PEXA, predictably, fibbed in their half-year investor presentation lodged with the ASX on Friday. In denial on their less than 100 per cent uptime record, perpetuating untruths will be a red flag for all stakeholders in Pexa, investors above all.
It’s a misstep, given business is otherwise flourishing at PEXA, thanks to its first mover advantage in the domain of electronic conveyancing and its obstruction of competitors in what is, so far, a lightly regulated industry.
Repeating the longstanding claim of 100 per cent uptime won’t wash. Banking Day reported recently that PEXA suffered more than a dozen outages over the course of a month or so, and continues to hear grumbles from conveyancers.
The biggest red flag for PEXA stakeholders may be its EBITDA, and EBITDA margins.
Operating EBITDA, the most relevant metric this period (given impairment of investments and other items) soared 25 per cent to $73 million.
Gross margin increased by the same proportion to $169 million.
Whether it’s the ACCC, the Senate or even the languid regulator of record ARNECC that finally reins PEXA in, and opens the stable doors to the likes of Sympli and Lextech, this is inevitable.
Between now and then, PEXA’s board and management need to take care they don’t soon have the ACCC, in particular, breathing down their necks.