Monitise begins strategic review after profit warning

22nd Jan 2015 09:24

Mobile banking technology provider Monitise could put itself up for sale after warning that sales growth would be flat in the full year.The AIM-listed company, which is in the midst of transforming its business to a product-based recurring revenue model, said full year revenue was expected to be between £90m and £100m, compared with the £95.1m produced in the last year and previous guidance of at least 25% growth.A trading update revealed that first half revenue would be £42.4m ($64.1m), after a significant fall in licence revenue that it insisted was consistent with its changing revenue mix.The half-year revenues were comprised of subscription and transaction revenue up 8% sequentially on the previous half year to £16.2m, licence revenue down 47% sequentially to £4.4m and development and integration revenue down 13% to £21.8m.Monitise, which has gross cash £129m and is debt free but has been one of the most shorted stocks on AIM, reiterated its guidance of EBITDA profitability in full year 2016 but said it has begun an "all encompassing" strategic review of its options, which will include "consideration of corporate transactions and stock market listing options", in light of recent share-price weakness, shareholder feedback and industry developments."We are successfully transitioning our business to a product-led, recurring revenue digital technology company," declared co-chief executives Alastair Lukies and Elizabeth Buse in the statement."Partner and client support for this was underscored by major partnership updates during the first half, and the many services we developed and helped to launch across Europe, the Americas and Asia."