iWOW Technology has reported a lower net profit of $122,000 for the 1HFY2025 ended September 30, a 57% y-o-y decrease from $284,000 for the same period last year. 

 

The group says this came on the back of increased employee and operating costs, which saw a 9% y-o-y increase and 3% y-o-y increase, respectively. 

 

Earnings per share stood at 0.05 cents, down from 0.11 cents in 1HFY2024. 

 

The group&rsquo s revenue for the 1HFY2025 came in at $17.1 million, a slight decrease of 1% y-o-y from $17.3 million in 1HFY2024. 

 

That said, the group adds that its IoT-as-a-Service (Iaas) and Wireless Engineering Solutions (WES) segments showed positive growth, which partly offset declines in other segments. 

 

For the period, IaaS revenue rose by 16% y-o-y to $3.4 million, driven by increased demand for Smart Metering Services and Electronic Monitoring Solutions (EMS). The WES segment also saw 11% y-o-y growth to $9.9 million, due to contributions from the group&rsquo s $20.0 million Smart City Infrastructure contract awarded in July 2023.

 

Meanwhile, the group&rsquo s Smart City Solutions segment revenue declined by 34% y-o-y to $0.3 million, while its Datacomm & Enterprise Solutions revenue fell by 18% y-o-y to $2.7 million, due to shifts in market demand. 

 

The group says it remains confident in its outlook, due to its robust pipeline of IoT and EMS projects and an order book of $83.5 million, as at Oct 31. 

 

" Our 1HFY2025 results demonstrate the resilience of our business despite economic challenges. Demand for our core IaaS and WES solutions have remained robust, supporting our stable revenue performance,&rdquo says Raymond Bo, CEO and executive director of iWOW Technology NXR . &ldquo As we continue to enhance our IoT and Smart City Solutions portfolio, the launch of the BOP Button in 1HFY2025 will be instrumental in enabling iWOW to capture new opportunities in the public sector and consumer markets, both locally and abroad, providing a strategic advantage in the Silver Generation Solutions space.&rdquo

 

iWOW Technology has reported a lower net profit of $2.8 million for the FY2024 ended March 31, 2024, a 22% y-o-y decrease from $3.6 million for the FY2023. 

 

The group says that this is following a weaker 1H2024 performance from the completion of the trace token project and higher costs associated with increased hiring to bolster the group&rsquo s R& D and business development capabilities. 

 

iWOW&rsquo s basic earnings per share for the FY2024 is 24.8% y-o-y lower at 1.06 cents, compared to the 1.41 cents per share in the same period the year before. 

 

The group&rsquo s revenue for the full year came in at $46.4 million, a 81.5% y-o-y growth compared to the FY2023 revenue of $25.6 million. 

 

This is due to the 12-month contribution from its Smart City Infrastructure segment in FY2024. 

 

The group&rsquo s 2H2024 revenue grew by 242.5% y-o-y to reach $29.1 million as compared to $8.5 million in 2H2023. 

 

This is due to full six-month contributions from both its Wireless Engineering Solutions (WES) and Datacomm & Enterprise Solutions (DES) segments (collectively Smart City Infrastructure), as compared to two months' contribution in 2H2023, following the acquisition of Roots Communication Pte Ltd (Roots). 

 

As at April 2024, the group has an order book of $93.5 million. The current order book is anticipated to generate revenues over the next five years.

 

iWOW remains optimistic about its long-term growth prospects, driven by strategic opportunities from Smart Nation initiatives and the rising demand for innovative IoT solutions in Singapore and the region. 

 

The recent launch of the Buddy of Parents (BOP) Button by its subsidiary, BOP Pte Ltd, signifies a major step into the eldercare technology market and is expected to boost the group&rsquo s revenue and earnings in the coming years. 

 

&ldquo While FY2024 presented its fair share of hurdles, our revenue growth trajectory and strategic advancements signal brighter prospects ahead," said Raymond Bo, CEO and executive director of iWOW Technology NXR 0.00% . " Our strategic focus on higher-margin subscription services, will further enhance our earnings visibility and long-term profitability.&rdquo  

It is also looking to take its smart solutions to overseas markets

COVID-19 turned out to be a boon to Catalist-listed tech provider iWOW Technology, whose biggest claim to fame is being the manufacturer of the TraceTogether tokens used during the pandemic.

 

With the use of these tokens discontinued, the company is looking to take its expertise in Internet-of-Things (IoT) to ride other megatrends &ndash such as digitalisation, ageing population, urbanisation and sustainability &ndash to fuel its growth.

