• Digital Technologies and Identity & Payment solutions drive broad-based growth across all three geographic segments
• 96.55% of AUSTRIACARD’s shareholders accepted DNP’s offer; the Offer remains subject to the outstanding FDI clearance from the competent Austrian authorities before becoming unconditionally binding
AUSTRIACARD HOLDINGS AG (ACAG), the international applied technology group headquartered in Vienna, announces its H1 2026 financial results.
▪ Group Revenues of €186.6m (14% increase vs. H1 2025), with Digital Technologies and Identity & Payment solutions the key growth drivers, while WEST and MEA regional segments were the clear outperformers. Q2 2026 Group Revenues increased 20% vs. Q2 2025, backed by the accelerated implementation of large-scale, public sector digitization projects in Greece (Digital Technologies) and growth momentum in Identity & Payment solutions.
▪ Digital Technologies (+93% vs. H1 2025), supported by the accelerated implementation of large-scale, public sector digitization projects in Greece (approx. €14m revenue increase vs. H1 2025). Identity & Payment solutions (+13% vs. H1 2025) anchored by strong growth from Fintech clients in the WEST segment and citizen authentication solutions in the MEA segment.
▪ EBITDA of €19.4m (10% increase vs. H1 2025), supported by revenue growth. Group EBITDA margin contracted by 40bps vs. H1 2025 to 10.4% burdened by higher 3rd party (outsourced) costs for the Greek public sector digitization projects, margin pressure in Document Lifecycle Management solutions, especially in the Romanian market, and extraordinary expenses incurred for the settlement of the legacy management participation program 2022-2025 (SOP) and the ongoing takeover offer from DNP. Excluding all extraordinary expenses related to the accounting effects of the SOP settlement and current LTI plan as well as the takeover offer from DNP, Group EBITDA reached €21.9m, implying a 14% like-for-like increase vs. H1 2025, in-line with reported revenue growth.
▪ Net Profit of €5.8m (135% increase vs. H1 2025), driven by EBIT growth (+22% vs. H1 2025) and one-off €2.2m gain from the sale of a 25% minority stake in SEGLAN S.L.
▪ Operating Cash Flow of €9.3m outflow in H1 2026 was adversely impacted by a cash outflow related to the SOP settlement and especially by the working capital build-up (€26m operating cash flow impact), largely on account of higher Contract Assets and Trade & Other Receivables. Contract assets increased due to the public sector digitization projects in Greece and the Identity & Payment contract assets in CEE and MEA. Trade receivables increased on the back of invoicing Greek public sector digitization projects and Identity solutions projects in MEA. The increase in Other receivables is largely attributed to VAT claims and deferred expenses.
▪ Group Net Debt reached €103.9m (vs. €81.6m in FY2025), as the aforesaid working capital build up is funded by a combination of cash and debt drawdown. Group Leverage (Net Debt / EBITDA) at 2.1x, improved vs. 2.3x in H1 2025.
▪ 2026 Outlook & revised Management guidance: Management remains focused on execution in H2 2026, supported by a strong order backlog and sustained solid demand across the Group’s core businesses. Management revises upward its FY2026 Group Revenue growth target vs. 2025 to low-double-digit, from the high-single-digit growth target communicated at the beginning of the year. Revenue growth in H2 2026 is expected to be primarily driven by sustained solid growth from Fintech customers in both Western Europe and the United States, as well as by secure document printing orders and Identity solutions in Africa. At the same time, Management now expects FY2026 Group EBITDA margin to contract vs. 2025, compared to the margin expansion it had previously anticipated at the beginning of the year. This reflects margin pressure in Document Lifecycle Management solutions in CEE and lower average selling prices for banking cards in both CEE and Türkiye, amid heightened market competition and persistent macroeconomic volatility and uncertainty. In addition, the Group FY2026 EBITDA is expected to be burdened by additional, non-budgeted costs, currently estimated at approx. €6m in total, associated with the takeover offer from DNP, the resulting change-of-control event and the settlement of the legacy management participation program 2022–2025. Based on the aforesaid factors, Management currently expects Group FY2026 reported EBITDA to marginally decline vs. 2025, despite the anticipated low double-digit revenue growth. Finally, Management currently expects FY2026 Group Operating Cash Flow to remain broadly unchanged vs. 2025.
▪ Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (“DNP”) Voluntary Takeover Offer: On 13 May 2026, DNP announced its intention to launch a voluntary public takeover offer for all outstanding shares of AUSTRIACARD HOLDINGS AG (the “Offer”) at a cash consideration of €10.00 per share. The Offer Document was published on 12 June 2026, while on 19 June 2026, the Management Board and Supervisory Board published their reasoned statements and recommended that the Company’s shareholders accept the Offer. The Offer Acceptance Period commenced on 12 June 2026 and it was completed on 21 August 2026 with approx. 96.55% of shareholders accepting the Offer. The Offer is subject to the Conditions Precedent set out in Section 4.1 of the Offer Document, which have not been entirely fulfilled (FDI clearance from the competent authorities in Austria is still outstanding). Therefore, at the time of publication of the Results Press Release, the Offer has not become unconditionally binding. In accordance with the Austrian Takeover Act, an Additional Acceptance Period of 3 months, addressed to all shareholders who did not accept the Offer, commenced on 26 August 2026 and expires on 26 November 2026 at 17:00 Vienna local time / 18:00 Athens local time. Moreover, DNP announced its intention to pursue a squeeze-out in accordance with the provisions of the Austrian Squeeze-out Act, subject to the fulfilment of the remaining Condition Precedent, which will ultimately lead to the delisting of AUSTRIACARD shares from both the VSE and Euronext Athens.
Manolis Kontos, Chairman of the Management Board and Group CEO, commented:
“H1 2026 confirms what we committed to at the start of the year: the return to growth momentum is continuing beyond a single quarter. Revenue growth accelerated in the second quarter, with all three geographic segments contributing and Digital Technologies and Identity & Payment solutions leading the performance. The strategic choices of recent years — the markets we entered, the capabilities we built, the customer relationships we deepened — are showing up in the numbers, with a breadth and consistency that gives us confidence in the trajectory ahead.
At the same time, the full year profitability outlook is expected to develop differently from the revenue trajectory. Competitive pricing in banking cards across parts of CEE and Türkiye, combined with the structural evolution of Document Lifecycle Management solutions toward digital delivery, are creating pressure on margins. We are addressing these factors through continued growth in Digital Technologies, holistic Citizen Identity services and Fintech-focused Payment solutions, while maintaining a disciplined focus on execution and the quality of our business mix. Additionally, the DNP offer process and the settlement of the legacy management participation program will add non-recurring costs in 2026, the cash impact of which will be largely offset by the significant working capital improvement we anticipate in the second half of the year. These are the headwinds we are managing; the underlying direction of the business remains clear.
The results achieved in the first half of the year reflect work carried out over several years: building teams and capabilities, expanding into new markets and developing long-term client relationships. We are seeing Digital Technologies move from pilot projects to larger-scale deployments, Identity solutions in MEA develop into recurring revenue opportunities, and continued growth from Fintech and neobank customers in the UK and the United States.
With the acceptance period of the DNP offer now completed, AUSTRIACARD remains focused on the fulfilment of the outstanding condition precedent. Subject to the fulfilment of the pending condition precedent and the completion of the transaction, the proposed combination with DNP is anticipated to bring complementary geographic footprints, capabilities and client relationships across Europe, Asia, the United States and the Middle East. As stated in the Public Offer documentation, DNP has indicated its intention to support the continued development of the Group’s strategy. We remain focused on serving our clients, supporting our people and executing on the opportunities ahead.”
