PEXA Group Limited (PXA.AX) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Good morning, shareholders. My name is Mark Joiner, Chair of your Board and of the meeting today. It's my great pleasure to welcome you to our fifth Annual General Meeting. The land we are on today has a rich history and is a place of culture, kinship and knowledge. I respectfully acknowledge and honor the traditional custodians of this land and wherever you are. I pay my respect to elders past and present and recognize the continuing and enduring connections of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have to the land and to the country. We are hosting today's Annual General Meeting from Collins Square in the Docklands region of Melbourne, where the Yarra River and the Maribyrnong River meet the sea, For thousands of years, these waterways have sustained life and hold a spiritual and cultural significance to Aboriginal people. We have a quorum present and I declare the meeting open and also open the poll on all resolutions. It's my pleasure to introduce to you members of the PEXA Group Board. Our Chief Executive Officer and Group Managing Director, Mr. Russell Cohen; Independent Non-Executive Director, Ms. Helen Silver AO; Independent Non-Executive Director, Ms. Melanie Willis; Independent Non-Executive Director, Mr. Vivek Bhatia; Non-Executive Director and CBA nominee, Mr. Paul Rickard; Independent Non-Executive Director, Ms. Georgina Lynch and joining us online is Independent Non-Executive Director, Mr. Jeff Smith. Also in attendance are Ms. Liz Warrell, who is our acting Chief Financial Officer; Ms. Sabina Sopov, the Group Chief People Officer; Ms. Claire Gill, our Chief Regulatory and Corporate Affairs Officer; Ms. Carly Waldock, Chief Customer and Commercial Officer for Australia; Mr. James Orr, the Company Secretary; and Ms. Jody Dawkins, the audit partner representing the company's auditor, Ernst & Young. Jody is available to answer questions in relation to the conduct of the audit, the preparation and content of the independent external auditor's report, the accounting policies adopted by the company in relation to the preparation of the financial statements and the independence of the auditor in relation to the preparation of the financial statements and the independence of the auditor in relation to the resilience of the Australian Exchange. This includes ongoing investment in cybersecurity and strict observance of the requirements of our regulatory oversight, which govern service levels, pricing and various aspects of business operations. Throughout FY '25, we actively engaged in key regulatory processes promising to shape the future of our industry. These included the Federal Senate Economics Committee inquiry into micro competition in e-conveyancing and the New South Wales Upper House Select Committee on competition reforms in electronic conveyancing. We also commenced early preparations for the ELNO pricing review being conducted by IPART to whom we recently made our submission with a decision expected in the second half of the '25-'26 financial year. We have acknowledged ARNECC statement regarding the next steps on interoperability earlier this year, and we'll continue to engage constructively with them to achieve certainty and national consistency. Through this engagement, we hope to achieve better outcomes for consumers, encourage innovation and provide the policy stability necessary for continued investment. At the same time, we're investing in a number of diversifying initiatives, including new solutions in anti-money laundering compliance, enhanced customer workflow tools and adapting our technology platform for new jurisdictions. We look forward to sharing updates on these initiatives in due course. Your company's digital solutions business delivered a solid operating result for FY '25, driven by commercial growth and disciplined cost management. The digital solutions portfolio is currently ongoing a strategic review to assess its fit within the broader PEXA Group. We look forward to bringing more information to market regarding this strategic review in early 2026. In the U.K., we were pleased to report on significant progress across a number of areas, including the delivery of a 2-sided sale and purchase product, which is capable of processing around 70% of the transactions by volume in England and Wales. We also secured FCA approval for the source account capabilities required to launch the product, an essential milestone in our U.K. journey. After the 30th of June, we were delighted to announce a written commitment by NatWest to an implementation program to allow future remortgage and sale and purchase transactions to be conducted via the PEXA platform. The successful delivery of this implementation program is a key priority for 2026. In addition, we are focusing on driving further U.K. lender and conveyancer adoption. We conducted a highly successful market launch of our PEXA U.K. platform in September and October, engaging with key industry stakeholders such as His Majesty's Land Registry, legal practitioners, financial institutions and various proptech providers. The U.K. government has aspirations for a fully digitized U.K. property transactions market, and we plan to become a central part of that transformation. This is a pivotal moment for our U.K. operation, and we look forward to updating you on our progress in due course. FY '25 also saw important leadership transactions. Following the retirement of Glenn King after 5 years as CEO and Group Managing Director, we were very pleased to appoint Russell Cohen to the role. Russell is a seasoned international technology leader with a strong track record of customer-focused growth in multiple international markets. He has made rapid progress in aligning PEXA's internal focus with its long-term goals, and the Board looks forward to working with him to drive continued growth. Other leadership changes included the departure of Les Vance, CEO of Australia, and Scott Butterworth, the Group CFO, in February and July 2025, respectively. The search for a permanent CFO is ongoing, and we do not currently intend to continue with the CEO of Australia role. I acknowledge Les and Scott's contributions and thank them for their service. As we now think about defining the next phase of our growth journey, having changed the CEO and assembled a new executive team, it's now time to assess whether the Board has the mix of skills to adequately oversee and support management in the execution of the strategy. Shareholders should anticipate some further changes at the Board level in the foreseeable future. In my opinion, the long-standing PEXA directors have performed well in bringing the company to this point, and we recognize that a Board refresh will add impetus to the execution of the strategy. I applaud the directors for putting shareholder interest first as we work our way through this. Finally, let me point out that our balance sheet remains strong, underpinned by steady cash flows from the Australian Exchange. In FY '25, we used these funds to reduce debt and announced a $50 million buyback in the second half of the year. With Russell's arrival in late March and with his review of the business underway, we paused that buyback. It remains on hold, and we will update the market with any further changes to the program in due course. In closing, I'd like to sincerely thank our customers, staff and partners for their support throughout the year. And to you, our shareholders, thank you for your continued interest and support. I'll now hand over to Russell to provide a summary of the business performance for the year. Thank you.

