TX Group with a challenging 2025 financial year
TX Group closed the 2025 fiscal year with a decline in revenue but was able to keep its operating profit nearly stable thanks to strict cost management. SMG Swiss Marketplace Group posted double-digit growth, while the media companies continued their transformation efforts consistently.
The 2025 financial year was challenging for the TX Group, both in terms of day-to-day business and the strategic realignment. President and Publisher Pietro Supino comments: "The 2025 financial year was again very challenging, from day-to-day business to the necessary renewal of the foundations. It is pleasing that all of the Group's companies and investments have made strategic progress."
TX Group's operating income fell by 7.3 percent year-on-year to CHF 873.1 million. However, thanks to strict cost management, the operating result (EBIT adj.) was maintained at CHF 102.0 million and thus almost at the previous year's level (CHF 103.5 million). At CHF 162.6 million, free cash flow before mergers & acquisitions was down on the previous year's figure of CHF 232.3 million, which was impacted by a special dividend from SMG Swiss Marketplace Group.
Marketplaces with positive development
Following its successful IPO in September 2025, SMG Swiss Marketplace Group recorded double-digit revenue growth and substantial margin increases. TX Group is the largest shareholder with a 31.14% stake and acquired a further 414,771 SMG shares in the last quarter of 2025.
JobCloud was affected by the uncertainties in the geopolitical environment, but was able to achieve an attractive margin of 58.3% despite the challenging market environment. Particularly pleasing: the number of newly registered users rose by 47%, while the number of applications started increased by 25%.
Transformation of media companies
The media companies Goldbach, 20 Minuten and Tamedia have systematically continued their transformation in 2025. The associated restructuring measures led to one-off costs totaling CHF 6.8 million. At 20 Minuten, the discontinuation of the print product at the end of 2025 was particularly significant. Since then, the company has been published 100 percent digitally.
Goldbach has undergone a far-reaching transformation and will focus on the profitable activities of out-of-home advertising and the placement of TV, radio and digital advertising in future. Regional marketing was closed and AdUnit, DSP Splicky and Goldvertise were sold. The digital out-of-home market in Switzerland has more than tripled in the past decade and remains a clear growth driver.
Tamedia pressed ahead with the closure of its print centers and the expansion of its digital offering. Visits to the websites of the core brands and the number of digital subscriptions both rose by five per cent, with average revenue per user increasing. The digital advertising business grew by around 30 percent despite the challenging market environment. A key step in the planned consolidation of the printing infrastructure was taken in the reporting year with the closure of the Lausanne printing center.
Share buyback and dividend
In September 2025, TX Group launched a public share buyback program. As part of this three-year program, the company intends to buy back a maximum of 662,500 of its own shares. As at December 31, 2025, 124,650 shares with a total value of around CHF 23.2 million had been repurchased. The Board of Directors will propose a dividend of CHF 4.00 per share to the Annual General Meeting.
Change in the Board of Directors
After six years on the Board of Directors, Pascale Bruderer will not be standing for re-election in order to concentrate on her own projects. Christian Osterland will be proposed for re-election. Born in Germany in 1991, he has proven experience in the classifieds and marketplaces sector and has been with General Atlantic, a global financial investor with a focus on growth capital, since 2015.
Pietro Supino acknowledges Pascale Bruderer's contribution: "With her expertise, her knowledge of Switzerland and her entrepreneurial spirit, Pascale Bruderer has contributed a great deal to the further development of the TX Group. I would like to thank her on behalf of all my colleagues for the fruitful collaboration over the past six years."
Real estate and ventures
The development of properties owned by the TX Group has been managed as an independent division since fall 2024. Property strategies are being developed for the three printing centers in Zurich, Berne and Bussigny as well as the two office locations in the center of Zurich and in Berne. Construction work on the new building on Werdstrasse in the center of Zurich began in autumn 2025 and should be completed by the end of 2028.
In the Ventures segment, TX Group focuses on the investments in the fintech sector bundled in TX Ventures Fintage Fund I. The NAV value per share rose to CHF 128.91 as at June 30, 2025, which corresponds to an increase of 28.9% since inception. In total, the fund had invested CHF 64.8 million in 24 start-ups as at the end of 2025.
