Prosus delays Indian payments firm PayU IPO to enhance business operations
JOHANNESBURG :Dutch technology investor Prosus is not planning to list Indian digital payments and lending firm PayU this year, with the focus on improving the business over the next six to 12 months, its chief financial officer said on Monday.
While Prosus hoped to list PayU by 2025, "that is not going to be our focus in the next year. Our focus is actually going to be to improve that business," Nico Marais, Prosus's chief financial officer told Reuters.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
7 hours ago
- CNA
US investor strikes $1 billion merger to create bitcoin treasury company
BOSTON :U.S. investor and entrepreneur Anthony Pompliano announced on Monday the creation of a new bitcoin treasury company that would hold up to $1 billion of the world's largest cryptocurrency on its balance sheet. Pompliano said in a statement that his financial services firm ProCap BTC would merge with Columbus Circle Capital I, a special purpose acquisition company, to create ProCap Financial, a bitcoin treasury firm. Several public companies have employed bitcoin treasury strategies, which involves allocating a portion of their cash and reserves toward bitcoin, to replicate the success of software company Strategy, which began accumulating bitcoin in 2020 and now holds more than $63 billion worth of the digital token. The trend comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has sought to overhaul cryptocurrency policy, including calls to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve, after courting cash from the industry on the campaign trail. Pompliano, one of the biggest investors in the crypto space over the last several years, said ProCap BTC has raised $500 million in equity and $250 million in a convertible note, in what he termed the largest initial fundraising in history for a bitcoin treasury company. Unlike traditional bitcoin treasury companies, Pompliano said ProCap Financial would use its bitcoin balance sheet to generate revenue and profit through a variety of strategies, including lending, derivatives, and other products and services. He also said leading institutional investors Citadel, Susquehanna, Jane Street, and Magnetar have committed capital, as have crypto firms Off the Chain Capital, Pantera, Coinfund, Parafi, and FalconX. Reuters was unable to verify whether these companies were investing in ProCap Financial. "The legacy financial system is being disrupted by bitcoin right before our eyes," Pompliano said. "Our objective is to develop a platform that will not only acquire bitcoin for our balance sheet, but will also implement risk-mitigated solutions to generate sustainable revenue and profits from our bitcoin holdings."
CNA
8 hours ago
- CNA
Prosus bets on tech investment, beats target with core earnings up 47%
Dutch technology investor Prosus reported on Monday a 47 per cent jump in full-year core earnings to $7.4 billion, exceeding its financial targets, driven by its expansion into food delivery and e-commerce. Owned by South Africa's Naspers, Prosus is transforming from an investment group to a technology company running such services as food delivery, fintech and ride sharing, a change in strategy a BofA analyst said could shift its investment case. Prosus announced in late February an agreement to buy Just Eat Takeaway for 4.1 billion euros ($4.72 billion) to create a "European tech champion" of food delivery. CFO Nico Marais said the company has secured all approvals for the deal except from the European Commission, the EU's antitrust authority. Prosus filed for the Commission's approval last Friday. "We will still make minority investments where it makes sense," Marais told Reuters. Prosus' e-commerce revenue grew 21 per cent to $6.2 billion, driven by advances in artificial intelligence and innovation, as it continued to expand in Latin America, Europe, and India. For the first time in its history, the company's free cash flow, excluding the dividend it receives on its holding in Tencent, was positive, climbing to $36 million from negative $235 million in the last financial year. "We expect this momentum to continue, and to add at least the same level of incremental adjusted EBIT in the full year of 2026", Marais said in the results statement. Asked about potential plans to increase its stake in Delivery Hero or lobby for a merger with Just Eat he said that the company was focusing on finalising the JustEat transaction. Prosus is also putting on hold plans to float its PayU payments India business in this year, and instead will concentrate on organic improvement. "(Listing) is not going to be our focus in the next year. Our focus is actually going to be to improve that business. It needs to grow at a healthy rate, but we also need to improve its profitability and free cash flow generation over the next six to twelve months", Marais said. He added that the company will reassess whether listing could be an option.
CNA
9 hours ago
- CNA
South Africa's Takealot grows revenue to fend off Amazon rivalry
JOHANNESBURG :South Africa's biggest online retail group Takealot grew its full-year revenue by 15 per cent, with growth supported by investments in logistics, enhanced customer offerings and its subscription service as it faces competition from new market entrant Amazon. Technology investor Naspers said on Monday that Takealot Group's revenue rose by 15 per cent in local currency to $872 million for the fiscal year ending March 31. Despite this growth, the group posted an adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) loss of $13 million. the group's general merchandise e-commerce platform and Amazon's direct competitor, saw its gross merchandise value (GMV) increase by 13 per cent, with revenue climbing 17 per cent and order volumes up by 15 per cent. Takealot also owns on-demand platform Mr D, which offers restaurants, groceries and other shops. "I think their (Takealot) performance in the last year was ahead of our expectations, actually," Prosus and Naspers Group Chief Financial Officer, Nico Marais told Reuters. "We did invest in our marketplace elements to improve the business, and we actually saw Amazon moving, probably not at the speed that we originally expected, which was to our benefit. So we are ready to fight off competition." The battle for online consumer spending intensified throughout 2024, with both global and local players investing heavily to capture market share. Amazon has since expanded its South African service to include non-perishable groceries. The U.S. online retail giant launched in South Africa in May 2024. To defend its leading market share, Takealot said it will strengthen its market presence by enhancing its loyalty programme, TakealotMore, which it hopes will attract and keep existing customers. "The business will also focus on growth through range extension and key categories while improving unit economics through cost optimisation, particularly delivery costs and stock efficiencies," it added. The retailer is also investing in artificial intelligence to gain better understanding of its customers, identify trends, personalise marketing campaigns and automate customer experiences.
