20-F: Opera's 2025 Performance: AI & Web3 Drive Revenue Growth

Opera Limited reports strong 2025 financial results, driven by significant growth in advertising and query revenue, alongside strategic investments in AI and Web3 initiatives.

Summary

• Revenue increased by 28% to $614.8 million in 2025, up from $480.6 million in 2024.
• Advertising revenue grew by 36% to $396.0 million, while query revenue increased by 15% to $216.8 million.
• Net income rose by 34% to $108.3 million in 2025, primarily due to a $36.3 million unrealized gain on the OPay investment.
• Adjusted net income increased by 19% to $102.1 million, and Adjusted EBITDA grew by 24% to $142.5 million.
• Diluted earnings per share was $1.19, and adjusted diluted earnings per share was $1.12.
• Net cash flow from operating activities increased by 12% to $117.7 million, and free cash flow from operations surged by 39% to $97.7 million.
• Total monthly active users (MAUs) averaged 284.3 million in Q4 2025, a modest decline reflecting a strategic focus on higher-ARPU users in developed markets.
• Annualized average revenue per user (ARPU) increased by 26% to $2.49 in Q4 2025.
• Operating expenses increased by 34% to $524.4 million, driven by a 73% increase in the cost of inventory sold to $205.1 million due to Opera Ads platform expansion.
• Share-based compensation expenses significantly increased by 222% to $31.3 million due to new multi-year grants.
• A new share repurchase program of up to $300 million was authorized on February 26, 2026, for a two-year period.
• MiniPay, the self-custodial stablecoin wallet, reached approximately 14 million activated wallets and 420 million cumulative transactions by March 2026.
• The previously identified material weakness in internal control over financial reporting was successfully remediated as of December 31, 2025.

Sentiment

Score: 8

Explanation: StockSavvy.ai views this as a strong performance, with significant revenue and profit growth driven by strategic focus on high-value users and innovation in AI and Web3. The new share repurchase program and consistent dividends underscore financial health and commitment to shareholder returns, despite a slight dip in overall MAUs.

Positives

• Strong revenue growth of 28% to $614.8 million in 2025, indicating robust business expansion.
• Significant advertising revenue increase of 36% to $396.0 million, driven by e-commerce partners and the Opera Ads platform's successful scaling.
• Query revenue grew by 15% to $216.8 million, supported by monetization improvements and growth in Western markets.
• Net income and adjusted net income saw substantial increases of 34% and 19% respectively, demonstrating improved profitability.
• Adjusted EBITDA increased by 24% to $142.5 million, reflecting healthy operational performance.
• Free cash flow from operations surged by 39% to $97.7 million, highlighting strong cash generation capabilities.
• Annualized ARPU increased by 26% in Q4 2025, validating the strategy of focusing on higher-value user segments.
• A significant unrealized fair value gain of $36.3 million was recognized on the OPay investment.
• MiniPay, the Web3 stablecoin wallet, achieved rapid growth with approximately 14 million activated wallets and 420 million cumulative transactions by March 2026.
• The company successfully remediated a previously identified material weakness in its internal control over financial reporting, concluding it was effective as of December 31, 2025.
• A new $300 million share repurchase program was authorized, signaling management's confidence in the company's financial health and commitment to shareholder returns.

Negatives

• Total monthly active users (MAUs) experienced a modest decline in 2025, as the company prioritized user quality and monetization over absolute user growth.
• Operating expenses increased by 34% to $524.4 million, outpacing revenue growth.
• Share-based compensation expenses increased significantly by 222% to $31.3 million in 2025, primarily due to front-loaded expense recognition for new multi-year grants.
• Net finance income turned into a net finance expense of $1.4 million in 2025, mainly due to increased foreign exchange losses.
• Other operating income shifted from a gain in 2024 to a net loss in 2025, partly due to converting crypto assets to cash at reduced market prices.
• Impairment of non-financial assets increased to $1.9 million in 2025, mostly related to a decline in market values of certain crypto assets.

