Stephan Whithers for IT News writes: In an announcement that cloud accounting provider Xero has reached NZ$100 million in annualised revenue for the first time, company officials said "Australian customers now exceed 120,000 and UK has over 50,000. Xero is the leading online accounting solution in those markets."
That claim is disputed by MYOB.
An MYOB spokesperson declined to give user numbers, but said 22% of the company's paying customers now actively use cloud files. That could be in excess of 260,000 customers, depending on how many of MYOB's claimed 1.2 million users actually pay to use the software.
At the time of publishing Xero had not responded to a request for comment on MYOB's assertion.
The competition between Xero and MYOB is of interest on another level. MYOB's Australian founder and former CEO Craig Winkler was an early investor and now major shareholder of Xero, with a stake estimated to be in excess of half a billion dollars.
Mr Winker, now a Xero director, reportedly invested $15 million in Xero in 2009 after selling his shares in MYOB.
Xero shares peaked at around $42 in March, but today were trading around $27.
In related news, Xero opened its fifth Australian office in Canberra today.
"We see the value in investing in our ACT Partners and customers, and continuing to grow our presence in the region" said Xero managing director in Australia Chris Ridd, managing director for Xero in Australia.
"We are dedicated to providing localised support across Australian business hubs, such as the ACT, that have shown a real eagerness to adopt cloud based accounting software."
"We are dedicated to providing localised support across Australian business hubs, such as the ACT, that have shown a real eagerness to adopt cloud based accounting software."
The new office brings Xero's Australian headcount to 144, and the company plans to hire an unspecified number of developers to work in Canberra later this year.
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