Oslo, Norway, 24 June 2025 – Link Mobility (“LINK”) announces the acquisition of SMSPortal, a market-leading provider of A2P (Application-to-Person) messaging services in South Africa, with substantial international business. Through this acquisition, LINK executes on its inorganic growth strategy and expands its footprint beyond Europe.
“We are pleased to announce the acquisition of SMSPortal, the number one player in an attractive market with further growth opportunities within the A2P market and high growth potential from introducing LINK’s more advanced CPaaS solutions,” said Thomas Berge, CEO of LINK.
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SMSPortal is a pure A2P SMS messaging provider with a stable base of large local and international customers combined with a long tail of small and medium customers, predominantly within the enterprise segment. Its operations and customer base offer a strong strategic fit with LINK’s existing business model and product offering.
The acquisition reinforces LINK’s trajectory of robust growth and profitability. For the last 12 months ended April 2025, SMSPortal generated group revenues of USD 112 million and a group EBITDA of USD 25 million, translating to an attractive EBITDA margin of 22%.
Compelling financial and strategic rationale
The total purchase price is USD 115 million before conditional payment. The transaction will be settled through an upfront cash payment of USD 100 million, financed with cash on hand, and an equity consideration of USD 15 million, implying an attractive multiple of 4.6x cash EBITDA. The equity component will be settled with 5.9 million shares issued at a price of NOK 26 per share.
In addition, the agreement includes a conditional payment potential of up to USD 30 million, for a total purchase price of up to USD 145 million. The conditional payment will be paid in two annual tranches, contingent upon SMSPortal meeting predefined targets.
The transaction is expected to close in Q3 2025, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
“The acquisition perfectly aligns with LINK’s M&A playbook and extends our footprint to a new market with predictable market conditions, stable legislation and robust telco regulations. In addition to SMSPortal providing a solid foundation for further profitable growth, the transaction is also highly accretive to LINK’s own valuation,” Berge continued.
SMSPortal will continue to operate as an independent business unit, maintaining its own identity and brand. Its existing leadership and employees will operate primarily from the Cape Town headquarters, serving both local and international customers
“Being a part of a European industry leader like LINK enables us to enhance our product offering,” said Andre Ittmann, CEO of SMSPortal. “By leveraging LINK’s established expertise, resources and products, we can deliver better communications services to an even broader and more diverse local and international customer base, driving accelerated profitable growth with sustained high margins.”
Robust track record and growth momentum
Over the past three years, SMSPortal has significantly scaled its operations, with group revenue increasing from USD 65 million to USD 112 million, driven by consistent market expansion and strong customer retention across its local and international customer base.
Gross profit has grown at a remarkable rate, with a CAGR of 43% over the last three years, while EBITDA more than doubled over the same period from USD 11 million to USD 25 million. With an EBITDA margin improving from 17% to 22%, the transaction is immediately EBITDA accretive.
The acquisition implies a cash EBITDA multiple of 4.6x based on the USD 115 million upfront consideration. Including the conditional payment of up to USD 30 million, the total purchase price could reach USD 145 million, corresponding to a multiple of up to 5.8x.
On a pro-forma basis, LINK’s net interest-bearing debt (NIBD) as of Q1 2025 increases to NOK 2.0 billion, translating to a pro-forma leverage ratio of 1.8x taking considering receivables from US divestment, well within LINK’s target range of 2.0x-2.5x. The strong cash position and disciplined capital structure provide ample flexibility for future strategic initiatives.
SMSPortal’s high-margin revenue base, strong customer relationships, and strong growth potential provide a solid foundation for continued stable and profitable growth in the attractive South African market. Looking ahead, SMSPortal is expected to deliver high single-digit annual gross profit growth from current operations, supported by stable or improving margins. Additional upside is expected from the rollout of LINK’s high-margin CPaaS products, including conversational solutions on RCS and WhatsApp.
Presentation with management
LINK Mobility invites investors, analysts and media to participate in a live presentation at 10:00 CEST today, 24 June, in which Thomas Berge, CEO, and Morten Løken Edvardsen, CFO & VP Investor Relations, will elaborate on the strategic and financial rationale of the acquisition, followed by a Q&A session.
The presentation materials are enclosed and available on http://www.linkmobility.com/investors. Participants can access the live webcast via the following link: https://channel.royalcast.com/landingpage/hegnarmedia/20250624_2/
For further information, please contact:
Morten Løken Edvardsen, CFO & VP Investor Relations
+47 90 56 15 89
ir@linkmobility.com
About LINK Mobility
LINK is an award-winning, leading global provider of mobile messaging and communications platform as a service (CPaaS) solutions for increased engagement. The company serves enterprise, SME and government customers. LINK offers a wide range of innovative and scalable mobile solutions, creating valuable digital convergence between businesses and customers, governments and citizens, platforms and users. LINK has more than 50,000 active customer accounts globally and exchanges more than 21 billion messages a year. LINK is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker LINK. For more information about LINK, please see www.linkmobility.com and follow LINK Mobility on LinkedIn.
This information is considered to be inside information pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. This stock exchange announcement was published by Morten Løken Edvardsen, CFO & VP Investor Relations at LINK Mobility Group Holding ASA, on 24 June 2025 at 06:00 CEST.
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