Risks

• The size, composition, and engagement of the user base are critical to monetization, and a focus on higher-ARPU users may reduce the overall user base or limit reach in certain regions.
• Intense competition across web browsers, digital advertising, content distribution, and digital wallets from major players like Google, Apple, Microsoft, Meta, and ByteDance could adversely affect the business.
• Rapid technological change and platform evolution, particularly with AI, could alter traditional browsing and advertising behaviors, impacting monetization models.
• Revenue is concentrated with a limited number of business partners, with Google representing a material share, exposing the company to risks from changes in commercial relationships or regulatory developments (e.g., Google antitrust cases).
• AI technologies may change how people access the internet and consume content, potentially reducing traditional browsing activity and advertising revenues.
• Operating and expanding across diverse international markets presents operational, regulatory, and financial risks, especially in emerging markets with complex and unpredictable regulatory environments.
• Investments in new businesses, products, services, technologies, and companies (e.g., gaming, AI, digital payments, Web3) may not achieve expected results or profitability.
• MiniPay's reliance on the Celo blockchain and other third-party platforms exposes it to operational risks outside the company's control, including protocol changes, security vulnerabilities, and service disruptions.
• Global economic and geopolitical conditions, including inflation, interest rates, and conflicts (e.g., Iran and the broader Middle East in early 2026), could reduce advertiser spending and increase operating costs.
• Restrictions, sanctions, and compliance requirements related to Russia continue to affect operations, revenue, and compliance costs.
• The company's brand and reputation could be harmed by competitive pressures, third-party conduct, or failure to meet user expectations.
• Exposure to litigation, including intellectual property claims and regulatory disputes, can result in substantial costs and liabilities.
• Invalid or fraudulent advertising traffic could harm the advertising business by reducing advertiser confidence and demand.
• Failures or limitations in technology infrastructure could adversely affect business performance, user satisfaction, and financial reporting.
• The use of AI technologies in products presents legal, regulatory, and reputational risks, including issues with accuracy, bias, intellectual property, and evolving regulations.
• Reliance on open source software, including browser technologies from the Chromium project, exposes the company to legal and operational risks related to licensing and security.
• Evolving privacy and consumer protection laws (e.g., GDPR, PADFAA, DOJ Rule, MiCA) across jurisdictions could increase compliance costs, restrict business practices, or lead to enforcement actions.
• Cybersecurity and data security incidents, including sophisticated attacks and failures by third-party service providers, could result in financial losses, regulatory investigations, and reputational harm.
• The valuation of the OPay investment is highly uncertain and relies on subjective estimates, which may result in material volatility in reported results.
• Inaccuracies or misinterpretation of operating metrics (MAUs, ARPU) could harm business decisions and investor credibility.
• The market price and trading volume of ADSs may be volatile due to various market, industry, and company-specific factors.
• Kunlun Tech Holding Limited and the Executive Chairman have control over the company, and their interests may not always align with those of other shareholders.
• As a controlled company and foreign private issuer, the company relies on Nasdaq exemptions, which may afford ADS holders fewer corporate governance protections.
• Potential classification as a Passive Foreign Investment Company (PFIC) could result in adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences for United States Holders.
• Organizational documents contain provisions that could discourage or delay a change of control.
• Shareholder rights under Cayman Islands law may be more limited than under U.S. law, making it difficult to enforce U.S. judgments.

Future Outlook

Opera expects its existing cash resources and operating cash flows to be sufficient to fund operations, strategic investments, and financing activities, including dividends and share repurchases, for at least the next 12 months and the foreseeable future. The company intends to continue paying regular semi-annual dividends and has authorized a new $300 million share repurchase program. Cash-based personnel, marketing, and distribution expenses are expected to increase in absolute terms but decline as a percentage of revenue. Depreciation and amortization expenses are anticipated to rise due to ongoing investments in products and digital infrastructure, though significant AI data cluster investments like 2024 are not expected in the near future. The company also anticipates continued developments in global data protection, privacy, and data localization rules, and expects to maintain one-year search distribution agreements with Google for the U.S. market following antitrust remedies.

Management Comments

• Our strategy continues to focus on shifting our user mix toward high-ARPU developed markets, which has successfully driven our annualized ARPU to $2.49 in the fourth quarter of 2025.
• We believe our current liquidity position is highly robust and sufficient to support this program without compromising our ability to fund day-to-day operations, working capital needs, strategic growth investments, or our continued commitment to our semi-annual recurring dividend program.
• Management concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2025.
• Management concluded that the Nigerian economy was not hyperinflationary in 2025.

Industry Context

StockSavvy.ai notes that Opera's strong performance in 2025, particularly in advertising and query revenue, reflects a successful pivot towards higher-ARPU users in Western markets, a trend observed across the digital advertising sector as companies optimize for monetization efficiency. The significant investment and rapid growth in AI-enabled features and Web3 initiatives like MiniPay position Opera at the forefront of emerging internet technologies, aligning with broader industry shifts towards decentralized finance and AI integration in user interfaces. The ongoing antitrust scrutiny of major search providers like Google, as highlighted in the filing, underscores the evolving regulatory landscape that could reshape distribution and monetization dynamics for browser companies.