Thank you, Mark. I'd like to add my welcome to all of you for joining us here in person and online and for your continued interest and support in the PEXA Group. It's great to be speaking with you today, my first AGM as the Group CEO of PEXA. I'm extremely proud to represent the company today on behalf of our dedicated team and in the service of our customers in Australia and in the U.K. In my first few months at PEXA, I've taken a deep dive into the business to understand its foundations and its future potential. What stands out is the uniqueness of our platform and the impact it has made to its customers. PEXA operates a world-first piece of digital infrastructure that has transformed property transactions, making them faster, more affordable and less stressful for millions of Australians. Our consistent nationwide approach to access and pricing reflects our founding mission to be a platform for all Australians. We have created an incredible opportunity to take this Australian platform and the homegrown intellectual property internationally, starting with the U.K. The recent commitment from a major U.K. bank NatWest is a strong endorsement of our international potential. Our strong balance sheet and steadily improving cash flows gives us the flexibility to pursue growth, both in new markets and through expanding our Australian product suite. Turning to the next page, I'll share an overview of PEXA's financial performance for the year. Revenue grew by 16% with revenue growth across each of our segments. This growth, combined with disciplined cost management, delivered good operating leverage, resulting in a 1.3% expansion in our group EBITDA margin on a reported basis. NPATA came in at $41.1 million, down 6% year-on-year. Statutory NPAT and our EPS fell to a loss of $76 million and $0.43 per share, respectively. These results were impacted by nonoperating and nonrecurring significant items, primarily related to taxation and impairments. Importantly, our stronger operating performance and lower CapEx drove a sharp uplift in free cash flow. This enabled our group to repay $53 million in net debt over the year, continuing our progress in deleveraging our balance sheet. On to the next page, I'll speak about our Australian exchange, which we regard as the jewel in the crown of the PEXA Group. This platform is more than just a piece of technology. It is now classed as national critical infrastructure that continues to support millions of Australians on their journey to homeownership. It's a responsibility we take very seriously and one we are proud to deliver on every day. A major focus in FY '25 was completing our national coverage. We expanded our footprint in Western Australia and launched services in Tasmania and most recently, the Northern Territory in August. With these additions, PEXA now reaches 90% of the Australian property market. As Mark mentioned in his earlier address, PEXA is required to maintain minimum performance standards that we deliver to our customers. In addition to being classed as national critical infrastructure, we have cybersecurity and assurance obligations befitting the important role we play in the Australian economy. We see this as a recognition of the national reach and the successful partnerships we've built over the many years to facilitate over $5 trillion of property transactions. During FY '25, we made important investments in cybersecurity and platform resiliency to ensure we remain this trusted and secure partner across the country. Alongside this, we've delivered new products and enhanced existing offerings to better serve our customers and drive continued innovation. As you may be aware, PEXA is a highly regulated entity. In addition, with complying with model operating requirements and model participation rules as set out by our regulator, ARNECC, PEXA's prices are subject to regulation and independent overpart by IPART in New South Wales and have not increased for customers in real terms since 2014. As such, today's PEXA's low transaction cost as an innovative exchange represents just $141 of the approximately $40,000 of transaction costs involved in selling a home. During FY '25, we acknowledged that ARNECC paused its interoperability program, which was originally conceived to facilitate 2 functioning networks interoperating with one another without the need to disclose intellectual property -- confidential intellectual property. Over the past 7 years, we've held and participated in over 260 different meetings and workshops and invested more than $22.5 million of our own money in this program. We do recognize that competition can be an efficient mechanism to deliver outcomes that benefit consumers across price, service standards, security as well as innovation. That being said, any changes to the existing framework must strengthen, not weaken the integrity, security and trust that all Australians have in our property system. Turning to the next page, I'd like to update you on our international business, which currently centers on our U.K. operations. Since beginning, I've visited the U.K. twice and had some really fantastic meetings with lenders and conveyancers about the impending transformation of the U.K. property market through the digitization of the lodgement and settlement process. FY '25 was a foundational year for us in the U.K. We finalized preparations for the launch of our broader U.K. product offering, which is set to go live in FY '26. A key milestone was receiving FCA approval, an essential step in building our sale and purchase product suite. I'm pleased to report that this suite is now launch-ready and capable of servicing up to 70% of U.K. property transactions. We also completed the integration of Smoove during the year and saw it move to operating profitability in the second half. In Optima Legal, we've made significant strides by refocusing priorities and streamlining processes, resulting in an uplift in performance. As some of you may know, my background includes leading international platform expansion at Grab, and this experience gives me confidence in the PEXA journey ahead. While there is still work to do, I believe the U.K. presents a rewarding opportunity for PEXA. I feel we are now at a pivotal point with a market-ready product suite, a robust infrastructure platform and a committed major lender in NatWest with whom we have begun an implementation program, we are well positioned to make meaningful progress. Turning to the next page, we will briefly touch on Digital Solutions. Revenue in our Digital Solutions segment grew during the year as the business has continued to scale. We remain focused on containing losses in these businesses and saw an uptick in EBITDA margin, reflecting improved operating efficiency. As announced earlier, we commenced a strategic review of Digital Solutions to assess its fit within the broader PEXA Group. This review includes considering both divestment as well as investment options with the goal of maximizing long-term profitable growth and shareholder value. Turning to the next page. We'll focus on our FY '26 strategy. When I joined PEXA, I took the opportunity to review our strategy and make sure that we are driving the best returns for you, our shareholders. It was clear to me that we needed to sharpen -- we needed sharper action points, ones that could make our daily activities more intentional, more cohesive and more focused on executing our strategic objectives. Our FY '26 strategy centers on 3 clear objectives: firstly, generating outstanding shareholder value; secondly, delivering consistently excellent customer experiences; and third, facilitating fulfilling employee journeys. To guide us, we've established 5 strategic pillars to focus our work. These include continued investment in the Australia Exchange, exploring new growth opportunities, executing on our U.K. strategy, conducting a strategic review of our digital solutions portfolio and deploying new technology to help our teams build faster, serve customers better and automate smarter. To support this strategy, I've made some changes to our leadership team, ensuring we are aligned, focused and working together with clarity and cohesion. I would like to thank Eglantine Etiemble, who is leaving behind her role as Group Chief Technology Officer later this month. We wish Eglantine continued success in her future endeavors. With this change, I'm taking the opportunity to combine our engineering and product functions together under a new leader, Peter Bonney, who will join us in January from Xero. Combining our software development and our product strategy and management capabilities into one team is the right strategy for a platform business like ours, and I'm confident that will allow us to develop products faster, reuse capability more extensively and operate at a lower cost. Turning on to the next page. 4 months into FY '26, I am pleased to reaffirm our guidance for the year. We are forecasting modest revenue growth with a clear focus on maintaining margins across the Australian -- both the Australian Exchange and our broader group. As we support platform adoption in the U.K., we expect operating expenses to increase slightly. In FY '26, we anticipate delivering a core operating NPAT for the group in the range of $5 million to $15 million, with group CapEx expected to be between $60 million and $65 million. In the U.K., we expect a modest increase in cash outflows as we continue to build momentum. Across all areas of the business and in every market, we're taking a thoughtful and intentional approach to capital allocation. Our decisions are guided by a commitment to long-term value creation for our shareholders. Before I close, I want to sincerely thank our Board for their guidance and for our employees for their dedication and for our many partners for helping us deliver an exceptional product to the market. And finally, to you all, as our shareholders, for your continued trust and support. Thank you for standing with us. We remain focused, committed and optimistic about our future. That concludes my presentation. I'd be happy to answer any of your questions. And I'll now hand back to Mark. Thank you.

