The Insider - Monitise

Monitise boss doubles stake

A strategic review has brought big changes at Monitise. There will be more to come, of course, and with it execution risk. But management is backing itself to repair the mobile payments specialist and deliver a first cash profit next year.

Non-executive director Tim Wade's wife bought 250,000 shares at 14.4p each on Tuesday for a total cost of £36,000. Mr Wade now has an interest in 350,000 shares.

However, the big guns were rolled out a day later. Elizabeth Buse, named last week as the lone chief executive after founder and co-CEO Alastair Lukies said he was stepping down, snapped up 500,000 shares at 13.25p, not far off a five-year low. That doubles her stake to over 1 million.

Her deputy CEO and chief commercial officer Lee Cameron piled in, too, adding 250,000 shares at the same price. He now owns 288,880 of them. And both own potentially lucrative options, currently worth about £1.7 million - Buse 5 million and Cameron 7.8 million.

The two-month strategic review finished last week and, after potential buyers failed to excite Monitise's management, the firm has decided to go it alone as bosses worried a long, drawn-out process would interfere with the day-to-day running of the business.

"Monitise is a great business with a unique offering," said sole CEO Elizabeth Buse, and Alastair Lukies, now strategic adviser, believes Monitise is "set to thrive."

Now, fully committed to going it alone, Monitise must remain on track to make a cash profit in the year to June 2016. Buse says it is. Management also reiterated guidance for revenue this year of £90-100 million and an EBITDA loss of £40-50 million.

Further out, the firm still targets 30% cash profit margin by June 2018, although it has dropped guidance for its target of 200 million users and £2.50 ARPU (Average revenue per user), also previously slated for June 2018.

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