Prosus posts first e-commerce profit as new CEO prepares to join

(Bloomberg) — Prosus NV and its parent company Naspers Ltd. turned their e-commerce business into profit for the first time in history as new CEO Fabricio Bloisi prepares to take the helm in July.

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The e-commerce division, which does not include a stake in Tencent Holdings Ltd. and includes a portfolio of companies ranging from iFood in Brazil to PayU in India, posted a full-year trading profit of $38 million for the year ended March 31 as it managed to message, scale your business after years of investment.

Efficiency improvements in key units such as classifieds, food delivery, payments and fintech, as well as cost reductions including the closure of underperforming units, have contributed to Prosus’ drive to increase the profitability of its e-commerce business.

The internet investment firm and its Cape Town-based parent company, Naspers, made a blockbuster early-stage investment in Tencent in 2001 for $34 million. Since then, the Chinese company’s growth has exploded. This prompted the group to sell part of its stake in Tencent and buy back its own shares to plug the gap between the sum of its parts and the value of the shares. The buyback program has generated $30 billion in value so far, the company said in a statement.

Although net income for the year fell 35% to $6.61 billion, it beat estimates of $6.25 billion in a Bloomberg survey.

Former iFood boss Bloisi will become CEO on July 1, taking over from interim boss Ervin Tu, who will become chief investment officer and president. Bob van Dijk, who led the company for ten years, resigned in September.

(Update net income in fifth paragraph.)