Comparison to Industry Standards

• Opera competes with global browser developers such as Google (Chrome), Apple (Safari), Microsoft (Edge), and Samsung (Samsung Internet), many of which benefit from significant scale and distribution advantages.
• MiniPay, as a non-custodial crypto wallet, competes with other custodial and non-custodial crypto wallet providers, as well as more established global and regional payment platforms, financial institutions, mobile operating system providers, and fintech companies.
• Opera Ads faces significant competition from large global advertising and ad tech platforms, including vertically integrated ecosystems operated by Alphabet, Meta, ByteDance, and other providers of demand-side platforms, supply-side platforms, and advertising networks.
• The Opera Deep Research Agent achieved 'one of the best results in benchmark testing of AI researching agents on the market,' indicating strong competitive performance in AI capabilities.
• The EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) is noted to support a healthier competitive landscape for independent companies like Opera by increasing browser choice screens, addressing the dominance of larger platform providers.

Management Changes

Corporate Governance

Legal Proceedings

• As of the date of this annual report, the company is not a party to, and is not aware of, any legal proceeding, investigation, or claim that is likely to have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition, or results of operations.

Related Party Transactions

• In January 2023, Opera sold marketable securities to Kunlun Tech Co., Ltd. for $51.2 million and to Keeneyes Future Holding Inc. for $7.8 million.
• Dividends payable to Kunlun, amounting to $25.1 million in 2023 and $33.0 million in 2024, were offset against a receivable from the 2022 sale of Star X shares, which was fully settled in July 2024.
• Opera entered into an agreement with Kunlun in May 2024 to provide on-demand cloud computing resources, generating $0.7 million in revenue in 2024 and $1.5 million in 2025.
• Opera made capital contributions of $1.25 million in 2024 and $2.5 million in 2025 to the MiniPay Fund, a venture fund managed by Verda Ventures, with an outstanding capital commitment of $6.25 million as of December 31, 2025.
• Kunlun granted share options to certain Opera employees, which are accounted for as equity-settled share-based payments in Opera's financial statements.
• Opera purchases various services from Kunlun, including a lease of office premises in Beijing and engineering services, and is reimbursed for certain costs incurred as a subsidiary of Kunlun.
• As of December 31, 2025, outstanding balances with Kunlun included $0.33 million in receivables and $0.12 million in payables.

Stakeholder Impact

• Shareholders are positively impacted by strong financial performance, consistent semi-annual dividends of $0.40 per share, and a new $300 million share repurchase program, indicating commitment to shareholder returns.
• Employees benefit from competitive compensation, a collegial working environment, and participation in share incentive plans, though executive officers are subject to a Clawback Policy.
• Customers and users benefit from continuous innovation in browsers (e.g., Opera One, Opera GX, Opera Neon), integration of AI features, and enhanced privacy and security tools (VPN, ad blocking), as well as new Web3 services like MiniPay.
• Advertisers and partners benefit from the growing audience reach and improved targeting capabilities of the Opera Ads platform, driven by increased user engagement in high-value markets.
• Creditors face low liquidity risk due to the company's strong liquidity position and low leverage, as indicated by robust cash and cash equivalents and operating cash flows.
• Regulatory bodies are increasingly scrutinizing the company's operations due to evolving laws in data protection, AI, and digital services, potentially leading to increased compliance costs and operational adjustments.

Next Steps

• Continue paying semi-annual dividends, with the next determination date for pro rata Kunlun repurchase set for June 15, 2026.
• Execute the new $300 million share repurchase program over a two-year period, including pro-rata purchases of ordinary shares from Kunlun.
• Further develop and introduce innovations from Opera Neon to Opera AI and the full suite of browsers.
• Adapt products and monetization strategies to ongoing changes in AI technologies and user behavior.
• Monitor global macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions, including potential inflationary pressures or economic slowdowns.
• Monitor and comply with evolving regulatory developments in data protection, privacy, AI, and digital services globally.
• Carry out due diligence assessments for human rights and decent working conditions as required by the Norwegian Transparency Act.

Key Dates

Recommendation

Opera Limited demonstrated robust financial growth in 2025, with significant increases in revenue, net income, and free cash flow, driven by successful monetization strategies in advertising and query services. The company's strategic investments in AI and Web3, coupled with the launch of innovative products like Opera Neon and the rapid adoption of MiniPay, position it well for future growth in evolving digital markets. The authorization of a substantial share repurchase program and consistent dividend payments signal strong financial health and a commitment to shareholder value. While there are competitive and regulatory risks, the company's proactive approach to product development and risk management, including the remediation of internal control weaknesses, supports a highly positive outlook.

Keywords

Opera Limited, OPRA, Annual Report, Financial Results, Web Browser, AI, Artificial Intelligence, Web3, MiniPay, Digital Advertising, Fintech, OPay, Share Repurchase, Dividends, Corporate Governance, Risk Factors, Nasdaq, IFRS, Technology, Mobile Browsers, Gaming, Opera GX, Opera Ads, Celo Blockchain, Stablecoin Wallet, Kunlun Tech