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The information communicated within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.
8 July 2026
Boku, Inc.
("Boku" or "the Company")
Trading update for the six months ended 30 June 2026
Significant strategic progress including a significant partnership deal with a global PSP. Underlying revenue growth of c.11% in H1 2026; updated full year guidance
London, 8 July 2026 - Boku (AIM: BOKU), a global network of local payment methods, provides the following unaudited trading update for the six months ended 30 June 2026 and updates guidance for the full year to 31 December 2026.
H1 2026 Financial Performance
- Revenues of approximately $66.5 million, up c.11% against underlying H1 2025 revenues of $59.9 million (excluding non-recurring launch phase pricing of $3.4 million in H1 2025). This performance reflected the following factors during the period:
o A key merchant's move to dual sourcing reduced Boku's share of volume in one market. This is expected to be more than offset by traffic with the same merchant in several new markets which, although delayed, are expected to ramp in the coming months.
o The suspension of two Direct Carrier Billing connections by local authorities in a single market, with no further exposures in that market.
o Delays to the launch of several new connections and slower than anticipated merchant onboarding.
- Adjusted EBITDA1 of approximately $19.3 million, representing an adjusted EBITDA margin2 of approximately 29% (H1 2025 underlying: $18.4 million, 30.6%)
o This reflects our programme of investment in business improvements that has delivered cost efficiency.
- Total Payment Volume3 of approximately $8.3 billion in H1, up c.12% (H1 2025: $7.4bn).
- Blended take rates remained broadly stable at approximately 80bps (H1 2025 underlying: 80bps).
Strategic Progress
Boku continued to make positive strategic progress in the first half, deepening merchant partnerships and diversifying revenues while continuing to develop a scalable global payments platform. Key highlights from the period include:
- Signed the Group's first contract with a major global Payment Service Provider (PSP), Stripe, opening a significant indirect route to market, with two merchants already live and transacting.
- Processed the first transactions on PIX in Brazil and UPI in India.
- Commenced commercial negotiations with the Group's first direct sales merchants.
FY26 outlook
As a result of the factors identified above, financial performance for the full year to 31 December 2026 is expected to be below current market expectations4 :
- FY26 revenues are now expected to be $135-142 million and
- FY26 adjusted EBITDA is expected to be approximately $38-42 million, reflecting the lower revenue expectation, partly mitigated by cost efficiency gains.
Buyback extension
H1 2026 included the repurchase of 9.6m Boku shares at a cost of $23.5m.
The Board intends to approve a further extension of the current share buyback programme and will make a further announcement shortly.
Stuart Neal, CEO of Boku, commented:
"After exceptional growth in 2025, we have continued to make significant strategic progress in the first half of 2026. We reached a landmark partnership agreement with Stripe, a leading global PSP, making it the first organisation to benefit from Boku's channel partnership product, which provides partners access to our extensive network of LPMs and money movement capabilities, with two merchants already live and transacting. Other highlights include the full launch of PIX, Brazil's domestic account-to-account platform serving 168 million users, where we have concluded our preparatory work with a major global merchant."
"Our financial performance in the first half of 2026 was affected by a number of specific factors, including delays to the launch of several new connections and new merchant on-boarding, which have contributed to slowed revenue growth. These have been partially offset by increased cost efficiencies, generated as a result of our investments made in back office systems and processes, delivering an Adjusted EBITDA margin2 of approximately 29% while continuing to invest in the platform."
"Looking ahead, we remain excited by the substantial market opportunity we have ahead of us. Global merchants are seeking increased access to consumers transacting through local payment methods, and we are confident in our pipeline of opportunities to grow our business with new and existing merchants, both directly and via channel partners."
1 Adjusted EBITDA is an alternative performance measure (APM) calculated as earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, share-based payment expense, foreign exchange gains/(losses) (excluding costs associated with currency conversion services) and exceptional items (see the APM section of this report for further details).
2 Adjusted EBITDA margin calculated as adjusted EBITDA over revenue for the year. This is an APM.
3 Total Payment Volume ("TPV") is total value transacted through the system quantified in US dollars. For payments, this is the total amount successfully transacted by consumers translated into USD at average FX rates for the month. For bundling transactions, it represents the total retail value of the bundles. In some cases, this value is inferred from revenue.
4 In so far as the Board is aware, as at 07 July 2026, consensus market expectations for FY 2026 were for Revenue of $155m, and adjusted EBITDA of $49.9m.
For further information:
Enquiries:
Boku, Inc. |
|
Stuart Neal, Chief Executive Officer | Via Headland Consultancy |
Rob Whittick, Chief Financial Officer | |
Investec Bank plc (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker) | +44 (0)20 7597 5970 |
Nick Prowting / Kamalini Hull / James Smith | |
Peel Hunt LLP (Joint Broker) | +44 (0)20 7418 8900 |
Neil Patel / Ben Cryer / Kate Bannatyne | |
Headland Consultancy (Financial PR & IR) | +44 (0)20 3805 4822 |
Matt Denham / Henry Wallers / Georgina Powley |
About Boku
Boku Inc. (AIM: BOKU) is a global network of Local Payment Methods (LPMs). Through a single integration, Boku provides its merchants with access to a comprehensive network of Direct Carrier Billing (DCB), Digital Wallets and Account-to-Account (A2A) real-time payment schemes, reaching over 7 billion consumer payment accounts worldwide. Boku also enables merchants to promote and distribute their services via its Bundling product and provides additional value-added services, including currency conversion and cross-border funds settlement, facilitating international expansion.
Boku's merchants include the world's largest technology, media and entertainment companies, who trust the Group to simplify their integration to hundreds of LPMs, acquire new paying users and prevent fraud.
Boku Inc. was incorporated in 2008 and is headquartered in London, UK, with offices in the US, India, Brazil, China, Estonia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan and Vietnam.
To learn more about Boku Inc., please visit: https://www.boku.com
This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations, and businesses of Boku. These statements and forecasts involve risk, uncertainty and assumptions because they relate to events and depend upon circumstances that will occur in the future. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results or developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made only as at the date of this announcement. Nothing in this announcement should be construed as a profit forecast.
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