Solid Revenue Growth Coupled with High Gross Profit Margin (73%) and Non-IFRS Profit (RMB 376 Million)
BEIJING, March 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Bairong Inc. (the "Company", "we" , "us" or "our" ; HKEX: 6608), a leading cloud-based AI turnkey service provider, today announced the consolidated results of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2024.
Mr. Zhang Shaofeng, our founder, chief executive officer and chairman of the Board, commented: "As a leading cloud-based AI turnkey service provider, Bairong achieved revenue growth and sustained profitability in 2024 when the industry as a whole was weak. We also generated an operating cash flow of RMB 303 million in 2024, which fully demonstrates the resilience of our business. In terms of technology and products, our VoiceGPT continues to iterate rapidly, and at the same time, new products such as the digital human All - in - One Machine AvatarGPT and Cybotstar Agent Platform have been further implemented. In 2025, we will increase our investment in new businesses and new scenarios, especially in the two fields of Pan-financial AI and Pan-industry AI, so as to achieve a vertical and horizontal business layout supported by AGI."
Financial Summary
Year ended December 31,
2024
2023
Change
(RMB in thousands, except percentages)
Revenue
2,929,267
2,680,915
9 %
Model as a service ("MaaS")
932,473
891,248
5 %
Business as a service ("BaaS")
1,996,794
1,789,667
12 %
BaaS – Financial Scenario
1,410,695
1,184,728
19 %
BaaS – Insurance Scenario
586,099
604,939
(3 %)
Gross profit
2,141,712
1,954,532
10 %
Operating profit
285,234
346,886
(18 %)
Profit for the period
266,029
335,259
(21 %)
Non-IFRS measures
Non-IFRS profit for the period
376,051
375,064
—
Non-IFRS EBITDA
486,176
463,782
5 %
Revenue
Our total revenue increased by 9% from RMB2,680.92 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB2,929.27 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, primarily attributable to our enhanced capabilities of providing products and services despite a challenging macroeconomic and consumption environment.
For the year ended December 31, 2024, our MaaS business reported revenue of RMB932.47 million, representing an increase of 5% year-over-year. During the Reporting Period, the number of Key Clients reached 211, while average revenue per Key Client was RMB3.37 million. Our Key Client retention rate was 97%.
Key metrics of MaaS
Year ended December 31,
2024
2023
Change (%)
(unaudited)
(unaudited)
(RMB in thousands, except percentages)
Revenue from MaaS
932,473
891,248
5
Revenue from Key Clients(Note)
711,328
744,489
(4)
Number of Key Clients
211
213
(1)
Average revenue per Key Client
3,371
3,495
(4)
Retention rate of Key Clients
97 %
99 %
(2) pct
Note:"Key Clients" are defined as paying clients that each contributes more than RMB300,000 total revenue to the Company year-to-date.
In 2024, our BaaS - Financial Scenario business reported revenue of RMB1,410.70 million, representing a year-over-year increase of 19% from RMB1,184.73 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. During the Reporting Period, we maintained growth against the industry's downturn, with our brand gaining increasing recognition from more and more partners. A significant number of institutions prioritize choosing us as their partner of choice, indicating that the brand effect has been established.
In 2024, our BaaS - Insurance Scenario reported revenue decrease by 3% year-over-year to RMB586.10 million. Total premiums increased by 63% year-over-year to RMB5,442.43 million, with first year premiums increasing by 86% year-over-year to RMB3,641.10 million and renewal premiums increasing by 31% year-over-year to RMB1,801.34 million. The persistency rate of life insurance premiums continued to exceed 90%, ranking among the top in the industry.
Key metrics of BaaS – Insurance Scenario
Year ended December 31,
2024
2023
Change (%)
(unaudited)
(unaudited)
(RMB in thousands, except percentages)
Revenue from BaaS – Insurance Scenario
586,099
604,939
(3)
Revenue from first year premiums
486,964
508,207
(4)
First year premiums
3,641,095
1,952,887
86
Revenue from renewal premiums
99,136
96,732
2
Renewal premiums
1,801,335
1,377,605
31
Cost of sales
Our cost of sales increased by 8% from RMB726.38 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB787.56 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, in line with the growth of our business scale.
Gross profit and gross margin
As a result of the foregoing, the Group's gross profit increased by 10% from RMB1,954.53 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB2,141.71 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The Group's gross margin were approximately 73% for both the year ended December 31, 2024 and 2023.
