Sequoia-Backed Clear’s Loss Nearly Doubles To INR 222 Cr In FY22, Operating Revenue Flat

Bengaluru-based fintech SaaS platform Clear (formerly known as ClearTax) saw its standalone net loss almost double to INR 222.6 Cr in the financial year 2021-22 (FY22) from INR 117.9 Cr in FY21 as its expenses surged even as operating revenue remained unchanged.

The startup, which offers a plethora of financial services such as tax preparation, e-filing, accounting, investment planning solutions, among others, saw its total revenue drop 2.6% to INR 60.3 Cr in FY22 from INR 61.9 Cr in the previous year. Meanwhile, revenue from operations remained flat at INR 58.6 Cr.

Clear earns revenue from subscription of hosted software and other one-time services. While revenue from sale of products was at INR 55.4 Cr as against INR 56.1 Cr in FY21, revenue from sale of services stood at INR 3.2 Cr in FY22. In FY21, the startup’s sale of services was at INR 2.1 Cr. 

Despite the topline remaining flat, Clear’s total expenses surged 57% to INR 282.9 Cr from INR 179.9 Cr in FY21. The biggest contributor to this increase was its employee benefit expenses. In FY22, the startup spent INR 222.9 Cr on employee benefits, almost 78.7% of its total expenses. Employee benefit expenses stood at INR 136.8 Cr in FY21. 

Employee benefit expenses mostly comprise employee salaries, PF contributions, gratuity, and other employee welfare benefits. The rise in the startup’s employee benefit expenses could be one of the reasons that led to Clear laying off employees in September this year. Inc42 had exclusively reported that Clear laid off 190 employees on September 15 across departments, including tech, product, sales, support team among others. 

Founded in 2011 by Archit Gupta, Raja Ram Gupta, Srivatsan Chari, and Ankit Solanki, Clear offers accounting and investment planning solutions for individuals and businesses along with individual wealth management solutions.

Clear is backed by marquee investors such as Elevation Capital, Sequoia Capital, Y Combinator, Composite Capital, Founders Fund, and San Francisco-based fintech giant Stripe.