Fenbi Ltd. released unaudited results for the six months ended 30 June 2026, showing a sharp reversal from profit to loss as weaker demand for civil-service exam preparation and higher expenses weighed on performance.
Financial Highlights • Revenue fell 16.3 % year-on-year to RMB1.25 billion. Tutoring services, which contributed 85.6 % of the total, declined 17.5 % to RMB1.07 billion, while book-related sales slipped 8.8 % to RMB179.70 million. • Gross profit dropped 35.2 % to RMB522.17 million; gross margin narrowed to 41.8 % from 54.0 %. • The company reported a net loss of RMB183.54 million versus a RMB226.65 million profit a year earlier. On a non-IFRS basis (excluding share-based payments), the adjusted net loss was RMB158.39 million, compared with a RMB271.46 million profit in the prior period. • Operating cash inflow collapsed to RMB6.86 million from RMB213.28 million, while cash used for investing activities rose to RMB433.66 million, mainly due to larger positions in wealth-management and exchange-traded products. • Cash and cash equivalents fell to RMB400.95 million from RMB869.14 million at year-end 2025. Financial assets measured at fair value through profit or loss rose to RMB479.21 million.
Cost Dynamics Cost of revenue increased 5.8 % to RMB726.15 million, driven by severance payments following workforce restructuring. Selling and marketing expenses rose 18.1 % to RMB361.70 million, and research & development spending climbed 22.8 % to RMB132.43 million as resources were directed to AI-driven course development.
Operational Metrics Headcount dropped to 5,963 from 7,053 a year earlier; full-time instructors decreased to 2,154. Average monthly active users slipped to 8.5 million from 9.3 million.
Balance Sheet Contract liabilities nearly doubled to RMB267.18 million, reflecting higher prepaid course fees, while refund liabilities declined to RMB98.27 million. The company remains debt-free.
Dividend No interim dividend was declared.
Subsequent Events Between 1 July and the announcement date, Fenbi exited certain ETF and equity positions, recording an additional investment loss of US$8.34 million (RMB56.65 million), which is not reflected in the interim figures.
Management Changes With effect from 8 July 2026, co-founder Sheng Haiyan became chair and CEO following the resignation of Zhang Xiaolong.
Outlook Management highlighted intensified competition, a shrinking pool of public-sector exam positions and cautious consumer spending. Focus areas include AI-enhanced tutoring products, tighter cost control and optimisation of offline-online resources. The company cautioned that market conditions may remain challenging in the near term.