Research and development expenses
The Group's research and development expenses increased by 34% from RMB378.79 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB509.29 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, primarily attributable to the increase in the staff costs of our research and development personnel to support product offerings and technology development about various AI application technology, algorithm-driven machine learning platform and underlying database performance. Research and development expenses as a percentage of revenue increased by 3pct to 17%.
General and administrative expenses
The Group's general and administrative expenses increased by 26% from RMB259.28 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB327.72 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, primarily attributable to the increase in share-based compensation expenses from the grant of share options and restricted share units by the Company during the year ended December 31, 2024. General and administrative expenses as a percentage of revenue increased slightly by 1pct to 11%.
Sales and marketing expenses
Our sales and marketing expenses increased by 4% from RMB1,072.99 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB1,118.94 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, primarily due to an increase of RMB74.62 million of promotion, advertising, information technology services and other related expenses, which was mainly due to the increased branding and business promotion to enhance our brand recognition and our continuous efforts to obtain high-quality traffic to improve conversion efficiency. Sales and marketing expenses as a percentage of revenue decreased by 2pct to 38%.
Other income
Our other income decreased by 28% from RMB183.01 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB130.90 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. This is primarily due to a decrease of RMB37.00 million of government grants.
Profit for the year
As a result of the foregoing, the Group's profit for the year decreased by 21% from RMB335.26 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 to RMB266.03 million for the year ended December 31, 2024.
Cash, cash equivalents and time deposits
The Group had cash and cash equivalents and time deposits of RMB3,176.39 million and RMB3,301.84 million as at December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively.
Purchase, sale or redemption of the Company's listed securities
During the Reporting Period, the Company repurchased a total of 25,490,000 Class B Shares on the Stock Exchange at an aggregate consideration (including transaction cost) of approximately HK$237.51 million including expenses. In addition, 10,331,500 Class B Shares were purchased by trustees of the Company's share award schemes on the market during the year ended December 31, 2024 to satisfy share awards to be vested in subsequent periods.
Conference Call
Our management will hold a conference call at 17:30p.m.Beijing / Hong Kong Time on Wednesday, March 26, 2025 to discuss the financial results and answer questions from investors and analysts.
For participants who wish to join the call, please complete online registration using the link provided below prior to the scheduled call start time.
Dial-in details for the earnings conference call are as follows:
International: +86-23-62737100 Mainland China: 023-63623333/4008-063-263 HK China: +852-30183602/+800-961505
English Dial-in Password: 290534058 Chinese Dial-in Password: 297236054
Please scan the QR code in the poster below to register for the conference:
Bairong Invitation to the 2024 Annual Results Presentation (PRNewsfoto/Bairong Inc.)
Additionally, a live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available on the Company's investor relations website at http://ir.brgroup.com/earnings
About Bairong Inc.
Bairong Inc. is a leading artificial intelligence (AI) technology services company. The Company applies natural language processing (NLP), privacy computing, machine learning, cloud computing and other technologies to provide services to enterprises through model-as-a-service (MaaS) and business-as-a-service (BaaS). The MaaS services leverage discriminant AI to digitalize the know-your-customer (KYC) and know-your-product (KYP) process for enterprises, by analyzing users' risk, willingness, and capability. The BaaS services use discriminant AI to analyze and stratify users into groups and develops generative AI-powered VoiceGPT using human natural languages to interact with users. The Company's products and services are widely used by enterprise customers in banking, consumer finance, insurance, e-commerce, automobiles, logistics, ticketing, energy, construction and other industries.
This press release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminologies such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "aims," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "likely to," and the negative of these words and other similar expressions or statements. Bairong may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the HKEx, in its annual and interim reports to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials, and in oral statements made by its officers, directors, or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Bairong's beliefs, plans, and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements, including but not limited to the following: Bairong's strategies, future business development, and financial condition and results of operations; Bairong's limited operating history; risks associated with the financial service industry, Bairong's ability to develop and deliver services of high quality and appeal to clients; Bairong's ability to generate positive cash flow and profits; Bairong's ability to compete successfully; Bairong's ability to build its brand and withstand negative publicity; and changes in client demand and government incentives, subsidies, or other favorable government policies. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in Bairong's filings with the HKEX. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and Bairong does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required under applicable laws.
For investor inquiries, please contact: Bairong Inc. Ms. Sandy Qin, CFA, CMA, FCG HKFCG Email: ir@brgroup.com
