20-F: JOYY Inc. Reports Mixed Financials Amid Strategic Shifts

JOYY Inc. saw a decline in live streaming revenue but a significant increase in advertising revenue for the fiscal year 2025, alongside a substantial gain from the disposal of YY Live.

Summary

• JOYY Inc. reported a net income of US$2,097.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, a significant turnaround from a net loss of US$147.6 million in 2024, largely driven by a one-off gain of US$1,875.9 million from the disposal of YY Live.
• Total net revenues decreased by 5.1% to US$2,124.2 million in 2025, primarily due to a 14.5% drop in live streaming revenues to US$1,529.7 million, while advertising revenues surged by 37.1% to US$442.7 million.
• Operating expenses decreased significantly from US$1,219.5 million in 2024 to US$709.1 million in 2025, mainly due to the absence of a US$454.9 million goodwill impairment charge recorded in 2024.
• The company's strategy continues to focus on a multi-engine growth ecosystem, integrating social entertainment with B2B technology solutions, with a goal to empower creators, advertisers, and merchants.
• JOYY Inc. also announced a new quarterly dividend program, authorizing up to US$600 million in cash distributions from 2025 to 2027, and has paid US$197.3 million under this program as of the report date.

Sentiment

Score: 7

Explanation: StockSavvy.ai views this filing as cautiously positive, with the significant gain from the YY Live disposal masking a continued decline in the core live streaming business. However, the strong growth in advertising and the company's strategic diversification efforts are positive indicators for future performance.

Positives

• Significant increase in advertising revenue by 37.1% to US$442.7 million, driven by strong performance of BIGO Ads.
• Substantial net income of US$2,097.0 million, a significant improvement from the previous year's net loss, largely due to the US$1.88 billion gain from the YY Live disposal.
• Reduction in operating expenses by 41.9% to US$709.1 million, primarily due to the absence of a large goodwill impairment charge recorded in the prior year.
• Continued growth in the smart commerce SaaS business, contributing to a 19.8% increase in 'Other' revenues.
• Authorization of a new quarterly dividend program totaling approximately US$600 million from 2025 to 2027, indicating confidence in future cash flows.

Negatives

• Decline in total net revenues by 5.1% to US$2,124.2 million.
• Significant decrease in live streaming revenues by 14.5% to US$1,529.7 million, with ARPU for live streaming falling from US$391 in 2024 to US$365 in 2025.
• The 'All other' segment revenue decreased by 10.4% in 2024 compared to 2023, although it saw a recovery in 2025.
• General and administrative expenses increased by 7.9% in 2025, driven by impairment losses on equity investments and fixed assets.

Risks

• Continued reliance on live streaming revenue, which has shown a declining trend.
• Intense competition in the social entertainment, advertising technology, and smart commerce sectors.
• Regulatory risks associated with operating in multiple jurisdictions, particularly concerning data privacy, cybersecurity, and foreign investment.
• Potential for volatility in ADS trading prices due to market and industry factors, as well as company-specific events.
• The company's dual-class share structure concentrates voting power, potentially limiting the influence of Class A shareholders and ADS holders on corporate matters.

Future Outlook

The company is focused on driving multi-engine growth through ecosystem synergies by integrating social entertainment with its B2B technology stack, including programmatic advertising and omnichannel smart commerce solutions. It aims to deepen global localization and operational excellence, leveraging its technology backbone and AI-powered operations to enhance user engagement and commercial performance.

Management Comments

• "The structural evolution of our revenue mix, underpinned by the growing contribution of programmatic advertising and smart commerce, marks a significant inflection point in our corporate history."
• "With a strong net cash position and a diversified portfolio of high-growth technology assets, we believe we are positioned to capture expanding long-term opportunities within the global advertising technology and smart commerce sectors and drive sustainable, long-term growth."
• "We define our competitive advantage through a strategy of Global Reach, Local Depth, leveraging our established presence in over 150 countries to refine localized operations."
• "By integrating Large Language Model architectures and incorporating multi-modal information into our recommendation systems, we have significantly improved our ability to analyze real-time social content and user intentions."

Industry Context

StockSavvy.ai notes that JOYY's strategic shift towards advertising and smart commerce, while experiencing a decline in its core live streaming business, aligns with broader industry trends of platform diversification and B2B service expansion. The significant revenue contribution from advertising (20.8% in 2025) highlights the success of BIGO Ads, positioning JOYY to capitalize on the growing digital advertising market.

Comparison to Industry Standards

• JOYY's live streaming platform, Bigo Live, was ranked as the Worlds No.9 Social App in terms of in-app-purchase revenue in 2025, according to data.ai.
• imo was ranked as the No.4 and No.5 Social App in terms of downloads in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, respectively, in 2025, according to data.ai.
• Likee was ranked as the United Arab Emirates' No.10 Social App in terms of in-app-purchase revenue in 2025, according to data.ai.
• The company's advertising platform, BIGO Ads, saw a 166% year-over-year increase in SDK advertising requests in Q4 2025 through integrations with platforms like AppLovin MAX and Unity Level Play, indicating strong growth in its B2B advertising segment.

Management Changes

Legal Proceedings

• The company is not currently a party to any pending material litigation or other material legal proceeding and is not aware of any pending or threatened litigation or other legal proceeding that may have a material adverse impact on its business or operations.

Related Party Transactions

• Purchased promotional services amounting to US$8.0 million, US$7.6 million, and US$5.5 million from related parties in 2023, 2024, and 2025, respectively.
• Bandwidth services provided by Guangzhou Sunhongs amounted to US$1.4 million, US$1.6 million, and US$0.8 million in 2023, 2024, and 2025, respectively.

Stakeholder Impact

• Shareholders benefit from the significant net income in 2025, driven by the YY Live disposal, and the new dividend program.
• Advertisers and merchants may benefit from the continued growth and enhancement of BIGO Ads and Shopline platforms.
• Users of live streaming platforms may experience changes in content and features due to strategic adjustments aimed at efficiency and compliance.

Next Steps

• Continue to drive multi-engine growth through ecosystem synergies.
• Deepen global localization and operational excellence.
• Strengthen proprietary technology backbone and AI-powered operations.
• Continue to scale B2B initiatives in advertising and smart commerce.
• Implement the new quarterly dividend program, distributing approximately US$600 million in cash from 2025 to 2027.

Key Dates

Recommendation

While the disposal of YY Live provided a significant one-time boost to net income, the core live streaming business continues to face challenges with declining revenues and ARPU. The strong growth in advertising is a positive sign, but the company's overall revenue growth is still impacted by the live streaming segment. The dividend program indicates management's confidence, but the company needs to demonstrate sustained growth in its core operations beyond the disposal gain to warrant a stronger recommendation. Therefore, a 'hold' recommendation is appropriate pending further operational improvements and sustained growth in non-live streaming segments.

Keywords

JOYY Inc., SEC Filing, Form 20-F, Live Streaming, Bigo Live, Likee, imo, Hago, BIGO Ads, Shopline, Advertising Revenue, Smart Commerce, Financial Results, Goodwill Impairment, YY Live Disposal, Dividend Program, Cayman Islands, PRC Regulations, VIE Structure