Xref (ASX:XF1) - CEO, Lee-Martin Seymour
CEO, Lee
Sourced: LifeHacker Australia
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  • Xref (XF1) is one of the ASX’s top gainers today after announcing 140 per cent sales growth for the June quarter of 2021
  • June quarter sales hit $6.4 million this year compared to $2.7 million last year and $4 million over the March 2021 quarter
  • With a profit before tax of $800,000, Xref ended the quarter with just under $8.2 million worth of cash in the bank
  • CEO Lee-Martin Seymour says Xref made several strategic decisions over the last financial year to emerge in its “strongest position to date”
  • Shares in Xref are up 20.27 per cent and trading at 44 cents each at 1:11 am AEST

Human resources tech specialist Xref (XF1) is one of the ASX’s top gainers today after announcing 140 per cent sales growth for the June quarter of 2021.

The company told investors this morning it hit just shy of $6.4 million in sales revenue over the quarter compared to the $2.7 million in sales over the same period last year.

Moreover, the June result is a 61 per cent increase on the March 2021 quarter’s $4 million in sales.

The strong sales drove a quarterly profit before tax result of around $800,000.

Xref’s technology is designed to automate the reference checking process for businesses making new hires. Through the Xref platform, employers can request several references at once and receive feedback within 24 hours.

The platform also comes with facial recognition and identity verification tech so employees can easily perform background checks on potential future employees. According to Xref, this is designed to give companies more peace of mind about exactly who they are hiring and to reduce the risk of identity fraud.

COVID-19 unpredictability

Xref management said while COVID-19 certainly created challenges for the business, the associated demand for remote working brought about a desire for increased governance from employers.

This includes candidate verification.

As such, CEO Lee-Martin Seymour said, Xref made several strategic decisions to emerge out of the tough financial year in its “strongest position to date”.

“Over recent years we have focussed on building Xref’s online brand presence, third party ratings and self-serve product,” Mr Seymour said.

“This digital approach has been vital to our growth in 2021 as global employers search online for better ways to verify and measure talent.”

Xref said it can now bring in new clinets through its self-serve platform, its in-house sales team and its channel partnets.

As such, the company said its reliance on outbound, direct sales activities was being replaced by “inbound, market-let demand”.

The company said channel partner integrations and an improved global digital strategy helped generate an increase in such inbound leads.

According to Xref, new clients added during the June quarter inclue NIB Group, Prospa and General Pants Group in Australia, New Zealand’s Ministry of Health, and more.

Xref ended the quarter with just under $8.2 million worth of cash in the bank.

Shares in Xref were up 20.27 per cent and trading at 44 cents each at 1:11 am AEST. The company has an $81 million market cap.

XF1 by the numbers
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