Mobile payments firm Ezetap posts wider loss, 3% rise in operating revenue for FY18

Cellphone payments service provider Ezetap Mobile Solutions Pvt. Ltd reported a marginal increase in operating revenue while net loss widened for the financial year 2017-18, filings with the Registrar of Companies show.

Ezetap reported a three per cent rise in operating revenue at Rs 45.06 crore for 2017-18, from Rs 43.77 crore a year earlier. Net loss widened to Rs 40.47 crore from Rs 30.71 crore during the period, the filings said.

The company’s expenses increased 17% to Rs 92.17 crore from Rs 78.69 crore. Employee benefit expenses, such as those related to provident fund, gratuity and compensated absences, saw a 14% increase to Rs 33.33 crore from Rs 29.01 crore during the period.

Total revenue stood at Rs 51.70 crore for the period under review, a 7.77 per cent rise from Rs 47.97 crore in 2016-17.

An email query to Ezetap did not get any response till the time of publishing this report.

Bengaluru-based Ezetap was founded in 2011 by Abhijit Bose (chief executive) and Bhakta Keshavachar (tech chief).

The Ezetap solution turns any merchant’s mobile device into an intelligent point of sale that is able to read all cards and complete a full spectrum of financial transactions, including credit card sale, real-time bill payment and ATM cash withdrawals or deposits.

In the latest fundraising in 2017, the company secured $16 million (Rs 102 crore) in a round led by US-based JS Capital Management, the investment fund of Jonathan Soros.

Ezetap has so far managed to raise more than $51 million so far. In 2015, the company raised $24 million in its Series C round from existing investors Social Capital, Helion Advisors, Berggruen Holdings, Horizons Ventures and others. Some of its other investors include American Express, Prime Venture Partners, and Capricorn Ventures (Jeff Skoll Group).

The company claims that it enables digital payments for more than 200,000 merchants and users across India and processes $135 million in transactions monthly.

Ezetap recently acquired payment startup FortunePay to boost its payment processing infrastructure for banks.