Boku (LSE:
BOKU) reported revenue of $63.3 million for the first half of 2025, up 34% from
the same period last year, as the London-listed payments company extends beyond
its traditional carrier billing business into faster-growing digital wallet
connections.
The company
said adjusted EBITDA reached $21.8 million with margins of 34.3%, up
from 30.1% a year earlier. Operating profit swung to $11.9 million from a
loss of $396,000 in the first half of 2024.
Revenue
from digital wallets and account-to-account payment schemes climbed 89% to
$22.5 million, now representing 36% of total revenue compared with 25% in the
prior year. The company cautioned that roughly $3 million of first-half revenue
came from launch-phase pricing arrangements that won’t repeat in the second
half.
Excluding
that one-time boost, underlying revenue grew 27%, a figure Boku expects to
match or exceed for the full year. CEO Stuart Neal, who took over in January 2024, said the company remains on track
to deliver organic revenue growth exceeding 20% annually and maintain adjusted
EBITDA margins above 30%.
Key Financial Metrics H1 2025
Metric | H1 2025 | H1 2024 | Change |
Total | $63.3m | $47.3m | +34% |
Adjusted | $21.8m | $14.2m | +53% |
Operating | $11.9m | $-0.4m | +3,075% |
Monthly | 95.5m | 79.6m | +20% |
Total | $7.4bn | $5.8bn | +28% |
Own Cash | $87.3m | $75.2m | +16% |
Carrier Billing Still
Growing, But Slowing
Direct
carrier billing, which lets consumers charge purchases to their mobile phone
bills, generated combined revenue of $40.8 million from payments and bundling
services. The payments portion grew 9% while bundling, which helps merchants
distribute apps through carrier channels, jumped
70% to $6.6 million.
The company
added 60 new connections between merchants and payment methods during the half,
and brought on new clients including what it described as a leading digital
design platform and a global entertainment company. Monthly active users in
June reached 95.5 million, up 20% from a year earlier, while total payment
volumes processed through the network increased 28% to $7.4 billion.
Boku’s take
rate, the percentage of payment volume it captures as revenue, edged up to
0.85% from 0.81%, largely reflecting the launch-phase pricing. Stripping that
out, underlying take rates held steady.
Cash Position Strengthens
Despite Buybacks
The company
ended June with $87.3 million in own cash, up 9% from year-end despite spending
$12.3 million to repurchase 5.8 million shares during the period. Total group
cash balances, which include funds held for merchants and issuers, reached
$191.9 million.
Boku now
includes $1.4 million of foreign exchange costs related to currency conversion
services in its adjusted EBITDA calculation, a change it says better aligns
revenue with associated costs. While that methodology shift dampens the EBITDA
comparison, the company said full-year adjusted EBITDA should still meet market
expectations of $39.3 million on revenue of $126.7 million.
The San
Francisco-incorporated company, which maintains its headquarters in London,
operates offices across 15 countries including the United States, India,
Brazil, China, Estonia, Germany, Singapore, and Japan.
Check other Boku-related stories
Boku (LSE:
BOKU) reported revenue of $63.3 million for the first half of 2025, up 34% from
the same period last year, as the London-listed payments company extends beyond
its traditional carrier billing business into faster-growing digital wallet
connections.
The company
said adjusted EBITDA reached $21.8 million with margins of 34.3%, up
from 30.1% a year earlier. Operating profit swung to $11.9 million from a
loss of $396,000 in the first half of 2024.
Revenue
from digital wallets and account-to-account payment schemes climbed 89% to
$22.5 million, now representing 36% of total revenue compared with 25% in the
prior year. The company cautioned that roughly $3 million of first-half revenue
came from launch-phase pricing arrangements that won’t repeat in the second
half.
Excluding
that one-time boost, underlying revenue grew 27%, a figure Boku expects to
match or exceed for the full year. CEO Stuart Neal, who took over in January 2024, said the company remains on track
to deliver organic revenue growth exceeding 20% annually and maintain adjusted
EBITDA margins above 30%.
Key Financial Metrics H1 2025
Metric | H1 2025 | H1 2024 | Change |
Total | $63.3m | $47.3m | +34% |
Adjusted | $21.8m | $14.2m | +53% |
Operating | $11.9m | $-0.4m | +3,075% |
Monthly | 95.5m | 79.6m | +20% |
Total | $7.4bn | $5.8bn | +28% |
Own Cash | $87.3m | $75.2m | +16% |
Carrier Billing Still
Growing, But Slowing
Direct
carrier billing, which lets consumers charge purchases to their mobile phone
bills, generated combined revenue of $40.8 million from payments and bundling
services. The payments portion grew 9% while bundling, which helps merchants
distribute apps through carrier channels, jumped
70% to $6.6 million.
The company
added 60 new connections between merchants and payment methods during the half,
and brought on new clients including what it described as a leading digital
design platform and a global entertainment company. Monthly active users in
June reached 95.5 million, up 20% from a year earlier, while total payment
volumes processed through the network increased 28% to $7.4 billion.
Boku’s take
rate, the percentage of payment volume it captures as revenue, edged up to
0.85% from 0.81%, largely reflecting the launch-phase pricing. Stripping that
out, underlying take rates held steady.
Cash Position Strengthens
Despite Buybacks
The company
ended June with $87.3 million in own cash, up 9% from year-end despite spending
$12.3 million to repurchase 5.8 million shares during the period. Total group
cash balances, which include funds held for merchants and issuers, reached
$191.9 million.
Boku now
includes $1.4 million of foreign exchange costs related to currency conversion
services in its adjusted EBITDA calculation, a change it says better aligns
revenue with associated costs. While that methodology shift dampens the EBITDA
comparison, the company said full-year adjusted EBITDA should still meet market
expectations of $39.3 million on revenue of $126.7 million.
The San
Francisco-incorporated company, which maintains its headquarters in London,
operates offices across 15 countries including the United States, India,
Brazil, China, Estonia, Germany, Singapore, and Japan.
Check other Boku-related stories
