QIWI boosts IFRS net earnings 43% in 2014 to 8.8 bln rubles, above forecast
MOSCOW. March 12 (Interfax) - QIWI, which manages Russia's largest payment system, boosted adjusted net earnings under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by 43% in 2014 to 8.836 billion rubles from 6.186 billion rubles in 2013, the company said in a press release.
Adjusted net earnings for the fourth quarter totaled 2.468 billion rubles, up 45% year-on-year.
Analysts told Interfax in a consensus forecast that they had expected QIWI to have adjusted net earnings of 2.314 billion rubles for Q4 and 8.682 billion rubles for 2014 as a whole.
The adjusted net profit for October-December 2014 rose in comparison with same period of 2013 by 5% to 597 million rubles. Analysts expected the growth of this figure at 51% to 856 million rubles.
For 2014 adjust net profit rose by 62% to 3.496 billion rubles. Analysts forecast it at 3.703 billion rubles.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in 2014 also rose 62% to 4.818 billion rubles. In Q4 2014 it was 911 million rubles, which is 24% more than a year earlier.
Adjusted EBITDA margin fell and on December 31, 2014 was 36.9% against 43.1% a year earlier, and 53.5% according to the forecast by analysts.
The total volume of payments through the system of the company rose 15% to 645.4 billion rubles. The average commission on payments rose to 1.01% from 0.77% a year earlier.
"The number of active kiosks and terminals was 181,148, an increase of 8% compared with the prior year, primarily driven by execution of new rental agreements with certain federal retail networks. The number of active Visa Qiwi Wallet accounts was 17.2 million as of the end of 2014, an increase of 1.8 million, or 12%, as compared with 15.4 million in 2013," the company said in a statement.
QIWI runs the biggest payment service in Russia. The group includes QIWI Wallet, QIPS LLC, CJSC QIWI Bank, LLC QIWI Payment Services Provider. Saldivar Investments, whose beneficiary is QIWI CEO Sergei Solonin, owns 55.6% of voting shares (23.3% of share capital). Another 15.3% of voting shares (59.3% of share capital) circulate on the market.
