Yatra Online, Inc. — Form 20-F Summary
Period: Fiscal year ended March 31, 2023. This is an annual report, not a report for calendar 2022 Q4; the filing presents fiscal-year comparisons. Financial statements are prepared under IFRS and amounts below are in INR unless noted.
Business context and reporting period
Yatra operates primarily in India as an online travel company serving leisure and corporate customers. Its principal segments are Air Ticketing, Hotels and Packages, and Other Services. The company reported recovery in travel demand following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. Gross bookings are customer booking value, while Adjusted Margin and Adjusted EBITDA are non-IFRS measures.
Key financial and operating metrics
| Metric | FY2023 | FY2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Total revenue | INR 3,827.3 million | INR 1,989.4 million |
| Revenue from services | INR 3,405.5 million | INR 1,817.4 million |
| Gross bookings | INR 67,397.5 million | INR 34,298.4 million |
| Adjusted Margin | INR 5,578.9 million | INR 2,971.7 million |
| Adjusted EBITDA | Profit of INR 422.9 million | Profit of INR 159.0 million |
| Results from operations | Profit of INR 79.7 million | Loss of INR 431.5 million |
| Net loss | INR 288.2 million | INR 482.5 million |
| Operating cash flow | Used INR 1,962.3 million | Used INR 972.2 million |
| Cash and cash equivalents | INR 503.6 million | INR 800.3 million |
| Term deposits | INR 587.4 million, of which INR 550.1 million was pledged | INR 568.3 million |
| Borrowings | INR 2,352.7 million | INR 358.6 million |
| Total equity | INR 719.3 million | INR 892.2 million |
Revenue increased 92.4% and gross bookings increased 96.5%, reflecting travel-market recovery, higher booking volumes, and GDS incentive accruals. The company remained loss-making under IFRS despite improved operating results. Adjusted EBITDA excludes specified items and should not be treated as a substitute for IFRS results.
Adjusted Margin percentage declined year over year in Air Ticketing to 7.7% from 8.0% and in Hotels and Packages to 13.0% from 17.2%; Other Services improved to 6.3% from 5.1%. The filing attributes the hotel/package margin decline partly to a shift toward packages.
Material changes versus the prior comparable period
- Travel recovery drove higher revenue, gross bookings and segment Adjusted Margin; hotel and package gross bookings rose 134.5%.
- Operating cash use increased. Management attributed the FY2023 outflow largely to working-capital growth, including higher receivables and supplier advances.
- Borrowings rose substantially, including factoring facilities, secured debentures and the MAK shareholder note. Finance costs increased to INR 326.4 million from INR 100.5 million.
- Trade and other receivables increased to INR 3,061.2 million from INR 1,934.7 million; the company also reported increased provisions for doubtful receivables and advances.
Outlook, risks, contingencies and unusual items
- Outlook: Management said existing cash and expected operating cash flow should meet working-capital and other needs for at least 12 months. It expected FY2024 capital expenditure of approximately INR 350–500 million. No specific revenue or profitability guidance was provided.
- Liquidity and debt: Current liabilities exceeded current assets at March 31, 2023. A debt covenant was breached at year-end; lenders subsequently waived the breach and related cross-defaults in May 2023. The filing says affected debt was classified as current; disclosures give slightly different amounts (INR 219.1 million and INR 220.7 million). The company reported the waivers did not affect its liquidity or going-concern assessment.
- Shareholder loan: The company issued MAK Capital Fund, an affiliate of a director and shareholder, a US$10 million unsecured note at 11% interest, due October 5, 2023. It prepaid US$1.6 million in June 2023, leaving US$8.4 million outstanding at that date. Default provisions include potential acceleration or conversion.
- Go First: The airline entered insolvency proceedings after year-end. Yatra reversed INR 15.1 million of expected FY2023 income and disclosed INR 24.1 million of advances as of May 3, 2023. Go First was later permitted to resume operations subject to regulatory requirements.
- Controls: Management concluded disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting were ineffective at March 31, 2023. The auditor issued an adverse opinion on internal controls, citing deficiencies in review-control documentation and IT controls for freight forwarding. The auditor nevertheless issued an unqualified opinion on the IFRS financial statements.
- Legal and tax matters: The filing discloses customer claims, tax assessments and service-tax disputes; no provision was recorded for certain contested claims because management considered an outflow not probable. The notes identify INR 315.5 million of service-tax show-cause demands, while the narrative describes additional disputes and historical demand amounts. Yatra India also faced a disputed Ezeego claim against a subsidiary.
- Strategic and supplier risks: The proposed Indian IPO of Yatra India was not assured. Air Ticketing depends on a limited number of major domestic airlines and GDS partners; commissions and inventory access may decline. Competition, supplier concentration, foreign exchange exposure, and possible renewed travel disruption are additional risks.
- Non-IFRS presentation: The company changed its key non-IFRS measure from “Adjusted Revenue” to “Adjusted Margin” in FY2023. Management cautions that these measures may not be comparable with similarly named measures at other companies.
Important facts for investors to verify
- Reconcile the FY2023 operating cash-flow figures: the audited cash-flow statement reports INR 1,962.3 million used, while some narrative disclosures cite INR 2,006.2 million.
- Confirm the covenant-related current debt reclassification and the differing amounts reported, and review the scope and timing of lender waivers.
- Assess receivable quality, supplier advances, factoring exposure and collection of airline/GDS incentive accruals, including the INR 190.6 million contract asset tied to GDS thresholds.
- Review the remediation progress for material weaknesses and whether subsequent audits confirm effective internal controls.
- Check the status and repayment or refinancing of the MAK note, and the proposed Yatra India IPO and related use of proceeds.
- Evaluate the outcome and potential exposure from Go First, Ezeego and the disclosed tax and service-tax proceedings.