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E$-$commerce, food delivery services bolster Naspers revenue

JSE$-$listed Internet group Naspers says it delivered good results for the six months ended $30$ September, with e$-$commerce business revenue growing $69\%$ year$-$on$-$year.

Despite the effects of COVID$-19,$ the group$$s interim results statement reveals Naspers recovered well from a tough first quarter to accelerate revenue growth, improve profitability and cash$-$flow generation.

Group revenue grew $32\%$ to $$13$ billion, with strong growth across its food delivery, online retail and education businesses, with group trading profit increasing by $42\%$ to $$2\mathrm{.}6$ billion.

Core headline earnings were $$1\mathrm{.}6$ billion, driven by improved profitability from e$-$commerce units and the growing contribution from Chinese tech giant Tencent, according to the report.

The Takealot group $($Takealot$.$com, Superbalist and Mr D Food$)$ exceeded its pre$-$COVID$-19$ growth rate, generating $$407$ million gross merchandise value and growing $85\%$ in local currency.

Takealot group revenue grew $41\%$ to $$238$ million. Given this strong topline performance, Takealot delivered a trading loss improvement of $36\%(27\%),$ despite significant one$-$time pandemic$-$related investments.

$$Our strong performance reflects the resilience and adaptability of the group and of our teams to effectively navigate challenging times,$$ says Bob van Dijk, group CEO of Naspers.

$$We entered the pandemic with financial strength and good momentum and in the second quarter businesses recovered well from the initial impact of COVID$-19$ and are now fundamentally stronger than they were going into the pandemic.$$

The pandemic has accelerated activity in the consumer Internet space, benefitting Naspers$$s overall businesses, adds Van Dijk.

The group achieved $141\%$ revenue growth of food delivery, $69\%$ revenue growth in e$-$commerce and $54\%$ revenue growth in edtech. iFood grew revenue by $234\%$ year$-$on$-$year; PayU GPO reported revenue of $48\%$ as more people used cashless payment methods; Udemy grew enrolments more than $400\%$; while BYJU$$S saw $180\%$ growth in student registrations.

$$We have seen particularly strong growth in food delivery, online payments, e$-$tail and edtech and, throughout the period, we continued to invest for long$-$term growth. Looking ahead, we will continue to look after our people and support the communities we serve through uncertain times and we are focused on emerging well from the pandemic,$$ states Van Dijk.

European consumer Internet giant Prosus, which is $74\%$ owned by Naspers, reported revenue increase of $32\%$ to $$12\mathrm{.}7$ billion. The Naspers subsidiary, which listed on the Euronext Amsterdam in September last year, recently announced its intention to acquire up to $$5$ billion of Naspers and Prosus shares.

The share purchase by Prosus constitutes a general repurchase of securities under the JSE listings requirements and will be implemented in accordance with, and subject to$,$ the relevant authorities granted by Naspers shareholders, according to Naspers.

The company says it also made several investments in other international businesses for long$-$term growth, including leading a $$20$ million investment round for a $35\%$ fully diluted stake in the merged businesses of letgo and OfferUp in the US; participated in a $$150$ million financing round for assets into Emerging Markets Property Group and OLX Brazil, acquiring real$-$estate vertical Grupo Zap. $3$

While the current operating environment remains uncertain and the longer$-$term social and economic impact of COVID$-19$ is unclear, the group says it is on a solid financial footing and the fundamentals of the underlying businesses are strong and well$-$positioned to build on the accelerating shift to online, triggered by the pandemic.

In SA$,$ Naspers has committed to invest a total of R$4\mathrm{.}6$ billion, which includes the R$1\mathrm{.}4$ billion for its investment fund, Naspers Foundry, its early$-$stage tech investment vehicle.

$$Naspers is deeply committed to SA$.$ We believe our country$$s technology ecosystem has a vibrant future with many attributes supporting growth in this sector $$ access to technology talent, a relatively low cost of doing business, and a society that is digitising rapidly,$$ says Phuthi Mahanyele$-$Dabengwa, CEO of Naspers South Africa.

$$We are seeing this play out in the growth of e$-$commerce, fintech and education technology platforms. Through Naspers Foundry, we are proud to invest in the next wave of home$-$grown tech businesses and we are excited by a rich pipeline of prospects. We$$re on the road to economic recovery and inclusive growth.$$

$3\mathrm{.}1.$ Construct a model or diagram depicting the elements of the transaction $$ processing system used by Takealot. $(10)$

$3\mathrm{.}2.$ Discuss Takealot$$s Enterprise Resource Planning $($ERP$)$ system. $(10)$

QUESTION $4[30]$

$4\mathrm{.}1.$ Examine the competitive advantage that Information and communication systems provide an organisation. $(15)$

$4\mathrm{.}2.$ Analyse the impact that informatioRead the following articl