Daisy debt juggle results in growing pre-tax loss

Lancashire-based telecoms and IT business Daisy has seen pre-tax losses swell in the last financial year, but has made moves to cut its debt levels.
Daisy Holdco’s financial results posted at Companies House show pre-tax losses of £102.7m, up from £48.9m in 2023. Revenue increased from £417.2m to £443.2m for the year.
At the end of the financial year to 31 March 2023 debts stood at £536.6m.
However, following the reporting period Daisy has restructured its debt by £230.6m of senior debt and £124.5m in payment in kind debt, while the group’s super-senior debt was repaid in full following a new facility agreement.
In July 2024 Daisy Corporate Services was merged with Wavenet, backed by Macquarie Capital Principal Finance since 2021, and in June 2024 the group acquired 4Com for £215m.
In his chairman’s notes founder Matt Riley said: “These transactions will enable the group to focus its strategy on SME customers, enhancing its position as the largest independent direct SME telecoms business in the UK.”
In 2023 the SME division reported revenue increased year-on-year by 56% to £209m, with EBITDA up 65% to £52m in the period, and said the business was on track to continue delivering double-digit growth in 2024. It made a modest growth of £10m on the previous year.
SME customer numbers for the year dropped from 185,000 to 174, 500, with an average revenue per customer of £1,000. But amongst corporate customers the average revenue increased from £107,000 to £125,000 with a decrease in customer numbers from 1,936 to 1,782.
But the highly leveraged business also reported net senior debt stands at £523.2m, an increase from £461.9m, mainly due to increased borrowings and costs of acquisitions, lease renewals and net cash outflow for the year.
In a repeat of a move it made last year, the group drew down a further £50m on its facility to repay part of acquisition of XLN in March 2022.