Hong Kong's Bright Smart Securities announced the full completion of Ant Group's controlling stake acquisition deal. Photo: VCG Hong Kong listed brokerage Bright Smart Securities & Commodities Group Ltd. dismissed market speculation that it plans to expand services to clients in the Chinese mainland or move into Web3 assets, following the completion of its takeover by Ant Group Co. Ltd. In a state...
Hong Kong's Bright Smart Securities announced the full completion of Ant Group's controlling stake acquisition deal. Photo: VCG Hong Kong listed brokerage Bright Smart Securities & Commodities Group Ltd. dismissed market speculation that it plans to expand services to clients in the Chinese mainland or move into Web3 assets, following the completion of its takeover by Ant Group Co. Ltd. In a statement released Wednesday, the firm said it will continue to focus on serving local Hong Kong customers and has no plans to provide brokerage services to mainland investors or engage in tokenized-asset businesses. Bright Smart added it will comply with regulatory requirements in both the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong to ensure stable operations.
GoodLifeStudio/iStock Unreleased via Getty Images By transforming from a transactional marketplace to a “sophisticated” work platform and focusing on higher-value work with a greater profit margin, online marketplace Fiverr ( FVRR ) realized a 975% increase in unadjusted net income and a 300 basis point increase in adjusted EBITDA margin. These results, coupled with upbeat guidance for both the cu...
GoodLifeStudio/iStock Unreleased via Getty Images By transforming from a transactional marketplace to a “sophisticated” work platform and focusing on higher-value work with a greater profit margin, online marketplace Fiverr ( FVRR ) realized a 975% increase in unadjusted net income and a 300 basis point increase in adjusted EBITDA margin. These results, coupled with upbeat guidance for both the current quarter and full year, fueled a 20% surge in the company’s share price to a 10-week high. “We are seeing a healthy flywheel effect in the high-value work on Fiverr, with growth momentum across clients and talent who are engaged in complex projects,” said Micha Kaufman, founder and CEO of Fiverr. Added CFO Esti Levy Dadon, “Our performance in the first quarter demonstrates the underlying strength and profitability of our core marketplace. We remain committed to funding our transformation with strict financial discipline, ensuring that our long-term investments are balanced with near-term profitability. Over the past year, the Tel Aviv-based company has made significant investments in AI technology, including an AI video hub and “smart matching” that connects clients to the right freelancers more efficiently. By leaning on AI for much of these tasks, Fiverr ( FVRR ) has reduced its workforce by 30% and driven down the company’s cost of revenue by 8% in Q1. As a result, operating income went from a loss of $5.2M last year to a profit of $8.5M in Q1, translating to a profit of $0.23 per share from a profit of $0.02 on an unadjusted basis. This helped offset underwhelming metrics for the quarter, including a 1.6% decline in revenue, a 13.6% drop in marketplace revenue, and a 17.8% loss in annual active buyers. However, the buyers who remained on the platform spent 15.4% more, and services revenue increased by 30% year-over-year. Accordingly, GAAP gross margin in the first quarter rose 110 basis points to 82.1%, while non-GAAP gross margin was up 40 basis points to 84.8%. T...