Network People

Network People Services Technologies Ltd. reported a strong Q4 FY25, showing a 24% Q-o-Q jump over Q3 results, with revenue around INR 24.5 crores. For the full FY25, the company achieved significant growth, with revenue increasing by 39-40% to INR 180 crores, up from INR 130 crores in FY24. Profitability also saw a notable improvement, with EBITDA margin expanding from 35% to 37% and net profit margin increasing from 20% to 25%. Earnings per share (EPS) for FY25 jumped 68% to INR 23.27 from INR 13.85 in FY24, reflecting a positive financial turnaround.

Following the impact experienced in Q3, management implemented a comprehensive '3-pronged strategy' focused on de-risking and diversification. This involved strengthening core values, re-establishing payment flows with multiple banks, and expanding into allied services to build a more robust revenue model. The company's efforts aim to ensure consistent growth and prevent future vulnerabilities by not relying on a single business segment, with a commitment to a minimum 10% quarter-on-quarter growth.

NPST secured 6 new orders worth over INR 100 crores for the next 4-5 years, with 5 of these being SaaS-based, indicating a shift towards recurring revenue. A significant domestic win includes a INR 70 crore order over 5 years from the Central Bank of India for offline payments. Internationally, the company achieved a major milestone by cracking a multimillion-dollar contract in Africa to build digital payment infrastructure. This 36 plus 7-year deal's execution has already started in Q1 FY26, marking NPST's first technology foray into the African continent.

The company is aggressively pursuing new growth avenues with 4 new product launches planned for Q1 FY26. A key offering is an AI-based risk engine (RegTech), which has already secured three orders even before its official Q2 launch, targeting an estimated $2 billion Indian market. NPST is also focusing on BBPS corporate payments, expected to be completed by June 30, and is actively engaging with the ONDC platform, identifying a 10 billion market opportunity in the financial services segment.

To support its ambitious growth and new initiatives, NPST plans an estimated 30% incremental talent addition in FY26, with 60-65% of this growth focused on the tech and product domains. Management expects new businesses to start contributing to the P&L from the first half of FY26. The company's operational strategy emphasizes a partner-led model for global expansion, focusing on owning the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) for its solutions while leveraging local channel partners for service delivery.

Addressing concerns about declining UPI incentives, management clarified NPST's evolving revenue model. The company is shifting towards generating interchange income from credit card on UPI and NCMC prepaid businesses, where banks share a percentage of the interchange. While per-transaction realization might see a slight decrease (e.g., from INR 0.05 to INR 0.04), the anticipated massive increase in transaction volume is expected to offset this, ensuring continued revenue growth in the dynamic UPI ecosystem.