The Shareholders’ Meeting of Dedagroup approves the 2021 Financial Statements: 16th consecutive year of growth for the Group

Trento, July 11, 2022 – Dedagroup S.p.A. — the aggregating hub of leading Italian firms in the Software and Solutions as a Service market, currently operating in over 50 countries with more than 4,000 customers, closed 2021 with growth for the 16th consecutive year. 

Marco Podini, Dedagroup S.p.A.’s Executive Chairman, stated: “These results reflect the Group’s ability to support public and private companies in the digital transformation through its high level of multi-industry specialization (finance, corporates and Public Administration), by designing strategies, processes and custom-tailored solutions thanks to its ability to shape technology to meet specific needs. In recognizing the professionalism and skills we offer, our clients adopted these approaches and also forged ahead with them to an extent that should not at all be taken for granted in such a complex year in macroeconomic terms. In accordance with our business philosophy, this year we continued to invest in acquisitions, individual training and certifications, cloud infrastructure and the development of our offering and our proprietary software, with a very strong focus on solutions designed to enable all of our clients, from fashion industry operators to the Public Administration, to adopt new processes to track and increase their direct and supply-chain sustainability. The digital and ecological transitions are at the heart of our core business by nature. As a result, we place ourselves at Italy's disposal in enabling and expediting the implementation of the NRRP, facilitating access to financing for companies thanks to the Group's composite finance hub, fostering the development of new digital, sustainable supply chain models, starting with the key fashion sector, and supporting the Public Administration, from small to large municipalities, in inclusively seizing the opportunity for new economic resources to implement political agendas. We offer all the certainty of swift, secure and streamlined digitalization through cloud governance and the most cutting-edge cybersecurity technologies."
 
In 2021, Dedagroup’s consolidated revenues rose by 15% to €290.5 million (vs €253.5 million in 2020). Consolidated EBITDA rose by an impressive 38% to €38.8 million (vs 29.5% in 2020), while net operating income went from €4.5 million in 2020 to €6.8 million in 2021, with a 51% increase. Overall, the Group markedly overperformed the Information Technology market, whose growth is 5.3% compared to 2020 (Anitec Assinform data). 

The Group's expansion is also reflected in the considerable increase of its workforce, which with 236 hires in the year reached a total of 2,170.


ANALYSIS BY MAIN BUSINESS AREAS

Piteco (PITE:IM), an important player in the treasury sector and highly synergistic with the Group's Finance & Data Hub, continued to reinforce its positioning at the heart of relationships between businesses and payment systems in both the banking and fintech sectors. Together with the strength and diversification of its portfolio of products and solutions, its extensive geographical presence and a business model based on recurring fees, which account for 55% of revenues, this allowed the Company to record in 2021 the highest organic growth over the recent years (+9%).Also important was the role of the recently acquired RAD Informatica, a company that develops software for managing the entire banking and financial credit recovery process, which also contributed decisively to growth through the important synergies developed with the Group's other finance companies. 

In 2021, Dedagroup Business Solutions, the Group company that meets the innovation needs of large corporations, banks and financial institutions, and a key pillar of the Finance & Data Hub, through its in-depth knowledge of industry processes and regulations, reported a significant increase both in terms of revenues (+11%) and net operating margins (+57%), doubling its net income for the year. The synergies that the Company has developed with other firms that have recently joined the Group, such as RAD Informatica, Pegaso 2000 (software solutions for the credit sector, finance, guarantee schemes and funds and the money market) and ORS (a major developer of software platforms aimed at optimizing and automating company processes through AI algorithms) made it possible to bring to the market increasingly integrated solutions with a range that views its distinctive positioning as including overall coverage of the strategic areas of credit management, B2B payments, data intelligence and investment finance.

In 2021, Dedagroup Stealth, which supports the growth of the foremost fashion and luxury brands in Italy and abroad thanks to its proprietary technology platform of reference for the fashion industry, further increased its functional presence for certain clients, while also acquiring new customers. This led it to report a 15% increase in revenues and a 71% growth of margins. These results were also attributable to the forward-looking attitude of the Company, which never stopped investing in its software and which led to the development and release on the market of the new Sustainability Module and Order Management System. Also significant was the performance of the English Zedonk (F2iT), a company acquired in 2020, which allowed Dedagroup Stealth also to serve the segment of start-ups and young designers, and which in 2021 achieved double-digit growth in terms of clients, revenues and margins.

Deda Cloud, Dedagroup's managed cloud and security services provider that is strategic and synergistic to the rapid implementation of the digitalization strategies charted by the Group, reinforced its ability to offer innovative services based on the cloud, security, and electronic data management in 2021, including through the acquisition and subsequent merger of IFInet, specialized in cybersecurity. Deda Cloud's strategic plan calls for revenues to be successfully steered towards a model based on recurring fees, which already account for approximately 67% of overall revenues, and which are expected to show constant growth in absolute terms in the coming years, in keeping with the clear market trend of viewing flexibility and cloud technology as an essential innovation lever, and which the Group has been able to anticipate and interpret, bringing customers a combined cutting-edge IT and cybersecurity solution for maximum operational resilience.

Dedagroup's Digital Business hub also generated considerable value, flowing from increasingly strong intragroup synergies. During the year, Deda Digital, which designs and develops Web and e-commerce platforms, came under the control of Derga, a major Italian provider of SAP services, recognized by the European multinational as Partner of the Year for best commercial performance and quality in 2021 and as a Cloud Digital Transformation Champion. In 2021, Derga thus increased its customer portfolio by 35%, while Deda Digital invested in skills and sales development, reporting an 11% revenue increase and an equal EBITDA decline as a result of these dynamics. 

Deda Next (the new name of Dedagroup Public Services), which supports central and local Bodies and Public Service Agencies in digital transformation, recorded a significant growth of all indicators in 2021, strengthening a trend that is in line with the objectives of the 2020-2023 Business Plan. The value of production amounted to €54.5 million, up 6% compared to the previous year, whereas EBITDA rose by 43% to €1.8 million compared to 2020. These results confirm the ability of Dedagroup Public Services to respond to the demand connected with Italy’s economic recovery and, in particular, the increased expenditure in the digital service market within its sectors of interest: central and local Public Administration, Healthcare, Energy & Utilities, Telco & Media.