Praemium’s Australian platform saw a 24 per cent increase in FUA, to $6.9 billion, on net inflows of $1 billion. Australian revenues increased 14% from FY19 to $31.4 million. Australian EBITDA increased 21 percent to $15.2 million, compared to $12.4 million in fiscal 2018. EBITDA margins were 48 percent of revenue, up from up from 45 percent the previous year.
Praemium’s international platform recorded gross inflows of $850 million, up 62 percent from the previous comparable period, while FUA closed at $2.6 billion as of June 30, 2019, up by 29 percent over the year.
However, the group’s international revenue based on its UK and Asia business units fell 12 per cent for the year to $13.7 million.
“UK activity was affected by the decline in global stock markets and by outflows from the Smartfund range of managed funds,” the company said in a statement. “This was offset by growth in Asia for WealthCraft’s CRM and planning software, with revenue up 19 percent to $0.8 million, compared to a 33 percent increase in the number of users in the last 12 months.
In the 12 months to June 30, Praemium accelerated the development of a range of technology products and solutions and capitalized $4.7 million during the year to expand its platform offering.
In February, the ASX-listed group launched its next-generation integrated managed accounts platform to market.
In Australia, the VMA Administration Service (VMAAS), launched last financial year, attracted more than 4,000 portfolios representing $6.6 billion of funds under administration. In addition to the $9.5 billion on the custody platform, Praemium can now report overall FUA of $16.1 billion, an increase of 108% from the previous year.
“The past year has been transformative for Praemium. We believe the February upgrade to a full-service integrated managed account platform represents the fifth generation of platform technology,” said Michael Ohanessian, CEO of Praemium.
“An important consequence of this upgrade is a significant increase in the size of Praemium’s addressable market. In Australia alone, our market has grown from the $21 billion SMA platform segment (end of 2018) to the $858 billion overall platform market. Although it is early days, we are very encouraged by the strong interest from Australian and international customers in our new IMA capability.
“I am delighted to say that our international business is now experiencing strong growth and is on track to become profitable next year. »
Praemium generated a record inflow of $521 million in the second half, compared to $328 million in the first.
“Comparing this year to the previous year, gross inflows increased by 62 percent and I am happy to say that this momentum has continued in the current fiscal year,” Mr. Ohanessian said.
“While our new integrated managed account platform is a great success, we still have a lot of work to do. Our next major program will be to fully integrate the platform and our WealthCraft CRM and financial planning system. With the combined global reach of our platform and WealthCraft, we believe our unique position will provide us with a competitive advantage that will also help support advisory firms in their efforts to deliver excellence in their management of their clients’ wealth.
