The less bumpy way to ride e-commerce = Rakuten

[FlankerStan]

9.2 million subscribers at the end of 2024

The total number of MNO subscriptions (both individual and business) saw acceleration, reaching 6.8 million as of May 13, 2024.

https://rakuten.today/blog/q1-fy2024-results.html

That are against the 6.32 million at the end of Q1/2024 a strong increase of 0.48 million in only six weeks. If this pace will continue in the next 30 weeks – and I am sure after the excellent quality reports of the last weeks – Rakuten Mobile will add additional 2.4 million subscribers to the 6.8 million as of May 13, 2024 = 9.2 million subscribers at the end of 2024.

[FlankerStan]

In the first quarter of fiscal year 2024, the Rakuten Group achieved several notable financial results

Revenue Growth: The group recorded year-on-year revenue growth in all three segments: Internet Services, FinTech, and Mobile. Consolidated revenue reached 513.6 billion yen, a record high for the first quarter, up 8.0% compared to the previous year.

Operating Losses Improvement: Non-GAAP operating losses in Q1 FY2024 were 25.4 billion yen, a significant improvement of 43.5 billion yen YoY. This improvement was due to increased revenue, better profitability in domestic e-commerce growth investment businesses, strong performance in various FinTech businesses, and reduced losses at Rakuten Mobile.

Cash Flow: The consolidated EBITDA (an indicator used to assess cash flow generation) for the quarter was profitable, recording 52.8 billion yen, an increase of 49.3 billion yen YoY.

[FlankerStan]

Revenue expansion and successful cost optimization in each business

Consolidated Non-GAAP OI +JPY 43.5bn YoY

On track to achieve annual profitability

Internet Services: significant profit improvement in growth investment businesses and overseas businesses

Rakuten Card: profitability improved
Rakuten Payment: turned profitable
Rakuten Securities: profit back to pre-zero commission level

Rakuten Mobile: continued loss reduction thanks to revenue growth and cost optimization

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/
Latest IR Materials
First Quarter 2024

[FlankerStan]

Steady revenue growth in each business

Consolidated revenue: JPY 513.6bn Record high for Q1

Internet Services: Rakuten Ichiba and Rakuten Travel plus overseas businesses performed well

FinTech: Growth in all services from expansion of customer base and transaction value

Mobile: Growth in Rakuten Mobile subscribers boosted MNO service revenue by JPY 9.6bn YoY

global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/
Latest IR Materials
First Quarter 2024

[FlankerStan]

Finance Activities

Refinance risk for 2024 has already been resolved. In addition, by issuing US dollar-denominated senior bonds and JPY-denominated private placement notes in April 2024, the liquidity gap for corporate bonds that mature in 2025 has largely been addressed

Continued efforts to increase intra-group cash flow, including optimization of working capital, and reduce interest bearing debt through various capital procurement activities

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/
Latest IR Materials
First Quarter 2024

[FlankerStan]

Rakuten Mobile chief hails network quality gains

MAY 14, 2024

On its Q1 earnings call, Mikitani claimed “smooth progress” in turning around the group’s loss-making mobile unit, noting profitability is just around the corner, with a target of EBITDA turning positive by December 2024.

He noted it is now in the third phase of its launch, which is telling customers about its improved network quality. It is working to a target of 10 million subscribers by end-2025.

The operator’s revenue grew 7.1 per cent year-on-year to JPY62 billion ($396.3 million), with mobile service sales expanding 36 per cent to JPY36.1 billion. Its operating loss was JPY66 billion compared to JPY92 billion a year earlier.

Rakuten Symphony’s revenue jumped 55.3 per cent to $118 million.

In early April the operator said it added 1.5 million subscribers within a year, taking its total to 6.5 million at end-March.

Capex in the first quarter dropped 47 per cent to JPY33 billion from a year earlier.

The operator is targeting commercial launch of service on the 700MHz band in June, which will help take population coverage to 99.9 per cent.

https://www.mobileworldlive.com/rakuten/rakuten-mobile-chief…

[FlankerStan]

Results are okay

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/news/press/2024/0514_01.html

[FlankerStan]

Rakuten Viber introduced an AI-powered feature for group chats

Certainly! In May 2024, Rakuten Viber, a global leader in private and secure messaging and calls, introduced an AI-powered feature for group chats. Leveraging technology similar to ChatGPT, this feature summarizes long conversations into bullet points, ensuring essential details aren’t lost. Here are the key points:

• AI Chat Summary: The feature condenses up to 100 unread messages in a group chat into a concise summary.
• Efficient Communication: It extracts crucial parts of conversations, enhancing decision-making and productivity.
• Privacy: Summaries are visible only to users who request them, ensuring confidentiality.
• Data Security: Viber doesn’t save summaries on its servers, ensuring a secure user experience.

This innovation reflects Rakuten Viber’s commitment to smarter, more efficient communication. The feature is gradually rolling out to users in the U.S., the Philippines, Ukraine, Japan, Bulgaria, and Poland1. With over 1 billion registered users and 820 million monthly active users, Rakuten Viber continues to evolve3. Exciting times ahead!

https://www.bing.com/search?q=rakuten+viber%2C+users%2C+may+…

[FlankerStan]

Excellent Results of Rakuten Bank

https://contents.xj-storage.jp/xcontents/AS92404/1b2adf53/ed…

[FlankerStan]

Rakuten Securities with new robo advisor

https://www.rakuten-sec.co.jp/web/company/newsrelease/pdf/pr…