DiGiSPICE H1 continuing PAT rises 30% despite lower revenue

DiGiSPICE reported a 30% rise in H1 FY27 profit after tax, or PAT, from continuing business to Rs 18.6 crore, even as revenue fell 9% to Rs 226.4 crore and customer gross transaction value, or GTV, declined 12% to Rs 57,167 crore. The improvement came with a 5% reduction in indirect costs.

Why did DiGiSPICE’s H1 FY27 continuing profit rise?

DiGiSPICE’s continuing-business PAT rose because lower indirect costs more than offset a slight decline in gross margin during H1 FY27. Continuing-business PAT increased to Rs 18.6 crore from Rs 14.3 crore in H1 FY26, while indirect costs fell to Rs 83.5 crore from Rs 87.7 crore. Management attributed the cost reduction mainly to efficiency in travel expenses.

Gross margin was nearly unchanged in absolute terms, declining 1% to Rs 100.0 crore in H1 FY27 from Rs 101.2 crore a year earlier. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, or EBITDA, nevertheless rose 23% to Rs 16.5 crore from Rs 13.4 crore, while earnings before interest and tax, or EBIT, rose 25% to Rs 25.8 crore from Rs 20.6 crore.

What changed in DiGiSPICE’s revenue, GTV and margins?

DiGiSPICE processed less customer GTV and recorded lower revenue in H1 FY27, but its gross margin as a percentage of revenue improved. Customer GTV fell to Rs 57,167 crore from Rs 65,287 crore, while revenue declined to Rs 226.4 crore from Rs 248.4 crore. Gross margin as a share of revenue increased to 44.2% from 40.7%, while gross margin as a share of customer GTV rose to 0.17% from 0.15%.

The second quarter showed a sequential improvement in activity and revenue. Q2 FY27 customer GTV was Rs 28,873 crore, up 2% from Rs 28,295 crore in Q1 FY27, and revenue increased 10% to Rs 118.6 crore from Rs 107.8 crore. However, Q2 FY27 GTV remained below Rs 32,435 crore in Q2 FY26, and quarterly revenue remained below Rs 124.6 crore a year earlier.

Q2 FY27 gross margin rose 8% quarter on quarter to Rs 51.9 crore from Rs 48.1 crore. Indirect costs increased 11% sequentially to Rs 43.8 crore from Rs 39.6 crore, which management said was mainly due to annual increments effective 1 July. As a result, Q2 FY27 EBITDA declined 5% quarter on quarter to Rs 8.1 crore, while continuing-business PAT still rose 5% to Rs 9.5 crore.

How did DiGiSPICE’s core platform and new engines affect earnings?

DiGiSPICE’s core platform remained the principal contributor to H1 FY27 gross margin and EBITDA, while new engines narrowed their loss. The core platform generated gross margin of Rs 97.4 crore in H1 FY27, compared with Rs 99.9 crore in H1 FY26, and produced EBITDA of Rs 17.5 crore compared with Rs 17.0 crore. New engines generated Rs 2.7 crore of gross margin, up from Rs 1.2 crore.

New engines, defined by DiGiSPICE as Credit and Spice Money UPI, recorded an EBITDA loss of Rs 0.9 crore in H1 FY27, compared with a Rs 3.6 crore loss in H1 FY26. In Q2 FY27, their EBITDA loss narrowed to Rs 0.1 crore from Rs 1.3 crore in Q2 FY26. The core platform’s Q2 FY27 EBITDA was Rs 8.1 crore, below Rs 8.3 crore a year earlier but above total company EBITDA of Rs 6.9 crore in Q2 FY26.

The distinction between continuing and total PAT also matters to the reported result. Total PAT, including discontinued business, was Rs 15.5 crore in H1 FY27, up 10% from Rs 14.1 crore, while discontinued-business PAT was a loss of Rs 1.0 crore versus a Rs 0.2 crore loss a year earlier. H1 FY27 PAT also included a one-time exceptional provision of Rs 2.1 crore related to real-estate revaluation.

What operating developments does DiGiSPICE disclose for future earnings?

DiGiSPICE disclosed mixed transaction trends in its collections business during Q2 FY27. Overall collections were Rs 10,376 crore, up 2.5% quarter on quarter from Rs 10,125 crore but down 19.9% year on year from Rs 12,946 crore. Cash management services, or CMS, collections were Rs 8,684 crore, broadly flat from Rs 8,622 crore in Q1 FY27 and below Rs 11,504 crore in Q2 FY26.

Management is transitioning from price-sensitive corporate CMS partnerships toward Bharat Bill Payment System, or BBPS, collections, which it describes as higher margin. BBPS’s share of overall collections GTV increased to 16% in Q2 FY27 from 11% in Q2 FY26, while BBPS collections rose 12.6% quarter on quarter and 17.3% year on year. The business had 224 BBPS EMI billers live in Q2 FY27, compared with 194 in Q2 FY26, alongside 87 CMS clients.

Credit distribution volumes also increased from a year earlier, although quarterly disbursal value fell. DiGiSPICE disbursed 5,269 Adhikari and Vyapaari loans in Q2 FY27, up from 3,174 in Q2 FY26 and 5,222 in Q1 FY27. Their value was Rs 29.1 crore, up from Rs 16.7 crore a year earlier but down 5% from Rs 30.8 crore in Q1 FY27, as management said tighter lender credit policies constrained overall Vyapaar loan growth.

Conclusion

DiGiSPICE’s H1 FY27 figures show that the 30% increase in continuing-business PAT to Rs 18.6 crore came from cost efficiency and improved revenue-margin percentages rather than transaction or revenue growth. Revenue fell 9%, customer GTV fell 12%, and gross margin declined 1% in absolute terms, while indirect costs decreased 5% and EBITDA increased 23%.

The next operating indicators are the CMS-to-BBPS transition, the pace of credit distribution and the planned product launches. Management has said it is targeting a Micro LAP product launch by Q4 FY27, after launching personal loans in Q2 FY27; it also plans to scale five core referral loan products and strengthen supply for FD-backed credit cards.