Worldline has reported losses of around €817 million in its 2023 financial results, due in large part to a €1.15 billion goodwill impairment on merchant services activities.

The French payments company reported revenue of around €4.6 billion – a moderate six per cent increase on 2022 – and adjusted EBITDA of €1.1 billion, representing a 0.2 per cent rise on 2022.

Worldline chief executive Gilles Grapinet said that despite a positive first half of the year, the company's second half was materially impacted by a gradual macroeconomic and consumption slowdown across its core geographies and the termination of some of its online merchants.

The results come after the digital payments company announced plans to cut around eight per cent of its global workforce in an attempt to realise €200 million in annual savings.

The cost reduction plan dubbed ‘Power24’ was initially announced in October, and translates to about 1,400 jobs.

“Acknowledging the shifting landscape, it is now the right time to accelerate and complete our transformation towards an even leaner and more efficient organization,” Grapinet said. “Power24 is at the heart of this priority.

“It leverages and allows to scale faster other existing strategic initiatives and is designed to be a key lever to successfully overcome the current headwinds and to reinforce the business and financial profile of Worldline.”

For its 2024 outlook, Worldline said it would be targeting organic revenue growth of at least three per cent, adjusted EBITDA of €1.17 billion, and free cash flow of €230 million.

In October, Worldline significantly cut its sales outlook, causing its stock to dive by 57 per cent and a loss of nearly $4 billion in market value. This led to a wider sell-off in the payments sector which has struggled to content with reduced consumer spending.

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