotes/proposal development, form-fill, authentication, e-signatures and approvals, workflow and task management, chat, and complex digital certification.
These solutions can be delivered flexibly across cloud, mobile, hosted and on-premise platforms, whilst integrating seamlessly with a wide variety of other class-leading core business systems, such as ERP, accounting, tax, policy management and insolvency practice management systems.
As a result, we enter 2022 with product capabilities which substantially improve our position to deliver on our overarching strategic objective: to create value by generating long-term growth in high-quality, predictable recurring revenue through our growing range of productivity software applications.
Certified Vault Customer Wins
The Group is pleased to announce that it has entered into the first customer agreements for its Certified Vault product, with aggregate ARR now in excess of $0.2m, demonstrating the potential for the Group within the broader US financial services market.
Developed since 2020 and launched during 2021, Certified Vault provides secure vaulting and custody of authoritative copies of digital assets in the $1 trillion US asset finance industry. Certified Vault enables customers in a variety of industries such as security, vehicle financing, real estate finance and equipment leasing to process electronically signed contracts, generate immutable authoritative copies, and securely store them to be fully enforceable and compliant with the prevailing legislation, section 9-105 of the Uniform Commercial Code.
Driven by a combination of legislation, a mandate for cost efficiency and to reduce the duration of the closing process for secured finance transactions, the asset finance industry is moving from paper-based chattel documents to digital. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated that shift. Built on the foundation of our existing SmartVault cloud technology and with strong margins from our SaaS delivery model, Certified Vault offers a secure, smooth digital process for the perfection of security interests in a wide range of leased or financed assets.
Daniel Rabie, CEO, commented:
"I am delighted with the significant progress we have made during 2021 and the substantial momentum with which we're entering 2022, with ARR growth accelerating in the final quarter.
"The sustained investment to broaden our capabilities has led to our evolution from a document management software business focussed on accountants to a productivity software business with expanded opportunities across the larger professional and financial services markets.
"In addition to a fantastic performance in 2021, we are excited to have won a series of significant customers for Certified Vault, a product that we expect to make a meaningful ARR contribution throughout 2022. To be working with such established players in the sector is a real validation of our capabilities and the investments we're making across the Group in future growth.
"We look forward to 2022 and beyond with increasing confidence."
*The current market forecast for the year ended 31 December 2021 is revenue of £15.1m, adjusted loss before tax of £(1.2)m and net cash of £1.3m.
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Group to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 as amended by The Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. The person responsible for making this announcement on behalf of the Group is Paul Haworth.
GetBusy plc
investors@getbusy.com
Liberum Capital Limited (Nomad and Broker)
Cameron Duncan / Lauren Kettle +44 (0)20 3100 2000
Alma PR (Financial PR) | +44 (0) 20 3405 0205 |
Hilary Buchanan / Andy Bryant / Hannah Campbell
About GetBusy
GetBusy's specialist productivity software solutions enable growing businesses to work securely and efficiently with their customers, suppliers and teams anytime, anywhere. Our solutions can be delivered flexibly across cloud, mobile, hosted and on-premise platforms, whilst integrating seamlessly with a wide variety of other class-leading core business systems.
With over 70,000 paying users across multiple market sectors and jurisdictions, GetBusy is an established and fast-growing SaaS business delivering sustained double-digit growth in high-quality recurring subscription revenue over the long term.
Further information on the Group is available at www.getbusy.com/investors