Qred's interim report Q1 2023

Wed, May 31, 2023 08:00 CET

Qred continues to grow, as operating income increased by 40% to SEK 164.7m compared to the same period last year. The number of active users increased 19% to 17 235 by the end of the quarter.

Values for the same period the previous year are stated within brackets.

January - March 2023

The number of active users increased by 19% to 17 235 (14 512)
Operating income increased by 40% to SEK 164.7m (117.8)
Commission income increased by 80% to SEK 128.0m (71.2)
Interest income decreased by -4% to SEK 55.9m (58.3)
Operating profit amounted to SEK 0.1m (1.1)
Net profit for the period amounted to SEK 0.0m (0.8)

Significant events January - March 2023

The merger of Qred Factoring AB and Qred AB has been completed.
Therese Reuterswärd has been appointed as the new CMO.

Significant events after the end of the interim period

Qred AB has been granted permission to start banking operations. The Company submitted an application for a bank license in October 2022, which was approved by the Swedish FSA on the 24th of May. The company aims to activate the license in Q4 2023 and to redeem the outstanding bond when access to the deposit market has been activated.
Kristoffer Straume has been appointed as the new CFO.
Caroline Farberger has been elected by the AGM as a new board member in Qred Holding AB (publ)
Launched Apple Pay for Qred Visa.

Comments by the CEO

The 24th of May 2023 marked another milestone in Qred’s history as the Swedish FSA approved Qred’s bank application. With the decision, Europe’s newest bank was born.

I am delighted that the application process was quicker than expected, and I am proud to lead a team of dedicated professionals.

The bank license will allow Qred to continue the European expansion. The license can be passported to all EU markets, and markets that are restricted to banks are now open to Qred. This unlocks a lot of potential to help entrepreneurs across Europe to expand and to create more job opportunities.

We are also planning to offer savings accounts with competitive interest rates. Access to the large deposit market will mean that Qred will improve access to liquidity and at the same time add a cost efficient funding source. With lower cost of funding, we can become even more competitive, especially in the low risk segment where the interest margin is thinner.

We are proud to once again report another quarter of growth, as our operating income increased by 40% compared to the same period last year. We expect that Qred’s growth will continue in this volatile economic market, driven by a strong underlying market growth. We have therefore kept investing in our products and customer service. Our products are being continuously improved and new features are added in order to enhance the customer experience, and automate and improve manual processes. As an example of new features we can now offer small businesses the possibility to use our Qred VISA in their phones using Apple Pay.

I am happy that Therese Reuterswärd, (previously CMO of Mentimeter; Mathem) has strengthened our marketing team as our new Chief Marketing Officer. I am also delighted to announce that Qred’s Head of Treasury, Kristoffer Straume, has been appointed as our new CFO. As if that were not enough, as I am writing this, the Annual General Meeting has just elected Caroline Farberger as a new member of the Qred Board of Directors. I am beyond thrilled to have such a competent trio joining the already strong team at Qred.

The main focus going forward will be continued profitable growth by leveraging the investments in our products and in our technology. We will continue to launch our products across our already existing markets, hence establishing the foundation for our upcoming European expansion.

Increased interest rates have led to higher costs for Qred and the inflation has contributed to an increase of bankruptcies among small businesses. Credit risk is a key focus area, where we strive to find a balance where we want to help as many entrepreneurs as possible and at the same time prevent credit losses from escalating to undesired levels. We possess one of the most refined AI-powered products on the market. By combining that with a transparent credit agreement and easy to use onboarding process we have created outstanding credit products for small businesses.

As always, our ambition is to continue to deliver steady profitable growth. I am very confident that we have the right skillset, motivation and employees to be able to do so, even during these challenging times. We are determined to stand strong with the small businesses of Europe and carry on serving the underbanked segment they are.

To read the full report, please visit Qred's website

For more information, please contact:
Andrea Romander
Head of Brand & Communications
andrea.romander@qred.com

About Qred
Founded in 2015 by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, Qred is now Sweden’s fastest growing fintech company according to the Financial Times. Qred is the market leader in the Nordic region and has Sweden’s most satisfied customers according to Trustpilot. With operations in Sweden, Finland, Denmark, the Netherlands, Brazil, Belgium and Norway. Qred has helped more than 25,000 companies. Qred’s fully automated, proprietary credit scoring system allows Qred to quickly and competitively provide business owners with the power they need to grow.