Overseas potential waiting to be tapped says upbeat I–Design

By GARETH MACKIE
Published on 28/06/2012 00:25

I-Design, the cash machine software specialist, yesterday said it was looking at overseas growth opportunities as it revealed it had made an encouraging start to the second half of the year.

The Dundee-based company, which makes software that allows ATM operators to display adverts and marketing messages on their machines, posted a pre-tax profit of £45,000 for the six months to March.

That compared with a loss of £105,000 a year earlier, although the firm had moved into profitability during the second half of last year.

Revenues rose 13 per cent to £1.6 million, boosted by a deal with a Canadian bank which has deployed the firm’s software across its entire ATM estate. However, it warned that market conditions in the advertising sector “remained tough” and were not expected to improve during the second half of the year.

Earlier this month it secured new deals with existing clients Barclays and Cardtronics, the world’s largest non-bank ATM operator, who each bought 1,500 additional software licences.

I-Design’s software is now installed on some 28,000 cash machines. Of those, 19,000 are in the UK, with most of the remainder in North America.

Chief executive Ana Stewart said: “We’re looking to expand our opportunities, for example in South America. We’re certainly not discounting the potential in other emerging territories.”

Chairman Jim Faulds said the firm’s financial position “remains robust”, with £810,00 net cash and no bank debt. He added: “This, with significant growth opportunities, means we view the future positively.”