Intervju med White Pearls VD

Under årets första halvår lyckades White Pearl uppnå en omsättning 139 (117) MSEK, respektive ett EBT-resultat om 19,9 (16,4) MSEK. För att få bättre koll på hur det går för bolaget har vi fått möjligheten att genomföra en intervju med bolagets VD, Marco Marangoni. Eftersom Marco inte pratar svenska genomfördes intervjun på engelska. 

I intervjun diskuterar vi bland annat året första halvår samt Ayima-förvärvet som utan White Pearls godkännande försattes i konkurs. Dessutom får vi ta del av bolagets höjdpunkter för kommande 12 månader.

Question 1
How would you summarize the year so far?

Our first year as a listed entity has been very eventful. We have nicely transitioned the business to being a listed entity with significant investment in corporate related structures which as a Private company was not needed.

Business remains on track and continues to grow as we have mentioned to our investors and market over the last 18 months. We have strong segmental growth in all our regions and this promises to continue into the future. Our business model is proving to be strong, resilient and appropriate for the Technology services domain.

The Ayima acquisition and subsequent liquidation has been a negative but one which we have comprehensively digested and dealt with and will continue to deal with where appropriate.

Question 2
Could you tell a little about what has happened at Ayima and what you will do to protect the shareholders' interests in this matter?

We saw an opportunity to expand our digital division with the Ayima purchase. We did significant due diligence and covered many areas. However the Board of Ayima clearly had a very clear plan when they entered into discussions with us and ultimately misled us, many regulators and even their own people and customers.

Ayima, whilst a significant purchase for WPTG, has not sunk us. We have managed to protect the interest of shareholders by not injecting further money into the company, assessed the actual nature of operations and most importantly the quality of management and henced decided to walk away from it to protect WPTG and it’s shareholders.

The effect on our financials will be dealt with in 2024 and whilst it is not insignificant will have a limited impact on the company. This allows us from 2025 to have it’s effects out of our books.

We are focussed on our business and the amazing business we have and also regaining the confidence of our shareholders and the market.

We know this will take time and we will continue making prudent decisions in this regard whilst also learning from the mistakes of the Ayima experience.

We continue to explore legal recourse in the matter and will make due announcements when appropriate.

Question 3
WPTG's growth for Q2 2024 was lower compared to the first three months of the year. What is the reason for this and what are your expectations for the rest of the year?

I think that the growth rate was lower but remember the base is higher so indeed the growth continues according to plan.

We expect growth of about 25% for the year and given the larger base we now have is something we are very happy about. 

Obviously we are chasing further opportunities and this could have an impact on this number.

For acquisitions we will continue looking for smaller, strategic companies that will bring more capability to the company and bring growth opportunities for the group into the future.

Question 4
How has growth looked in your main markets? Is there any market that has grown more than you expected?

The Middle East has done well in 2024 and I think shows the current growth in that region despite the Geo-political tensions there. We expect these growth trajectories to continue to the end of the decade.  It will remain a significant growth hotspot for the foreseeable future.

Question 5
Your strategy is to grow both organically and through acquisitions. What do you look for in an acquisition candidate? 

The key elements we are looking for is technology innovation, a focus on new technologies such as digital and AI plus then an opportunity to unlock value in the business through WPTG knowledge, markets and synergies to the group.

Diversification across dimensions remains important to us.

Question 6
Is there anything you are particularly looking forward to over the next 12-month period?

Like I mentioned more of the same and stability is the basis of the next 12 months.  We recognise that Ayima has dented our position in the eyes of the market and we have to put in the hard yards to regain confidence in our business.

We have some nice opportunities lined up in acquisitions and I expect the pipeline to materialise over the year.

Detta är ett betalt samarbete mellan TradeVenue och White Pearl Technology Group då TradeVenue bevakar bolaget löpande, vilket innebär uppdragsanalys, nyhetsrapportering och övrig information om White Pearl Technology Group.