Interim Results

Certain information contained within this Announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 ("MAR") as applied in the United Kingdom. Upon publication of this Announcement, this information is now considered to be in the public domain.

10 September 2025

Finseta plc

("Finseta" or the "Company" or the "Group")

Interim Results

Finseta (AIM: FIN), a foreign exchange and payments solutions company offering multi-currency accounts to businesses and individuals through its proprietary technology platform, is pleased to announce its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2025 ("H1 2025").

Financial Summary

· Revenue of £5.9m (H1 2024: £5.1m), growth of 16%

· Gross margin of 62.7% (H1 2024: 65.7%) reflecting a change in revenue mix

· Adjusted1 EBITDA of £0.3m (H1 2024: £0.8m) as planned investments were made in the Group's new strategic initiatives to broaden capabilities and accelerate growth in the medium term

· Cash and cash equivalents at 30 June 2025 were £2.4m (31 December 2024: £2.6m); net cash3 was £0.4m (31 December 2024: £0.6m)

Operational Summary

· Growth in active customers2 to 1,101 (H1 2024: 952); as well as a significant increase in new customers onboarded to the platform but yet to transact

· Received regulatory approval to provide payments services in the United Arab Emirates ("UAE"), resulting in significant revenue growth in the region

· Full-service office established in Canada and commenced generating revenue

· USD-related business was impacted by the effect on foreign exchange ("FX") rates of tariff-related developments, but now experiencing improvement

· Launched the Finseta Corporate Card scheme to provide customers with an alternative payment method

· Significant milestone achieved post period with successful implementation of agency banking, which will enhance the Group's offering and enable it to attract a wider range of customers

Current Trading and Outlook

· Following the previously announced delays to some payment transactions in H1 2025, the Group has experienced an improvement in its USD-related business as FX rates normalise, albeit, to date, to a lesser extent than previously anticipated. As a result, the Board is taking a more cautious view of the full year and now expects to report year-on-year revenue growth for FY 2025 of c. 11%

· Cost discipline is being maintained and total operating costs are anticipated to be slightly lower than initially expected for FY 2025

· In the medium term, the strategic actions that the Group has taken position Finseta to substantially accelerate sales growth and increase profitability

James Hickman, CEO of Finseta, said: "This has been another period of significant strategic delivery for Finseta. We have invested in several initiatives that are diversifying our revenue streams and position us for sustainable growth. We are already experiencing the benefits of this strategy, which is set to accelerate our sales and increase our profit in the medium term. While our revenue growth has been constrained by global macroeconomic factors, particularly the impact on foreign exchange rates of US trade policy, it is pleasing to see more positive momentum as we progress through H2, albeit to a lesser extent than initially expected. In addition, we are particularly excited about the prospects for our Dubai operation, which is performing ahead of our expectations and will make an important contribution to our expected revenue growth for the full year. Accordingly, with the foundations of our business having been further enhanced, we remain confident in our ability to deliver sustained value for our shareholders."

Enquiries 

About Finseta plc

Finseta plc (AIM: FIN) is a foreign exchange and payments company offering multi-currency accounts and payment solutions to businesses and individuals. Headquartered in the City of London, Finseta combines a proprietary technology platform with a high level of personalised service to support clients with payments in over 165 countries in 150 currencies. With a track record of over 15 years, Finseta has the expertise, experience and expanding global partner network to be able to execute complex cross-border payments. It is fully regulated, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, by the Financial Conduct Authority as an Electronic Money Institution; by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada as a Money Services Business; and by the Dubai Financial Services Authority under a Category 3D licence. www.finseta.com

Investor Presentation

James Hickman, CEO, and Judy Happe, CFO, will provide a live presentation via Investor Meet Company at 9.30am BST today. The presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders. Investors can sign up to Investor Meet Company for free and add to meet Finseta via: https://www.investormeetcompany.com/finseta-plc/register-investor

Operational Review

Finseta made significant strategic and operational progress during the first six months of 2025 with the Group achieving a number of milestones across its three strategic pillars of product, geography and people. Most notably, the investment that the Group has made to broaden its geographic footprint - with full-service, fully regulated offices being established in Dubai and Canada and additional UK salespeople - as well as expand the payment methods on offer with launch of the Finseta Corporate Card, has already begun to diversify the Group's revenue streams. This served to offset the previously announced weakness in the Group's USD-related business due to the effects on FX rates and the global economy of tariff-related developments. In addition, the Group made important progress in its implementation of agency banking, which was completed post period and which further enhances Finseta's offer.

