Xero says it will cut up to 800 jobs.
New Zealand based software accounting firm Xero plans to shed up to 800 jobs to cut costs to improve profits.
Chief executive Sukhinder Singh Cassidy said the restructuring was needed to position the business for growth.
“To enable Xeroʼs next phase of growth and drive better customer outcomes, we need to streamline and simplify our organisation,” Singh Cassidy said.
Xero, founded and based in Wellington, but listed on the Australian Stock Exchange, offers cloud-based accounting services with more than 3.5 million subscribers and about 4500 staff with offices in New Zealand, Australia, North America, the UK and southeast Asia.
It gave no detail on where the cuts would occur.
“These headcount reductions will improve Xero’s operating profitability as its operating expense-to-revenue ratio is expected to reduce significantly in FY24,” Singh Cassidy said.
She said the restructuring was expected to cost between $25-35 million.
The company will also sell the Australian-based Waddle lending platform, bought in 2020, and write off $30-40m.
Xero shares, which are only traded on the Australian stock exchange, surged as much as 11 percent to a six-month high, while investment analysts gave the moves the thumbs up.
