Loss widens at Tyro Payments as virus, fires hit hospitality and retail

Bushfires and then COVID have dragged payments provider Tyro to a $38m loss for the first full year after listing.

EFTPOS provider Tyro has felt the flow-on from the impact of the coronavirus on retail. Picture: Brendan Radke

The federal government’s JobKeeper scheme has helped EFTPOS provider Tyro Payments deliver millions of dollars in relief to SMEs.

Many of the company’s small and medium-sized hospitality and retail merchants had been hit by the devastation of the bushfire season, before then feeling the effects of the coronavirus crisis.

The company accessed $3m in JobKeeper payments for fiscal year 2020, which chief executive Robbie Cooke said helped Tyro to deliver free terminal rental to its customers, costing the company about $1.6m. Loan customers were provided a 90-day repayment holiday with no interest charged.

“JobKeeper has been most important and we’re very pleased that the government has seen fit to extend that,” Mr Cooke told The Australian.

“Clearly the JobKeeper has been the stimulus that has worked best. It has put money in the hands of employers and employees as quickly as possible, which clearly has a stimulating effect on the economy.”

Tyro unveiled a widened loss attributable to shareholders of $38m for the full-year through to June, compared to a $18.4m loss the prior year.

Meanwhile, the company said COVID-19 restrictions had stifled transaction values since March, though the company still managed to grow transaction values by 15 per cent to $20.1bn.

It was the EFTPOS provider’s first full-year result as a listed company, following its IPO in December last year.

Tyro directors did not declare a final dividend.

Mr Cooke didn’t provide guidance for the new financial year but said the company remained convinced of the opportunities ahead.

“The COVID-19 challenge continues to feature with the second wave of the virus significantly impacting our Victorian merchants and the broader consumer sentiment across Australia,” he said.

“While we are not immune to the pressures facing the Australia economy, we have a resilient business model and a determination to continue on our journey of building an ecosystem centred around payments, enhanced by value-adding features and products designed to attract new merchants and retain existing merchants.

“We remain as convinced as ever as to the opportunity in front of us as we remain focused on our purpose of setting businesses free to get on with business by simplifying payments and banking.”

Tyro, which counts Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes among its investors, was founded in 2003 and was the first new entrant in the Australian EFTPOS business since the 1990s.

Tyro shares closed the session on Tuesday at $3.19, down 6.45 per cent, or 22c.