Mekong Capital-invested pawnshop chain F88 posts Q1 net profit after 2023 hefty loss

F88 Business Joint Stock Company (F88), which runs the F88-branded pawnshop chain in Vietnam, has said it earned a net profit of VND31 billion ($1.22 million) in the first quarter of this year, after posting a heavy loss in 2023.

Its Q1/2024, the firm’s revenue increased at the fastest pace since early 2023 and topped its peak in Q4/2023 by 2%, it said in a statement, without giving specific figures.

The number of new customers increased 9% in the quarter, the firm added.

F88 attributed the improving Q1 performance to accelerating economic growth, better risk control and debt recovery, lower net write-off costs, as well as a more solid financial foundation.

The financial services company raised VND191 billion ($7.5 million) worth of bonds between January and March. Its debt to equity (D/E) ratio was 1.99 times at the end of March, which the company said was “quite sound” in the financial industry.

F88 incurred a net loss of VND528.85 billion ($20.76 million) in 2023, versus a net profit of VND208.14 billion in 2022. Its D/E ratio dropped to 1.8 from 4.18 times in 2022.

Established in 2013, F88 is one of the fastest-growing financial services providers in the country with over 800 transaction offices nationwide.

In 2023, it raised $50 million in a Series C funding round from Vietnam Oman Investment and Mekong Capital, a major fund manager in the country. It also secured a $50-million loan from Lending Ark and sold VND250 billion ($9.82 million) worth of bonds last year.