Results of Main Business Lines in 2022

Operating lease

Operating lease is a vehicle fleet outsourcing tool aimed at optimizing operating expenses, suitable both for companies with large vehicle fleets and for small entrepreneurial firms that only operate a few vehicles.

In 2022, we continued to focus on small and medium fleets and managed, once again, to be one step ahead of the market because we had the necessary resources to provide services tailored to the context and in line with our customers’ needs and expectations. The share of customers with large fleets and complex needs in Autonom’s portfolio also increased, with Bergenbier being a relevant example in this respect.

Our top priority in early 2022 was to integrate Premium Leasing into Autonom’s ecosystem. The previous experience from the integration of BT Operațional Leasing taught us how to make this process easier and better, putting our focus on people, processes and distribution channels. The takeover of Țiriac was completed within 1 month from the date of confirmation from the Competition Council, more precisely on May 1st, 2022.

Autonom has the potential to substantially increase the volumes of business generated with current customers in the medium term, by increasing the number of cars and services outsourced by them. Basically, it would be possible to more than double the Company’s turnover in the operating lease segment in a certain length of time, even without drawing new customers, if the entire existing customer base were fully capitalized on and if they agreed to gradually operate the entire fleet under operating lease. Moreover, the customers of Autonom Group’s other divisions make up a representative growth base for the operating lease division, and vice versa.

We are concerned with the development of the business environment and local companies and our aim is to turn this concern into a strategic direction for Autonom team. We invest significant resources to support Romanian entrepreneurs to grow and with this in mind, in 2022, once the pandemic restrictions were lifted, we resumed our Autonom Business Elite networking and development events dedicated to local entrepreneurs. We were joined by more than 500 entrepreneurs and top management representatives of companies from the 6 cities we managed to cover - Brașov, Constanța, Iași, Timișoara, Cluj and Craiova. This year we set out to cover more locations and grow Autonom community.

We also got involved in projects, such as Cars & Roads and RoCharge, developed by Autocritica, to increase awareness of electric cars and of their benefits, but also of the changes in the behavior of users, given that the lack of the necessary information can be a barrier to embracing these cars. We also started designing a dedicated operating lease product - Autonom Business Green - with additional advantages for those who want to make the transition to an electric car but are still hesitant to take this step because of the range of these cars when it comes to long distances or because they are concerned that an electric car might not be suitable for them.

Another factor that influenced the positive result of the operating lease segment, but also of the other representative business segments, is the development of the partnership division and the increase in the number of collaborations with banking entities and car dealers.

Rent-A-Car

Last year, the positive evolution was the result of several factors, where demand increased in all three business directions of the division, both from companies and individuals.

Firstly, the increase in tourism and passenger traffic on Romanian airports made a significant contribution to our success, with Autonom being present in all the major airports across the country. According to data from the Romanian Airports Association (AAR), more than 21 million passengers transited Romanian airports, up 87% compared to 2021. Henri Coandă Airport in Otopeni registered the highest number of travelers (12.5 million passengers), followed by Cluj-Napoca, Iași, Timișoara and Suceava Airports.

Secondly, the pressure in the automotive market, caused by delays of deliveries, allowed the market to maintain prices in line with supply levels. Companies appreciated more the flexibility of short and medium-term rental solutions provided to cover immediate mobility needs and thus, medium-term rental services were the perfect solution for companies with immediate transport needs or temporary mobility needs until the cars contracted under operating lease were delivered.

Another factor that contributed to the exceptional results of 2022 was the progress of the segment for replacement cars in case of accidents. Under Romanian laws, drivers suffering damages following road accidents are entitled to request a replacement car while their car is being fixed, with the costs being covered by the MTPL insurance of the driver at fault.

Furthermore, maintaining the fleet occupancy rate at over 88% significantly contributed to the increase in turnover and profitability of this business segment of Autonom Services. This is the result of the decisions to optimally size the fleet, but also to render the organizational model more efficient, by creating regional fleets.

Used car sales

The total revenues from the sale of used vehicles amounted to RON 120.8 million, up 54% compared to 2021, mainly due to the 32% increase in the number of cars sold and the increase in used car prices, brought about by supply chain challenges. They had a direct adverse impact on the availability of new cars and an indirect positive impact on the increase in demand for used cars. As apparent from our records, the prices of used vehicles increased in the last year by approximately 16.46%, the average price going up from RON 44.692 in 2021 to RON 52.051 in 2022 (excluding VAT).

Another factor that positively impacted the division’s results was the 157% increase in the sale of motor vehicles for export, a secondary business line of the division, which brought additional revenues of RON 95.436.103.