Performance

Revenue increased by 16% to £5.9m (H1 2024: £5.1m). This growth was driven by an increase in active customers to 1,101 (H1 2024: 952)2, reflecting the expansion of the sales team and introducer network. This also resulted in new customers who were onboarded to the Finseta platform in H1 2025 but yet to transact (and therefore not included in the active customer figure) being significantly higher than H1 2024, and ahead of management's expectations, positioning the Group for further growth. As previously announced, the conversion of newly onboarded customers to active customers during the period was constrained by the effects on FX rates and the global economy of tariff-related developments during H1 2025. The Group's USD-related business was particularly impacted. The Group is pleased to note that it is experiencing an improvement in its USD-related business in the second half of the year, albeit to a lesser extent than initially anticipated.

By client type, the proportion of total revenue accounted for by private clients (primarily high net worth individuals ("HNWIs")) in H1 2025 was 42% (H1 2024: 60%) with corporate accounts contributing 58% (H1 2024: 38%). This reflects the impact on trading by HNWIs of the macroeconomic conditions described above.

Strategic execution

Finseta achieved a number of strategic milestones during the first half of 2025 across its three pillars of product, geography and people. While these actions require investment in the short term, they position the Group for accelerated sales growth and increased profitability in the medium term.

Product

A core element of the Group's strategy is to establish a global payments network that will enable clients to be able to pay in from, and pay out to, any jurisdiction (subject to regulatory restrictions) in any currency and via any payment method. 

A key development during the first half of the year was the work undertaken to implement UK agency banking, which was completed post period end. As a result, Finseta is now able to issue its own account numbers, which allows it to onboard a wider scope of customers. It also means that the Group is now indirectly connected to the Faster Payments System, enabling it to facilitate faster and more efficient transactions. This positions Finseta to become the primary payments provider for its clients, replacing their high street bank. It is also the first stage towards the Group integrating with such payments networks beyond the UK.

The Group made important progress during the period in expanding its payment method offering with the launch of the Finseta Corporate Card. The Finseta card, which is powered by Mastercard, is available to businesses as virtual or physical cards, has multi-currency capability and can be used in over 210 countries. While the Group has commenced generating initial revenues from the corporate card scheme, it is continuing to implement improvements which will enable it to accelerate the roll-out in due course. This new offering will provide the Group with an additional, high-margin, repeatable revenue stream from business customers and will expand its addressable target market, further diversifying the Group's revenue base.

The Group has continued to expand its global payments network by establishing new counterparty partnerships. This enabled the Group to broaden the number of currencies and countries where it can transact, as well as expanding the business sectors it can serve. The Group can now pay out to over 165 countries in 150 currencies compared with 140 currencies this time last year. The addition of further counterparty capability is also supporting the Group's Finseta Solutions offering, which is specifically focused on providing solutions to clients with more complex needs and which require a higher level of service. The Group expects to invest to accelerate this activity over the next 12 months to establish additional counterparty relationships.

Geography

A core pillar of the Group's strategy is geography - that is, expanding the Group's capabilities to enable clients to transact to and from anywhere in the world (subject to regulatory restrictions). This includes through establishing further counterparty relationships, as noted above, as well as expanding Finseta's own geographical footprint and regulatory capabilities.

A significant milestone was achieved with the Dubai Financial Services Authority ("DFSA") granting the Group a Category 3D licence that authorises Finseta to provide payment services within the UAE. This enables the Group to significantly expand its activities in the UAE by being able to service corporate and professional clients as well as to transact locally to benefit from faster, more efficient transaction processing and at a lower cost. The Group has experienced strong growth, ahead of management's expectations, in Dubai since the DFSA licence was granted. As a result, the Group intends to invest further in the sales team to support this growth, which it expects will accelerate further once its integration with the local payments systems completes in the coming months.

During the period, the Group launched a full-service office in Canada. This followed the receipt in the prior year of a Money Services Business licence from the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, which enables the Group to operate a payments company in Canada and provide payments services to Canadian businesses and individuals. With the Group having previously received enquiries in Canada for its services through its existing network, the establishment of a regulated business allows Finseta to fully pursue such opportunities while benefitting from being able to transact locally with integration with local payment systems being complete. The Group has commenced generating revenue in Canada and has established a pipeline of new business opportunities.

People

As a high-touch, service-led business, the strength of Finseta's people is crucial. The Group continued to invest in its workforce with new hires primarily in sales functions in Dubai and the UK, which contributed to growth from customers in those geographies.

