Growth is accelerating, as in the first months of 2024 we signed important contracts, which will drive the rest of the year to a much higher growth rate of adjusted revenues and adjusted  EBITDA," said, among others, the Vice President and CEO of Austriacard, Manolis Kontos.

The Group's Adjusted Revenue in Q1 2024 increased by 1.4% to € 89.7 million due to the growth of the Digital Transformation Technologies business and the consolidation of postal delivery services in Romania, while the growth of Secure Chip & Payment solutions is to be reflected in the rest of the year.

Orders to be implemented in Western Europe and the Americas will drive further growth throughout the year.

• The improved sales mix led to an increase in gross profit to €22.5 million and gross margin to 25.1%.
• Adjusted EBITDA increased to €13.7 million and, as a percentage of sales, reached 15.2%.
• Net profit after tax increased to € 5.0 million and the net profit margin on sales rose to 5.6%.

In April 2024, ACAG shareholders allocated 15% of the company's shares to qualified investors, increasing the free float to 28% and significantly enhancing the attractiveness of the shares to institutional investors.

We confirm our 2024 guidance: we remain confident that we will achieve our full-year targets, with adjusted revenue growth of around 10% and even higher adjusted EBITDA growth (10–12%).

Αustriacard Group Vice President and CEO Manolis Kontos noted: "We started 2024 with a strong performance in the geographies of Central Eastern Europe, as well as Turkey, the Middle East, and Africa, with adjusted revenue growing by 23% and 35%, respectively, while Western Europe, Scandinavia, and the Americas had a slower start compared to a very strong Q1 2023, but have contracted strong-to-execute order volumes from Q2 2024 onwards. As a result, the Group's Adjusted Revenue increased by 1.4% to € 89.7 million.

It should be noted that in Q1 2023, we had excellent group revenue growth of 48.7%, compared to Q1 2022. Growth is accelerating as we signed significant contracts in the first few months of 2024, which will drive the rest of the year at a much higher rate of growth in adjusted revenue and adjusted EBITDA. We have successfully completed major deals involving metallic bank cards, renewed card supply and personalization agreements with major financial groups and will begin implementation of public sector RRF projects in Greece.

During the quarter, despite a slow start relative to adjusted revenue growth, adjusted EBITDA margin increased, reaching 15.2% on sales, driven by an improved sales mix structure and a reduced cost base."