LoopUp Group PLC (AIM:LOOP, OTC:LUPGF), the cloud platform for premium hybrid communications, said its turnaround has picked up pace in the first half of 2022.
Its results statement for 2021 revealed the effects of the dramatic change in office communications practices, with the market shifting to holistic unified communications platforms and away from the group remote meeting solutions that had been LoopUp’s strong point.
To reflect this, the group took a (non-cash) exceptional impairment charge of £19.6mln to reflect the change in the value of the 2018 acquisition of MeetingZone.
Revenue fell to £19.5mln from £50.2mln in 2020 when turnover was massively boosted by the first lockdowns in response to the pandemic.
The gross margin held up well at 69% compared to 71% in 2020 while adjusted underlying earnings (EBITDA) were positive at £1.2mln but down from £15.3mln in the previous year.
The company posted a loss before tax of £31.0mln, partly reflecting the write-down of the value of its remote meetings assets, versus a profit of £5.7mln the previous year.
Net debt has risen to £2.4 million as at 31 December 2021 (2020: £0.7 million).
Since the end of 2021, the company has won 16 new Cloud Telephony contracts to add to the 31 it won in 2021, while the Cloud Telephony pipeline of opportunities now exceeds £100mln of additional potential annual recurring revenue (ARR), of which 17% is at the proposal stage or later in the sales cycle, LoopUp revealed.
“As we continue to manage our strategic transition, we are pleased with the 31 new customer wins achieved during our first full year of business in Cloud Telephony, traction that has further increased in pace during the first half of 2022,” said Steve Flavell and Michael Hughes, the co-chief executive officers of LoopUp.
“The potential for global provision of telephony services to the multinational enterprise market is exciting, operating at a geographic coverage layer above the telecommunications carriers. We believe we are well-positioned to build material shareholder value in this endeavour, driven by our differentiated technology platform and the tremendous hard work and innovation of our team, of whom we are very proud,” they added.