- Major progress in move to become a fully digitalized Group
- Record-breaking year for receivables purchasing with total €669 million invested in NPLs and real estate
“We owe last year’s success primarily to our more than 6,000 employees. Every single day, and in what are volatile times, they make EOS a more dynamic and digital place,” says Marwin Ramcke, CEO of the EOS Group. “The last financial year was characterized above all by three factors: Firstly, we were able to build on our core areas of expertise in the purchase and processing of non-performing receivables while reinforcing our status as experts in this field. This was complemented by the outstanding international and cross-border cooperation between our companies in 24 countries. And lastly, increasing automation allowed us to constantly improve our business processes. In what was a challenging year, these are achievements that we as a team can be very proud of,” Ramcke continues.
EOS reinforces leading position and pushes ahead with digital transformation
Over the years, the EOS Group has earned a very good reputation as an international provider of debt collection services and as an investor in receivables packages (NPLs). Backed by the financial strength of the Otto Group, EOS was able to once again make significant investments on the NPL market. The distinct focus on process automation and the use of data-driven collection software also allowed receivables to be processed more successfully and efficiently.“We have made promising progress towards creating a shared analytical data repository that will deliver clear benefits for managing the receivables processing in future. The associated investment was and continues to be a major step to becoming a fully digitalized group of companies,” says Justus Hecking-Veltman, CFO of the EOS Group. The development and use of chatbots in communications with consumers, or the 27/4 service portals already implemented in several countries, are further examples of the digital transformation at EOS.
With its long-standing expertise as a debt collection company and its focus on digitalization and international networking, EOS was able to reinforce and build on its leading position in receivables management in numerous markets in fiscal 2021/22. It was a record-breaking financial year for EOS especially in the field of receivables purchasing, with the Group investing a total €669 million in NPLs and real estate during this period. Thanks to this result, the volume of the previous financial year was significantly exceeded.
EOS implements its ambitious sustainability concept
With its corporate responsibility (CR) strategy launched at the start of the last financial year, EOS is approaching its own commitment to sustainability in a structured manner and with ambitious goals. Joining the UN Global Compact emphatically underscores the company’s endeavors in this area. In the meanwhile, more than 16,000 companies from over 160 countries are participating in the UN initiative to make the world a fairer and more sustainable place. The numerous CR activities undertaken by EOS go far beyond environmental protection, and the company’s social and corporate engagement is already delivering its first results: As a recipient of the Top Women Leaders Award and a gold medal from prestigious rating agency EcoVadis, the EOS Group already won two accolades for its efforts in the field of CR in the last financial year.The company also intends to build on its existing sustainability initiatives in the year ahead. “We take responsibility, not just for our own workforce and customers, but for consumers and the entire debt collection sector as well. Or to put it in a nutshell: changing for the better,” says Ramcke “Personally, I would like to drive the issue of diversity in particular. This is one of the greatest strengths of our international Group. Last year, for example, some of our committed employees established the LGBTQ+ community Queer@EOS and the women’s network W:isible.”
Eastern Europe region spearheads revenue growth in EOS Group
The region of Eastern Europe in particular reported a very pleasing annual result with a year-on-year increase in revenue of 12.2 percent. The national subsidiaries in Croatia, Poland, Serbia and Slovakia delivered a particularly strong performance. Despite the stable performance, earnings (EBITDA) in Eastern Europe were down slightly. This is attributable to the precautionary accounting measures the company took in the light of the war in Ukraine.In the receivables purchasing segment, the investment volume in the region could be more than doubled. “In the last financial year we invested a total of €402.5 million in Eastern Europe, of which €226.5 million we invested in secured receivables and real estate,” says Carsten Tidow, member of the EOS Group’s Board of Directors responsible for Eastern Europe. The national subsidiaries in Greece and Poland particularly made their mark. “To benefit even more from this overall, it is important that we network with one another in the national subsidiaries to an even greater extent. Our goal for the next financial year is to encourage innovation in this way,” he stresses.
Stable performance in Germany
In Germany too, EOS had a successful end to the last financial year 2021/22: Although revenue declined slightly compared with the previous year due to the challenging market situation, it remained high at €274.8 million. To reinforce its leading position on the German market, EOS invested more than €100 million in receivables and real estate in Germany last year. In addition, the company pressed ahead with its digitalization process and significantly enhanced its data-based collection software. “We are constantly improving ourselves in areas like data analytics, intelligent software and agile working methods. Ultimately, however, it is our employees who are the crucial factor in our success,” says Andreas Kropp, member of the EOS Group's Board of Directors with responsibility for the German market.
Substantial increase in revenue and continuous growth
In Western Europe, the national subsidiaries reported a growth rate of 9 percent. In particular, France, Spain and Denmark enjoyed a significant growth in earnings. There was significant backlog in the NPL segment, attributable to the waning of the pandemic. Because in many countries in Western Europe the courts and debt enforcement offices had been shut for a long time due to the pandemic, the widest possible return to regular operations greatly simplified the processing of NPL portfolios acquired in the previous years, and substantially increased operating performance in countries like France and Belgium. “In addition, we invested €144.5 million in receivables packages and real estate in Western Europe. The EOS national subsidiary in Spain also successfully acquired its first secured NPL portfolio. This is an important step for the region,” says Dr. Andreas Witzig, member of the EOS Group’s Board of Directors with responsibility for Western Europe. “We are going to continue to develop our position on the NPL market and become even more active, especially when it comes to secured receivables,” stresses Witzig.
More information, interviews and background reports about the previous financial year 2021/22 of the EOS Group are available in our virtual press area.
About EOS Group
The EOS Group is a leading technology-driven investor in receivables portfolios and an expert in the processing of outstanding receivables. With over 45 years of experience and branches in 24 countries (at end of fiscal 2021/22), EOS offers some 20,000 customers worldwide smart services for all their receivables management needs. Its key target sectors are banking, real estate, telecommunications, utilities and e-commerce. EOS employs more than 6,000 people and is part of Otto Group.For more information on EOS Group, please go to: www.eos-solutions.com
Contact for press and media:
Marc Heuer, Corporate Communications & Marketing EOS GroupEmail: press@eos-solutions.com
Tel: +49 40 2850 1222