Web Summit profits plunge post-covid as admin costs soar

New documents showed the overall financial health of the firm prior to the controversy that engulfed the trade show organiser last year

Paddy Cosgrave still owns 81% of Web Summit. Photo: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE via Getty Images

Web Summit posted a sharp decline after-tax profits even before its latest woes as administrative costs weighed on the company’s finances post-pandemic, according to new documents.

The conference organiser posted after-tax profits of around €114,000 for 2022, plummeting nearly 100% compared to €3.8m in total comprehensive income made by the firm in 2021.

The company posted bumper revenues of €52.5m, but this was diminished by soaring costs.

Documents filed in the Companies Registration Office (CRO) by Web Summit holding company Manders Terrace showed administrative costs jumped to approximately €31m compared to just under €20m in the previous year, while the company splurged on investments and assets in the same period.

Labour costs also put pressure on the firm as a “significant portion of our record 2022 revenues went towards pay increases for our staff”, according to outgoing chief executive Kathrine Maher.

Ms Maher, who recently announced she would step down from her role at the helm of the controversial trade show organiser after less than a year in the job, remains optimistic about the year ahead despite the financial difficulties shown in the documents.

“We expect to see double-digit revenue growth for 2023, why we have already shattered all our targets for our inaugural event in Qatar later this month, and why we anticipate our other 2024 events to be more successful than ever,” she said.

Ms Maher decided to leave Web Summit to pursue a job in NPR in the US and her replacement is yet to be announced. Ms Maher took up the role after former chief executive Paddy Cosgrave resigned following backlash to posts on X, formerly Twitter, about the Israel-Hamas war.

Consequently, tech heavyweights including Google, Stripe and Amazon pulled out of Web Summit’s conference in Lisbon last year.

The CRO documents give a clearer picture of the health of the company before it became embroiled in controversy last year and remains without a figurehead. Mr Cosgrave still owns 81% of the company.