Homegrown social media platform ShareChat significantly narrowed losses in FY25, continuing its pivot toward profitability and operational efficiency, the company said on October 17.
Its adjusted EBITDA loss fell 72 percent from the previous year to Rs 219 crore. Revenue came in at Rs 723 crore, up from Rs 718 crore while its core social media business turned cashflow positive during the year.
What drove the improvement in FY25?
ShareChat attributed the improvement to cost discipline and a sharper focus on core efficiency. Total expenses declined 30 percent, with pre-tax losses narrowing to Rs 1,105 crore from Rs 1,898 crore in FY24.
CFO Manohar Charan said the company prioritised sustainable operations over aggressive growth. “Our core business is profitable. As much as 70–75 percent of our growth investments this year will go towards growing our micro-drama business,” he said.
The moderation in topline growth reflects a strategic choice by the company to prioritise profitability over expansion.
The improved operating performance comes months after CEO Ankush Sachdeva told Moneycontrol the company would aim for a public listing within two years.
Why did ad revenues decline?
The company’s ad revenue fell 8 percent to Rs 290 crore, while livestreaming income rose 7.7 percent to Rs 434 crore. Charan attributed the decline to the broader slowdown in digital advertising, amplified by the 28 percent GST on real-money gaming.
“Within our business, advertisement revenue saw some pressure predominantly due to GST on real-money gaming. This led to a fair bit of downward pressure, and that has started improving now,” Charan said. Ads will remain a stable but secondary growth driver going forward, as ShareChat diversifies its monetisation streams, it said.
Where will growth come from in FY26?
ShareChat plans to introduce subscription-based revenue in FY26, alongside expansion of its new micro-drama vertical, which mixes short-form storytelling with subscription and ad-supported models.
“In FY26, we will see contribution from a new line item — subscription revenue. Growth will be led by subscription revenue, followed by live-streaming,” Charan said.
The company’s QuickTV app, launched in May, crossed 15 million downloads, with users spending nearly an hour daily on the platform. ShareChat also distributes micro-dramas on its flagship ShareChat and Moj apps, which reach 35 million monthly viewers consuming over 200 million episodes per day, it said.
What next?
Sachdeva said the company is now focused on scaling new revenue engines after stabilising its core business. “The mission of building a sustainable core business is achieved, and we’re now investing in the next phase of growth,” he said.
Backed by a user base of over 200 million, ShareChat is targeting about 30 percent revenue growth in FY26, aided by new monetisation streams and continued cost control. The company claims to have already surpassed Rs 1,000 crore in annualised revenue run rate (ARR) by the end of the first half of the fiscal.
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