Pushpay expects higher profit, appoints US-based chief executive

Tuesday, 12 January 2021

Amid the political turmoil in the United States at the end of last year, Americans dipped into their pockets and donated more to churches, which has benefited Kiwi digital payment platform Pushpay.

The fast-growing company on Tuesday raised its expectation for full-year pre-tax profit to between US$56 million (NZ$77m) and US$60m after stronger donation volumes in December. That is ahead of its November forecast for pre-tax profit for the year ending March 31 of US$54m to US$58m. Last year, it posted a pre-tax profit of US$25.1m.

“Pushpay’s processing volume over the month of December 2020 was slightly higher than the company’s internal forecast,” Pushpay chairman Graham Shaw said in a statement to the NZX.

December donations were usually significantly higher than other months, partially driven by tax year-end giving in the US, although the level of increase can vary, Shaw said.

Pushpay chief customer officer Molly Matthews, who is based in the US, will take over as chief executive in March.

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Founded in Auckland by Christians Chris Heaslip and Eliot Crowther, who felt awkward when they did not have any cash to make a donation in church one day, the digital payment platform for religious services is now the market leader in the US, counting more than half of the top 100 churches among its customers. It is widening its scope to also target Catholic churches in the US.

Pushpay named Molly Matthews as its new chief executive. Matthews is currently its chief customer officer, based in Seattle and has been with the company for more than four years, joining the executive leadership team in July 2019.

The company signalled in June last year that it was looking for a full-time US-based leader with strong customer affiliation.

“Molly has a deep understanding of the US faith and non-profit marketplaces and exceptional customer knowledge which is critical to Pushpay’s success,” Shaw said.

Matthews will take over from Bruce Gordon in March. Gordon stood in as interim chief executive from his chairman role in June 2019 following the resignation of Heaslip. Gordon will remain as a director, the Shaw said.

Pushpay shares rose 6.9 per cent to $1.71 in mid-morning trading on the NZX. The stock has gained 58 per cent over the past year.