Naspers e-Commerce Business Excluding Tencent Starts To Show Signs Of Rapid Growth

Africa’s tech investor Naspers reported that its e-commerce business saw revenue swelled by 52% $4.6 billion or R72 billion in the six months ending 30 September 2021, outpacing revenue growth at Tencent.

The company said this performance was led by 100% growth in Classifieds, 86% growth in Food Delivery, 51% growth in Edtech, and 44% growth in Payments and Fintech.

Analyst consensus estimates of the value of the e-commerce portfolio (excluding Tencent and VK/mail.ru) are increasing and is now approaching $50 billion or R786 billion.

“This substantial value appreciation translates to a 22% internal rate of return (IRR) on the $22 billion or R346 billion invested over the last decade,” Naspers informed investors on Monday.

Naspers has a primary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and a secondary listing on the A2X Exchange in South Africa.

The South African-based group also reported that its revenue jumped 32% to $17.2 billion or R271 billion.

The group’s core headline earnings per share (HEPS) came in at 416 US cents, reflecting a 11% increase. HEPS is South Africa’s main profit gauge.

Naspers added that its trading profit grew 8% to $2.9 billion or R46 billion, reflecting continued investment to fund growth by expanding our existing
platforms, and building deeper relations with customers and partners.

“These results reflect a diverse e-commerce portfolio, which has grown significantly in value,” the company said.

“Five years ago this portfolio, excluding Tencent, was valued by analysts at around $13 billion or R204 billion. Today that valuation is approaching $50. We aim to increase the size of this portfolio over the coming years”