Basilic Fly's receivables problem is two years old. Management's reassurance hasn't changed.
₹44-45 crore of old receivables remain uncollected despite repeated promises to clear them, while margin guidance has also slipped.
What's new
- FY26 consolidated revenue was ₹408 cr, up 34% year-on-year.
- Consolidated PAT margin fell 250bps to 12.1% due to project rescheduling and senior hire costs.
- Aged receivables beyond 6 months stand at ₹44-45 crore, expected to clear by H1 FY27.
- FY27 order book is ₹232 crore with a ₹456 crore bid pipeline.
Themes from the call
Working capital
Aged receivables have been a recurring promise-and-defer problem for at least two years, tying up cash even as the India standalone business turns operationally cash-positive.
Margins
Consolidated margins contracted 260bps EBITDA and 250bps PAT in FY26 despite management's prior forecast that H2 would lift margins through better overhead absorption.
Growth
The business is pivoting to larger projects of £5-7 million from a historical £1-2 million average, with a ₹232 crore order book guiding 30% organic growth for FY27.
Guidance watch
- Management guides 30% minimum organic growth for FY27 with PAT expanding to ₹65-70 crore.
- Aged receivables should be behind the company by H1 FY27, management says, using near-identical language to the November 2024 promise.
Risk flags
- The receivables collection timeline has already been pushed by nearly two years; the H1 FY27 target carries low credibility without a detailed breakdown.
- FY26 margin guidance was wrong. Management attributed the miss partly to senior hire costs that were already known when the guidance was given.
- Client concentration remains above 50% in Netflix and Amazon, even as both are now also domestic OTT clients.
Key quotes
-
"We still have some aging beyond 6 months, totaling about 44 crores to 45 crores... aged receivables should be behind us by H1."
— Basilic Fly management, Jun 2026 call -
"We don't foresee any challenge in collectability of any of our dues. And we should be back on the track maybe by the end of the March or maybe the early of the April or May."
— Basilic Fly management, Nov 2024 call -
"The PAT margin shrank by 2.3% and 2.5% for the quarter and full year respectively... impacted primarily due to project rescheduling to FY27 and the impact of the 14 senior hires."
— Basilic Fly management, Jun 2026 call -
"And as I said, that H2 is always better. When H2 comes, that will give the uplift in the better employee utilization."
— Basilic Fly management, Nov 2025 call
The brief
Basilic Fly Studio's June 2026 call is a story of two businesses. The India standalone operation is strong: revenue up 64% to ₹120 crore, PAT margin at 24.2%, operating cash flow positive for the first time. The consolidated entity, meanwhile, is wrestling with problems it keeps promising to fix.
The most persistent is aged receivables. In November 2024, management told investors ₹44-45 crore of overdue payments would be collected by early 2025. Almost two years later the same number sits on the books, and the resolution target has quietly slid to H1 FY27. The language is almost word-for-word identical. Investors should ask why.
The margin story is fresher but follows the same pattern. In November 2025, management said H2 seasonality would lift margins through better overhead absorption. It didn't. PAT margin fell 250bps for the full year, and management now cites the cost of 14 senior hires as a partial cause, even though most were already onboarded before the prior guidance was issued.
The bull case is real but needs execution. The pipeline has shifted from £1-2 million average projects to £5-7 million opportunities. The ₹232 crore order book and ₹456 crore bid pipeline support the 30% growth guide. Q1 FY27 has already delivered a £3-3.5 million win and the first domestic Netflix and Amazon OTT mandates. If these convert, the revenue re-rating is plausible.
The question is whether management's forward guidance can be trusted when two prior sets of assurances haven't held. The India business is proving it can generate cash and margins. The consolidated business needs to prove it can collect its receivables and hit its margin targets before the bigger growth story can be fully underwritten.
Basilic Fly's India business is working. Its receivables promise still isn't.