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Miguel Cordon · · 3 min readAiralo entity swings to net profit in 2024
In July, eSIM company Airalo raised US$220 million in a round that valued the firm at over US$1 billion, minting it as a unicorn.
As of late last year, the Peak XV-backed firm crossed another milestone: Its Singapore-based entity, AirGSM Pte. Ltd, hit net profitability. The entity is a wholly owned subsidiary of AirGSM Holdings, which is incorporated in the US and is Airalo’s ultimate holding company.
Airalo co-founders Abraham Burak (left) and Ahmet Bahadir Özdemir / Photo Credit: Airalo
AirGSM Pte. Ltd. (AirGSM) swung to a profit before tax of US$12.3 million in 2024, its audited financial statement shows. Net profit was US$10.1 million.
While expenses grew significantly between 2023 and 2024, revenue rose faster, surging 89.1% year on year to US$286.2 million.
Airalo declined to comment on its financials when contacted by Tech in Asia.
The telecommunications firm operates an eSIM marketplace for international travelers, which allows users to purchase and download prepaid, data-only mobile plans.
The company offers local plans for single countries, regional packages for continents, and a global plan covering over 200 countries and regions.
It competes with firms like Holafly, though the Ireland-based company’s offerings all come with global coverage. In September, Holafly said it made US$200 million in revenue in 2024 alone.
In Asia, Airalo competes with Jetpac, a travel eSIM division of Circles Life, which is available in over 200 countries as of September this year.
Like Airalo, Jetpac has recorded a lift in revenue due to the rising popularity of eSIMs. Between January and November 2024, Jetpac said its revenue increased by 500%.
Airalo’s two largest drivers of operating costs last year were sales and marketing, which climbed 85% to US$26.4 million, and employment expenses, which rose 110% to US$24.8 million.
Meanwhile, its tech spend had the largest increase for the year, jumping over 4x to US$5.7 million.
Its increased marking spend seems to be paying off. In May 2024, the company announced it had served over 10 million users, a number that has spiked to 20 million as of April this year.
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While operating expenses grew between 2023 and 2024, revenue rose faster.
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