 

iWOW&rsquo s IoT expertise is in the embedding of sensors into devices connected to a network, which can transfer data without human intervention.

 

&ldquo We&rsquo ve been around since 1999, it&rsquo s our 25th year and we are a veteran in the Internet-of-Things,&rdquo said Raymond Bo, iWOW&rsquo s chief executive officer.

 

The company segments its business into three key verticals: smart city solutions, IoT-as-a-service and Smart City Infrastructure. Some of iWOW&rsquo s products include a prisoner electronic monitoring solution, smart utility meters and a recently launched device and service called BOP or Buddy of Parent.

 

The BOP device allows seniors to call for help if they fall or are in distress. The device, which is wirelessly connected via the 4G cellular network, will direct them to a call centre that is manned around the clock with operators who will assess the situation by speaking to the senior.

 

The retail price for the device is S$200, with a monthly subscription fee of S$20 per home for the service.

 

&ldquo This is to help seniors to age at home safely, that is one of our very exciting focuses for the year,&rdquo said Bo.

 

There are plans to bring BOP to overseas markets as well, starting with Japan, which is also facing an ageing population issue.

 

Besides BOP, Bo is looking to bring the prisoner monitoring solution overseas after its good performance here in Singapore. The solution is now in its 10th year, and has helped in rehabilitation of prisoners and lowering the recurrence of reoffending.

 

Other business units, such as the wireless engineering solutions, will look to tap recent Singapore government announcements in upgrading the broadband networks on the island.

 

The main draw for iWOW&rsquo s customers is that its contracts are not capex-heavy. Instead, it utilises a leasing model with a subscription service for an operating expense-oriented model.

 

This has helped the company win government contracts as governments pivot to leasing models rather than taking on capital expenses, said Bo.

 

&ldquo This is in our favour, we prefer a model where the barrier to entry is higher,&rdquo he said.

 

Life after TraceTogether

For its latest half-year ended Sep 31, 2023, iWOW saw revenue from its Smart City Solutions segment &ndash which includes TraceTogether token sales &ndash tumble 97 per cent to S$0.4 million, from S$12.9 million in the same period the year before.

 

However, this was offset by revenue from new segments &ndash Wireless Engineering Solutions (WES) and Datacomm and Enterprise Solutions (DES) &ndash which commenced in the second half of its FY2023 ended March 2023. WES contributed S$8.9 million in revenue and DES contributed S$3.3 million in revenue.

 

For the H1 FY2024 ended September, iWOW&rsquo s total revenue inched up 1.2 per cent to S$17.3 million, from S$17.1 million the previous year.

 

Earnings, however, fell 88.2 per cent to S$0.3 million, from S$2.4 million in H1 FY2023.

 

One of the reasons for this decline was a big bump in expenses for employee benefits, as iWOW grew from 54 full- time employees to 164 by the end of H1 FY2024.

 

This increase is part of preparation for future opportunities, said Bo, as the company&rsquo s strength lies in its in-house research and development (R& D).

 

&ldquo One of the (initial public offering) promises was to invest in R& D and innovative products, which we have been pursuing,&rdquo said Bo.

 

A key challenge for iWOW remains in talent retention Bo emphasised that efforts have been made to benchmark salaries to what&rsquo s out in the market.

 

Another contributor to the increase in expenses, he added, was the company&rsquo s moves to grow overseas.

 

Currently, iWOW has only one overseas office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, relying on partnerships for the other markets in Asia. Should the business in a market grow big enough, the company would open a local office to support it, said Bo.

 

Already, the orders are rolling in as iWOW moves towards capturing other megatrends post-TraceTogether tokens.

 

The company&rsquo s order book stood at S$100.4 million as at the end of October 2023, almost doubling from S$54.4 million the year before.

 

&ldquo We should see meaningful results in the next one or two years,&rdquo Bo said.

On Jan 4, iWOW Technology : NXR 0% substantial and controlling shareholder Kau Wee Lee acquired 20,000 shares of the Catalist-listed company at an average price of S$0.24 per share. Kau Wee Lee maintains a 47.09 per cent direct interest in the technology provider, with a 1.88 per cent deemed interest due to shares held by her husband, Soo Kee Wee. iWOW Technology is an Internet-of-Things solutions provider, specialising in smart tracking, smart metering and smart nation applications. Soo is the chairman and non-executive director of iWOW Technology.

