Technology investor Naspers announced on Monday that its Prosus e-commerce subsidiary is planning additional listings following the successful Indian initial public offering (IPO) of Swiggy last month. This announcement came as Naspers reported a 74% increase in half-year core earnings.
Naspers revealed that the goal for Amsterdam-listed Prosus, which holds international investments including a 24.3% stake in Chinese software and gaming giant Tencent, is to achieve a profit of US$400 million and revenue of $6.2 billion for the financial year ending 31 March 2025.
“We experienced strong growth and profitability across our portfolio, and we are confident that we will maintain this growth rate,” said Fabricio Bloisi, CEO of Naspers and Prosus, during an earnings call.
The forecasted $400 million in adjusted earnings before interest and tax (Ebit) represents a significant improvement from the $38 million reported in the previous financial year at Prosus. Prosus has plans to list PayU next year, along with other Indian investments such as e-commerce start-up Meesho and online jewelry retailer Bluestone, within the next 18 months.
Ervin Tu, Naspers and Prosus group chief investment officer, added that there are many more potential listings in India even beyond the 18-month target. One such future potential listing identified by the company is Captain Fresh, a seafood company from India.
The e-commerce portfolio of Prosus includes food delivery firms like iFood of Brazil and Delivery Hero, online marketplaces such as OLX, educational software companies like SkillSoft and Stack Overflow, and payments companies such as India-focused PayU.
E-commerce Turns Profitable
Naspers reported that its core headline earnings for continuing operations rose to $1.5 billion in the six months ended 30 September, up from $866 million. Meanwhile, Prosus reported core headline earnings of $3.5 billion, up from $2 billion.
Group revenue increased by 23% to $3.4 billion, while adjusted Ebit swung to a profit of $36 million from a loss of $121 million, as its e-commerce business turned profitable.
Consolidated e-commerce revenue at Prosus grew by 26% to $3 billion, driven by continued strong revenue growth in payments and fintech, e-retail, and food delivery, according to Naspers. E-commerce adjusted Ebit swung to a profit of $181 million, from a loss of $36 million, highlighting the profitability of the e-commerce segment.
