Nexi updates 2021 guidance after merger with Nets, Q2 revenue up 23%

[July 30, 2021]  MILAN (Reuters) - Italian payments group Nexi slightly raised its core profit margin goal for this year on Friday after its merger with rival Nets became effective on July 1, as transaction volume jumped following an easing of COVID-19 restrictions.

The group said it aimed to grow revenue by around 10% this year, with core profit up by between 11% and 13% and its EBITDA margin improving by 1 percentage point year-on-year, thanks to a "larger and more diversified perimeter" after merging with Nets.

In the second quarter Nexi said revenue jumped 23% to 281 million euros ($334 million) as payment transaction volume recovered.

"The volume acceleration across all sectors highlights not only the consumption recovery ... but also a shift from cash to digital payments," Nexi Chief Executive Paolo Bertoluzzo said in a statement.

Core earnings or EBITDA rose 27% in the quarter to 158 million euros.

Nexi shares, which had risen to a record earlier this month, increased losses after the results and were down 4% to 18.09 euros by 1047 GMT.

The closing of the merger with Italian rival SIA, which was planned by the end of September, is now expected in the fourth quarter after getting regulatory approvals between September and October, Nexi said.

After the finalization of the Nets acquisition, Nexi removed the guidance it gave in May for 2021, which targeted revenue growing by a "high single-digit" or "double-digit percentage" this year and a broadly stable EBITDA margin.

($1 = 0.8410 euros)

(Reporting by Elisa Anzolin; Editing by David Holmes)

[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.