Capillary posts consolidated net loss of ₹9.6 Cr on one-off ₹33.4 Cr fraud charge

Capillary Technologies' consolidated Q1 FY27 (quarter ended 30 June 2026) revenue rose 42.7% YoY and 34.1% QoQ to ₹256.64 Cr, lifted by SessionM's consolidation from 1 May 2026 alongside organic growth. Yet the group reported a consolidated net LOSS of ₹9.55 Cr, reversing a ₹43.36 Cr profit in Q4 FY26 and a marginal ₹0.75 Cr profit a year ago. The swing was driven entirely by a ₹33.39 Cr (€3.04 million) exceptional expense — a cyber-enabled banking fraud at SessionM Czech Republic s.r.o, the Czech step-down subsidiary acquired with SessionM, which saw unauthorised bank transfers during the quarter. Strip that out and pre-tax operating profit (before exceptional items) was ₹24.80 Cr, up 41.6% QoQ from ₹17.52 Cr and up sharply from a near-breakeven ₹0.55 Cr a year ago — underlying profitability improved even as the headline print shows red. Adjusted net margin still compressed, to roughly 9.3% from ~21.9% in Q4 FY26 (per prior record), as employee costs jumped to ₹119.84 Cr (+33.8% QoQ) on SessionM integration and, per management's own pre-results commentary, routine annual salary increments; professional/consultancy and software & server costs also rose with the wider group perimeter. This tracks the prior guidance that FY27 margins would see near-term dilution from acquisition integration even as absolute EBITDA grows: profit before D&A/finance/exceptional items (₹46.01 Cr) rose 20.7% QoQ — absolute profitability up, percentage margin down, exactly the pattern flagged on the May 2026 concall. Management's claim that core (non-acquired) business margins continue to expand cannot be independently verified from the filing's single-segment P&L. On an annualised run-rate basis, the quarter's ₹256.64 Cr revenue tracks to roughly ₹1,026 Cr for FY27 — squarely inside management's guided ₹1,000-1,050 Cr band, so revenue guidance is on track. No formal Street consensus for this specific quarter was found in a web search; commentary on FY27 broadly expects 15-20% full-year PAT growth, a bar the fraud-hit reported number doesn't address but the ex-exceptional print is tracking toward. Standalone (the India entity alone, insulated from the Czech subsidiary loss) stayed solidly profitable at ₹7.77 Cr PAT — down from ₹9.90 Cr in Q4 FY26 but a turnaround from a ₹5.12 Cr loss a year ago — underscoring that the reported group loss is subsidiary-specific, not a standalone-business problem. The quarter also saw a forensic audit initiated (31 July 2026) into the same banking fraud and a senior management resignation (27 July 2026) disclosed just days before results. The company states the fraud investigation, banking-authority freeze (~₹4.67 Cr recovered so far) and insurance claim are ongoing, with further disclosure to follow as they resolve. The board separately approved the FY26 annual report, BRSR filing, and called the 14th AGM for 28 August 2026 alongside these results.