HR Tech Platform Keka Records Rs 78 Cr Revenue in FY24, Losses Surge 2.8X

Keka, the HR technology platform, yet continued its growth journey by recording 62% year-on-year growth for the financial year ending March 2024, but this growth also came against the adverse turn: the loss of the Hyderabad-based company increased 2.8 times last fiscal year.

The annual financial statements obtained from the Registrar of Companies (RoC) revealed that Keka's revenue from operations stood at Rs 78 crore for FY24 compared to the previous year's Rs 48 crore, therefore completing its decade foundation.

Keka, founded in 2015 by Vijay Yalamanchili, has solutions that automate and simplify such processes as payroll, recruitment, time off and attendance, performance management, or much more. The company claims its app serves HR purposes for a workforce numbering 2.5 million.

For the SaaS startup, subscription revenue derived from Keka HR accounted for 97.4% of the company's operations, in cloud-based HR and payroll management Software, which grew to Rs 76 crore in FY24 or a whopping 60% increase. The rest recruited one-off implementations fees for the WestBridge Capital-backed firm.

The company also earned Rs 9 crore from interest on deposits and current investments, making its total revenue Rs 87 crore in FY24, compared to Rs 54 crore in FY23.

Like many other SaaS companies, employee benefits made up 64.5% of the total expenditure. This expense surged by 94% to Rs 107 crore in FY24, including a non-cash ESOP cost of Rs 6 crore.

Keka’s advertising expenses surged 3.6 times to Rs 22 crore in FY24. Its costs for information technology, rent, travel, legal, and other overheads pushed total expenditure up by 100%, reaching Rs 166 crore in FY24, compared to Rs 83 crore in FY23. For a detailed cost breakdown, visit TheKredible.

Keka has recorded losses of Rs 80 crore in FY24, an increase of 2.8 times from Rs 28 crore in FY23, with its growth in advertising and employee benefits nearly double this growth. The net ROCE and EBITDA ratios of the company stood at -85% and -89%, respectively. Keka's expense-to-revenue ratio has reached Rs 2.13. By the end of FY24, its total current assets amounted to Rs 97 crore, including a cash and bank balance of Rs 88 crore.

Keka has raised approximately $59 million so far, including the $57 million Series A round led by WestBridge Capital in November, 2022. According to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, WestBridge Capital is the largest external stakeholder with a 20 percent share, while the founder and CEO hold a 66 percent stake in the company.