Thank you, Russell. We'll now take questions in relation to the Chair or CEO presentations. Are there any questions in the room? Lisa, have we received any written questions?

We have one written question. The question is, are there any plans for PEXA to pay any dividends in the near future?

I think until the U.K. business is closer to its potential. And in Australia, we've started to pay tax and generate franking credits. It's premature to think about what is a sustainable dividend policy. But once those 2 things have been achieved, we will certainly turn our mind to that. In the interim, where we have excess capital, we will look to other means to return capital to shareholders, such as the buyback that we announced last year. But we will certainly get to a dividend policy in due course. Are there any other questions?

No further questions.

Okay. Phone operator, have we received any questions by phone?

No questions via phone.

Okay. As there are no further questions, we'll move to the formal items of business. The first item of business is to receive and consider the financial report of the company and its controlled entities for the financial year ended 30th of June 2025 and the related directors' and auditors' reports. Please note that there's no requirement for shareholders to approve these reports. So we'll now turn to questions on Item 1. Are there any questions from shareholders in the room in relation to the financial report? Lisa, have we received any written questions in relation to the financial report?

Chair, we have one follow-up question relating to general business. Would you like to approach that now?

Yes, okay.

The question is, is there a target time frame for international breakeven cash flow?

I don't think we've announced anything publicly. We've always said that FY '27 [Audio Gap]. Lisa, have we received any written questions in relation to this resolution?