With client acquisition being predominantly introducer-led, relationships are key to Finseta's ongoing growth. Accordingly, the Group continued to expand and deepen its network of introducers in order to continue to increase its client base and diversify payment flows across a broader range of currencies.

Financial Review

Revenue for the six months to 30 June 2025 grew by 16% to £5.9m (H1 2024: £5.1m). This growth was primarily a result of an increase in active customers.

Gross margin was 62.7% (H1 2024: 65.7%), with the change compared with the first half of the prior year being due to revenue mix. This lower gross margin was offset by the increase in revenue, with gross profit increasing to £3.7m (H1 2024: £3.3m).

Operating expenses were £3.9m for the first half of 2025 compared with £2.8m for H1 2024. This primarily reflects the planned investment in the Group's new strategic initiatives, which have substantially broadened the Group's capabilities and are expected to significantly accelerate sales growth and increase profitability in the medium term. 

Adjusted EBITDA was £0.3m (H1 2024: £0.3m) and loss from operations was £0.2m (H1 2024: £0.6m profit), which reflects the increased expenses. Adjusted EBITDA is stated after the add-back of other operating income, share-based compensation, profit from the disposal of a subsidiary in H1 2024 and non-cash based accounting adjustments in respect of the Group's corporate premises (see the statement of comprehensive income for further detail).

Loss before tax was £0.3m in H1 2025 compared with £0.6m profit for H1 2024. The Group recognised a tax credit of £48k compared with a tax expense of £118k for the first half of the prior year. As a result, net loss was £0.2m (H1 2024: £0.5m profit).

Basic and diluted loss per share was 0.37 pence (H1 2024: 0.79 pence earnings and 0.74 pence earnings, respectively) due to the net loss as described above.

Cash generated from operations was £0.4m (H1 2024: £0.8m), with the reduction primarily due to the operating loss. Cash used in investing activities was £0.4m (H1 2024: £0.2m), which primarily reflects the Group's investment in its implementation of agency banking. Cash used in financing activities was £0.1m compared with £0.2m in H1 2024, reflecting lease payments for the Group's corporate premises in London and now also Dubai.

At 30 June 2025, cash and cash equivalents were £2.4m (31 December 2024: £2.6m), with net cash of £0.4m3 (31 December 2024: £0.6m).

Outlook

The Group has continued to experience positive momentum through the second half of the year to date, including new customer acquisition remaining strong. In particular, the Group's operation in Dubai is performing ahead of management's expectations and the Canadian operation continues to grow. In the Group's USD-related business, the Group is experiencing an improvement in the second half of the year, albeit to a lesser extent than initially expected. As a result, the Board is taking a more cautious view of the full year and now expects to report year-on-year revenue growth for full year 2025 of approximately 11%. While the Group continues to invest in its strategy, it is maintaining its cost discipline with fixed costs anticipated to be in line with management expectations and total operating costs slightly lower than initially expected for FY 2025.

Looking further ahead, the strategic actions that the Group has taken, along with continued investment in its strategy, position Finseta to substantially accelerate sales growth and increase profitability in the medium term. With the strong foundations that have already been established, the Board is confident that these actions will deliver sustainable growth and generate value for shareholders.

Notes

1 Adjusted to exclude other operating income, share-based compensation, profit from the disposal of a subsidiary (in H1 2024), and the rental cost of the Group's corporate premises (see the Financial Review for further detail)

2 Defined as customers who traded through Finseta during the six-month periods to 30 June 2025 and 30 June 2024 respectively

3 Defined as cash and cash equivalents less loan notes

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income

Consolidated Statement of Financial Position

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity

Consolidated Cash Flow Statement

Notes to the financial statements

1. General information and basis of preparation

Finseta plc is a public limited company, incorporated and domiciled in England. The Company was admitted to trading on AIM, London Stock Exchange's market for small and medium size growth companies, on 6 April 2021. The registered office of the Company is 14-18 Copthall Avenue, London, EC2R 7DJ. Finseta plc is a foreign exchange and payments company offering multi-currency accounts to businesses and individuals using a proprietary cloud-based multi-currency payments platform.

The consolidated financial information contained within these financial statements is unaudited and does not constitute statutory accounts within the meaning of Section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. While the financial figures included in this interim report have been prepared in accordance with IFRS applicable to interim periods, this interim report does not contain sufficient information to constitute an interim financial report as defined in IAS 34. Financial information for the year ended 31 December 2024 has been extracted from the audited financial statements for that year. The accounting policies applied by the Group in this consolidated interim financial report are the same as those applied by the Group in its consolidated financial statements as at and for the year ended 31 December 2024.

