KEY POINTS:
Online accounting software company Xero is reporting a half year net loss of $3.47 million "in line with expectations".
Revenues from ordinary activities for the six months to the end of September were $333,000, an increase of 1287 per cent from a year earlier.
The results came out at the same time it was announced Xero's online accounting system would soon be available to New Zealand businesses through Telecom's Business Hub, launched last month, for a monthly or annual subscription fee.
Telecom head of business marketing Victoria Crone said the partnership, signed today, was intended to provide Telecom's small, medium and home business customers with access to high quality online accounting software.
Xero chief executive Rod Drury said his company's online accounting system gave small businesses and their advisors easy access to bank transactions, invoicing, reports, and GST, anytime it was needed, from anywhere in the world where they were connected to the internet.
Shares in Xero, which were issued at $1 each, closed yesterday at 80c.
In today's results Xero said it had 2200 paying customers at the end of September, up 978 per cent from a year earlier.
Operating costs of $3.8m reflected the substantial investment in building the Xero software platform, a scalable delivery and support infrastructure and an international sales and marketing capability, the company said.
At the end of September, cash and bank balances were $6.3m.
The company said its directors considered it had made excellent progress since listing 16 months ago.
Xero's online accounting software was widely regarded as "best in class" and uptake by New Zealand users had been strong.
Internationally, Xero had a footprint in Britain and would make further inroads into that market during the year ahead.
With the recent announcement of an Australian version of Xero, activities in Australia were gaining momentum.
The company was well positioned to expand internationally from its New Zealand base as the low cost operator in its market sector, Xero said.
In the current global economic conditions, the focus was on ensuring careful management of costs, while recognising that to build international sales momentum a focus was needed on business development and the establishment of marketing partnerships in places where the company operated.
- NZPA
