ZWIPE AS – Q3 2023 Operational Update
OSLO, NORWAY – 23 October 2023 – During the third quarter, Zwipe continued to demonstrate progress and saw strong interest from partners in bringing biometric payment and access control cards to markets globally.
Significant events during the period
- Beautiful Card Corporation (“BCC”) receives LoA from Mastercard to deploy Zwipe Pay biometric payment cards, making it the second Zwipe smart card manufacturer (“SCM”) to receive certification from both major payment schemes.
- Zwipe partners with OLOID to offer biometric access cards globally.
- Zwipe partners with AWT to provide biometric access cards in Sweden.
- Zwipe partners with Sintesi to offer biometric cards for physical and logical access control in Italy.
Significant events after the period
- Zwipe becomes an EMVCo subscriber to support biometric payment cards globally.
- Zwipe and NCS join forces to revolutionize biometric access solutions.
Operational review
The overall adoption of biometric payment cards remains slower than expected, but Zwipe continues to position itself well for the moment biometric payment cards become more mainstream. Globally, Zwipe and its partners now have ongoing dialogues with more than 50 potential issuers of BPCs.
In the first three quarters of 2023, Zwipe expanded its partnerships in APAC such that we have a presence in 10 countries in the region. During the third quarter, Zwipe received its first small order from our Japanese SCM for a demo kit for testing and demonstration to Issuer end customers, with at least one such intended Issuer being a major global bank. In Europe, neobanks and fintechs – particularly in the UK and France – continue to show interest in BPCs, and Zwipe believes that the first launches in Europe will come from these newer players rather than more traditional banks. Zwipe and our main European SCM partner are actively working on more than ten potential BPC projects with UK fintechs, and also plan a joint development campaign aimed at the French fintech ecosystem in the fourth quarter. In the Middle East and Africa (“MEA”), Kuwait International Bank (“KIB”) and Middle East Payment Services (“MEPS”) were responsible for the first commercial launches of Zwipe BPCs during the second quarter. KIB reports high satisfaction internally and with their high net worth Visa Infinite clients to whom the initial launch was targeted, and discussions are ongoing about introducing BPCs to wider segments of their customer base in fairly short order.
In Zwipe Access, we are making substantial inroads in establishing the market for biometric access control cards in high-security verticals, with a high volume of PoCs – some with well-known global companies – now progressing, many important go-to-market partnerships signed or in progress, and product starter kits delivered to more than ten well-known, global enterprise partners whose end customers include data centers, healthcare facilities, airports, government agencies and critical infrastructure operators. Substantial third quarter activity points to real demand in the market for biometric access control solutions, and a real desire from our partners to bring Zwipe Access to their customers.
In North America, Schneider Electric Co. has completed tests and validation and confirmed good results. We are now negotiating an OEM agreement to include Zwipe Access cards in Schneider’s product offering, which they intend to market globally through their extensive network of companies and partners. Our partner MC Dean is currently conducting in-depth testing and validation of Zwipe Access cards on behalf of a Top 3 global cloud services and data centers provider, as well as other Fortune 100 global customers and government agencies. Berkshire Hathaway Energy Group (BHE) is currently testing Zwipe’s biometric access control cards for compatibility, with the goal of replacing the legacy install base and extending the use of Zwipe biometric cards to new sites. Elsewhere in the USA, the announced proof-of-concept at Richmond International Airport has been extended to allow more testing and validation under the most extreme security and environmental conditions. We anticipate that the final report and recommendations to the aviation industry by the National Safe Skies Alliance will be published in the fourth quarter.
In Sweden, AWT, a Zwipe partner and major player in the Nordics, has received an initial small order from a global Top 100 tech company for an initial soft launch at their headquarter location. This is expected to be the foundation for further scaling up, with gradual expansion to most of their global workforce by the end of 2025. Certego, a major system integrator of access security and monitoring solutions has begun discussions to provide Zwipe’s biometric access control cards to over 100 government agencies.
Commercial priorities for 2023 remain unchanged, with the company focusing on accelerating commercialization while carefully deploying funds and maximizing cash runway.
Financial review
Zwipe reported total revenue of 0.3 mNOK during Q3 2023 versus revenue of 0.8 mNOK in Q3 2022. Cash flow from operations was -27.1 mNOK in Q3 2023 versus -24.2 mNOK in Q3 2022, equating to an average monthly operating cash flow in Q3 2023 of -9.0 mNOK versus 8.1 mNOK in the same period last year. As a result of the restructuring announced in June, changes in the organization's operational cost base are starting to show, and the full impact of these changes is expected to show from Q4 2023. Cash and cash equivalents stood at 48.3 mNOK at the end of Q3 2023 compared to 85.8 mNOK at the end of Q3 2022, and 50.5 mNOK at the end of 2022.
Operational update presentation
CEO Robert Puskaric and CFO Danielle Glenn will do a short presentation on the operational update today, Monday October 23rd, at 10:00 CET.
Audiocast details
Date: 23 October 2023
Time: 10:00 CET
Format: Audiocast and Q&A
Language: English
Link: https://app.webinar.net/GnOpyeAy2Yr
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This information is subject to the disclosure requirements in the Market Abuse Regulation (EU 596/2014) and the Norwegian Securities Trading Act section 5-12, and is information that Zwipe AS is obligated to make public pursuant to the continuing obligations of companies admitted to trading on Euronext Growth Oslo (Euronext Growth Oslo Rule Book – Part II) and on Nasdaq First North Growth Market. Certified Adviser on Nasdaq First North is FNCA Sweden AB, info@fnca.se. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out below, at 07:30 on 23 October 2023.
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About Zwipe
Zwipe believes the inherent uniqueness of every person is the key to a safer future. We work with great passion across networks of international organizations, industries and cultures to make convenience safe and secure. We are pioneering next-generation biometric card and wearables technology for payment and physical & logical access control and identification solutions. We promise our customers and partners deep insight and frictionless solutions, ensuring a seamless user experience with our innovative biometric products and services. Zwipe is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with a global presence.
To learn more, visit http://www.zwipe.com.
For more information, please contact:
Danielle Glenn, CFO and Head of IR