The consolidated financial statements incorporate the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiary undertakings. Entities are accounted for as subsidiary undertakings when the Group is exposed to or has rights to variable returns through its involvement with the entity and it has the ability to affect those returns through its power over the entity.

Details of subsidiary undertakings and % shareholding:

Finseta Payment Solutions Ltd - 100% owned by the Company

Cornerstone Middle East FZCO - 100% owned by the Company

Pangea FX Limited - 100% owned by the Company

Finseta Payments Corp - 100% owned by the Company

Finseta Payments (DIFC) Ltd - 100% owned by the Company

Going concern

As at 30 June 2025, the Group's Statement of Financial Position showed cash and cash equivalents of £2,433,238. The Group's balance sheet also showed a liability of £2,000,000 related to a loan note held by Robert O'Brien, the Company's largest shareholder and Chief Commercial Officer, that is due for repayment on 31 July 2026.

The Group recorded a loss of £211,002 during the period ended 30 June 2025, and profits for 2025 are expected to be lower than 2024, reflecting the investments in various strategic initiatives. However, the Board is confident the Group is well positioned for profit and cash generation in future periods.

The Board continues to closely monitor the Group's performance and considers a range of risks that could affect the future performance and position of the Group. The Board considers the Group has a reasonable expectation that it has adequate resources to continue to operate for the foreseeable future and therefore the financial statements are prepared on a going concern basis.

2. Profit from operations

3. Other operating income

Interest receivable from client cash balances relates to interest earned on client funds held in approved safeguarding accounts, which are interest bearing. Under the terms of the Group's Electronic Money Licence, the Group is not able to pass any of the interest earned back to its clients.

Whilst the interest stream is a positive inflow for the Group, the Group is mindful that aspects of its dynamics are driven by macroeconomics beyond its control. The Group has therefore chosen to recognise interest income on client balances as 'other operating income', and not revenue on the face of the statement of comprehensive income. For the same reason, interest income has been excluded from the presentation of adjusted EBITDA.

Interest earned on Finseta's own cash is recognised within finance and other income in the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income.

4. Interest and similar items

5. Earnings per share

The loss incurred by the Group means that the effect of any outstanding warrants and options would be considered anti-dilutive. Therefore the diluted loss per share is equal to the basic loss per share.

6. Share capital

Options and Warrants

On 20 February 2025, the Company granted 190,000 options under its equity-settled share-based remuneration schemes for employees with a weighted average exercise price of £0.36 and a vesting period between 2 and 3 years. 

The Black-Scholes model was used for calculating the cost of options. The model inputs for the options issued were:

Share price at grant date - £0.35

Risk-free rate - 4.3%

Expected Volatility - 48.9%

Contractual life - 5 years

During the period, 20,000 options were forfeited (H1 2024: 20,000) at a weighted average exercise price of £0.32 per share. 754,134 warrants expired during the period (H1 2024: nil).

Share-based compensation charge

The Group's share-based compensation charge for the period ended 30 June 2025 of £96,862 (H1 2024: £169,007) consists of £36,301 (H1 2024: £64,172) in respect of warrants (including the impact of warrant expirations) and £60,561 (H1 2024: £104,835) in respect of share options granted under the Company's share option scheme (including the impact of option forfeitures).

7. Intangible assets

8. Disposal of Capital Currencies Limited

On 4 June 2024, the Group completed the sale of Capital Currencies Limited to Universe Payments Ltd and received £150,000 in cash consideration following the receipt of regulatory approval for the transaction from the FCA. The profit on disposal recognised by the Group in 2024 upon the sale of Capital Currencies Limited was therefore £150,000.

9. Trade and other receivables

10. Trade and other payables

11. Loan Notes

The non-current non-convertible loan note of £2,000,000 is issued to Robert O'Brien, a major shareholder in the Company and employee of the Group. The loan note is repayable on 31 July 2026 and carries a coupon rate of 6%.

On 31 August 2024, the Company made a payment of £172,578 as the full and final settlement of the deferred consideration in relation to the acquisition of Pangea FX Limited.

12. Right-of-use assets

13. Deferred tax

14. Obligations under leases

15. Related party transactions

At 30 June 2025, the Group had a £2,000,000 outstanding loan note to Robert O'Brien repayable on 31 July 2026 (see note 11).

16. Events after the reporting date

There have been no events subsequent to the period end that require disclosure in these financial statements.