iFast reverses into earnings of $3.3 mil for 2QFY2023; expects to see improvements in profitability from 2HFY2023

The group has declared an interim dividend of 1.10 cents per share, unchanged from the year before.

iFast Corporation has reported earnings of $3.3 million for the 2QFY2023 ended June 30, reversing from its losses of $2.7 million in the corresponding period the year before.

The earnings come amid positive net inflows, which rose by 78.6% q-o-q to $559 million despite volatile market and investor sentiments in the three-month period.

Total revenue for the 2QFY2023 increased by 0.5% y-o-y to $54.2 million thanks to a surge in interest revenue and mitigated by a dip in the group’s core revenue.

In the same period, the group’s profit before tax from its ongoing non-banking operations grew by 62.0% y-o-y to $7.41 million thanks to a 11.8% y-o-y increase in net revenue to $28.98 million.

The group attributes this increase to a steadily improving business trend for its core wealth management platform business as financial markets conditions show more stable trends as compared to the very tough conditions in 2022.

However, its banking business reported a loss of $2.23 million as iFast Global Bank is in the early stages of building up the digital transaction banking (DTB) and digital personal banking (DPB) divisions.
 
In the 1HFY2023, the group’s earnings surged by 115.9% y-o-y to $6.6 million.

Revenue for the six-month period rose by 1.2% y-o-y to $108.1 million again thanks to interest revenue and offset by a dip in core revenue.

The group’s assets under administration (AUA) grew 3.7% q-o-q and 8% y-t-d to $18.81 billion as at June 30, achieving the second highest end-of-quarter AUA level after its previous record high AUA at end December 2021.

Going forward, the group expects its overall revenue and profitability to show marked improvements, beginning in the 2HFY2023, as the ePension division in Hong Kong starts to contribute more significantly, and as the core wealth management platform business continues to progress.

Meanwhile, contributions from iFast Global Bank are expected to still be negative in 2HFY2023, and will only begin to play a major role in the medium to long term, particularly beyond 2025.

For the 2QFY2023, the group has declared an interim dividend of 1.10 cents per share, unchanged from the year before.

As at June 30, cash and cash equivalents stood at $134.1 million.

Shares in iFast closed 6 cents lower, or 1.27% down at $4.65 on July 25.

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