Following its non-binding term sheet in relation to its proposed acquisition of Roots Communications, iWOW Technology has entered into a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with Funtec Resources Pte Ltd, Tio Ngi Hin @ Teo Lai Seng and Chan Kin Kok.

 

Roots Communications is a Singapore-based telecommunications services provider and regional value-added distributor.

 

The SPA is for the proposed acquisition of all 2.2 million shares held by Funtec Resources in Roots Communications. Roots Communications is wholly-owned by Funtec Resources, of which Teo and Chan are the controlling shareholders. Upon the completion of the proposed acquisition, Roots Communications will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of iWOW Technology.

 

According to iWOW, the consideration for the shares in Roots Communication will be calculated based on six times of Roots Communication&rsquo s audited annual average consolidated net profit after tax for the operating business from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2026.

 

Roots Communications&rsquo current shareholders have also provided a profit guarantee of up to $3.1 million, should the company to achieve a forward average net profit after tax of $1.35 million per year between April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2026.

 

According to iWOW Technology, Roots Communications recorded a historical average revenue of $27.0 million and net profit of $1.35 million for the last three financial years ended Dec 31, 2021, representing approximately 78% and 35% of iWOW Technology&rsquo s FY2022 revenue and net profit after tax respectively.

 

The computation of the consideration excludes interest on borrowings and other finance costs, management fees and external and internal audit fees and expenses in excess of $35,000 for each FY during the period and capped at $18 million.

 

Of the $18 million, around 60%, or $10.8 million will be satisfied in cash. Up to $7.2 million, the remaining 40% balance, will be paid by the allotment and issuance of new shares in iWOW&rsquo s share capital.

 

Under the SPA, the first tranche of consideration shares amounting to around 12.96 million, will be allotted and issued by iWOW to Funtec Resources at an issue price of 25 cents per consideration share. The issue price represents a premium of approximately 4.17% to the volume weighted average price (VWAP) of 24 cents for trades done on the shares in iWOW on Dec 19, which is the full market day that the company&rsquo s shares were traded in before the SPA.According to iWOW, the proposed acquisition, upon its completion, is expected to enlarge its customer base and extend its regional presence as it gains access to Roots&rsquo extensive network of blue-chip clientele. iWOW also intends to leverage on the company&rsquo s industry know-how to enhance its own product offerings.

 

&ldquo The acquisition of Roots is a key catalyst for our broader growth strategy. Roots' proven track record in serving mission-critical enterprises such as telcos, rail operators and hospitals is a clear testimony of not only their competence in wireless engineering but also their culture of quality in execution. The significant synergies in terms of technical capability and customer base will position us positively for national-level smart city and IoT opportunities both locally and across the region,&rdquo says Raymond Bo, CEO and executive director of iWOW.

 

&ldquo Over the past 25 years, Roots has built up a strong name as a telecommunications enabler of choice for enterprises, transportation operators and mobile operators delivering exceptional wireless engineering services and resilient network infrastructure solutions. We are extremely excited to enhance our product portfolio with iWOW&rsquo s innovative IoT solutions to further our customer&rsquo s digitalization journey,&rdquo says Roots CEO Chan.

 

Substantial shareholders of wireless technology firm iWOW Technology raised their stakes in the newly-listed company during the week.

 

Chief executive Raymond Bo made an acquisition of 125,000 shares for S$31,250 on Apr 18, raising his stake to 22.9 million shares or 9.1 per cent of the company.

 

Chief technology officer Mah Kian Yen also raised his stake in iWOW on the same day, with the purchase of 125,000 shares for S$31,250, raising his total interest in the company to 6.8 per cent.

 

Meanwhile, substantial shareholder Kau Wee Lee bought 215,900 shares on Apr 18 for S$51,600. She bought an additional 48,500 shares for S$11,640 on Apr 19, and on Apr 20 purchased 200,000 more shares for S$47,000 &ndash or S$0.235 apiece.

 

The 3 transactions raised her total direct and deemed interest in the company to 122.4 million shares, or 48.9 per cent of the company. This is inclusive of the stake held by her spouse Soo Kee Wee, who is chairman and non-executive director of iWOW.

 

iWOW made its debut on the Catalist on Apr 14, ending its first trading day at S$0.26, up from its initial public offering price of S$0.25.

 

The company, which is one of the manufacturers of TraceTogether tokens, sold 26 million shares via a placement during its initial public offering to raise gross proceeds of about S$6.5 million. This placement constituted about 10.4 per cent of iWOW' s enlarged share capital of 250.4 million shares.