If you’ve ever wondered who’s behind the scenes powering the seamless bundling of your favorite streaming services with your phone or internet bill, Bango (AIM: BGO, OTCQX: BGOPF) might just be the unsung hero of the subscription economy. The Cambridge-based company reported full-year results that show not only strong growth, but a company making real headway in turning those big numbers into healthy profits.
For the year ended December 31, 2024, Bango posted total revenue of $53.4 million, a 16% jump from $46.1 million in 2023. That’s not just a one-off either, transactional revenue, which comes from charging a percentage of what consumers pay for digital services, rose 11% to $36.2 million. Meanwhile, revenue from their Digital Vending Machine (DVM) and one-off deals climbed even faster, up 28% to $17.2 million. This kind of growth is usually music to the ears of investors, especially when it comes alongside a more than doubling of adjusted EBITDA, which landed at $15.3 million for the year, up from $6.4 million in 2023.
But perhaps the most telling number is the annual recurring revenue (ARR), which rocketed 59% to $14 million. That’s a strong signal that Bango’s subscription management platform is locking in long-term commitments from customers, not just one-off deals. Net retention, which tracks how much existing customers are spending year over year, remains robust at 125%, down a touch from 137% last year but still well above the magic 100% mark that signals healthy account expansion.
Bango’s losses narrowed significantly, with the net loss after tax improving to $3.7 million from $8.8 million last year. The balance sheet is also looking healthier, with net debt at $1.8 million, down from $4 million at the end of 2023.
Operationally, Bango’s DVM platform is gaining real traction. The company added nine new DVM license customers in 2024, bringing the total to 27. The number of content providers connected to the DVM jumped to 110 from 93 the year before. One notable win was launching Disney+ with Continente, Portugal’s largest high-street retailer, in just 12 weeks from first contact. Bango also signed its first two DVM CX (user interface) customers, including Altice in the US, and landed its first Eastern European DVM customer.
The momentum has carried into 2025, with six new DVM customers already on board. The company now serves six of the top eight US communication providers by subscriber count, a major endorsement of its technology. The first DVM customer in South Korea, a leading telco, and a new win in Benelux further underline Bango’s global ambitions. The launch of the DVM CX with Altice in the US is a milestone, this new interface makes it much easier for resellers to bundle and launch offers quickly, and it’s sold as an additional license fee, opening up a new revenue stream.
On the payments side, Bango continues to be a heavyweight in direct carrier billing, especially for big names like Google Play and Amazon. The company is the only partner powering direct carrier billing for the Amazon store in Japan and the sole provider of online direct carrier billing services to NTT DOCOMO Japan, the largest operator in the world’s most valuable direct carrier billing market. The migration of traffic from DOCOMO Digital to the Bango platform is nearly complete, with 98% of traffic now running on Bango’s systems. While some high-cost sales routes have underperformed, Bango is actively working to optimize or restructure these, and the core transactional business remains in line with expectations.
Financing has been a bright spot as well. Bango secured an enhanced loan facility from NHN, increasing the existing loan by $2.85 million and deferring principal repayments for 18 months. The company also landed a $15 million revolving credit facility with NatWest, replacing a smaller overdraft from Barclays. These moves give Bango more flexibility to manage costs and invest in growth.
Looking ahead, Bango expects to report FY25 adjusted EBITDA in line with market expectations, and further efficiency gains should add about $1 million to adjusted EBITDA in FY26. The company is also planning to reduce R&D capital expenditure by $0.5 million in FY25 and $1 million in FY26, which should help improve cash generation.
CEO Paul Larbey summed up the year: “2024 was a pivotal year for Bango, marked by strong revenue growth, a significant increase in profitability, and strategic progress across both our Digital Vending Machine and Payments businesses. The DVM continues to gain global traction, and we’re positioned at the heart of the global subscription economy. With tens of millions of subscriptions already managed, and the scalability to support hundreds of millions more, Bango is uniquely placed to benefit from the structural shift toward subscription-based services and indirect distribution models.”
For investors, Bango’s story is about more than just numbers. It’s about a company that’s building the infrastructure for the next wave of digital commerce, where subscriptions and bundled services are king.
