Pre-tax profits at the main Irish arm of jobs and professional networking social media platform, LinkedIn last year fell by 43.5 per cent to $99.5 million (€93 million) due to higher costs.
New accounts show that LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company recorded the sharp downturn in pre-tax profits as revenues grew by 15 per cent to $5.3 billion.
In a post balance sheet event, the firm paid out a dividend of $150 million.
The directors state that revenue increased "due to increases across all lines of business".
They attributed the profit decline to a significant increase in the cost of sales and administrative expenses, including higher recurring intercompany charges from group undertakings and higher payroll costs due to a 25 per cent growth in headcount.
Numbers employed rose by 449 to 2,236 as staff costs increased from $294.2 million to $322.54 million.
Wages and salaries along with share-based payments totalled $278 million, showing that average pay for the 2,236 staff totalled $124,349 for the year.
Dublin office
The opening of One Wilton headquarters in Dublin added to the firm’s cost base last year with occupancy costs for the Dublin office for 2022 amounting to $7.7 million. The Irish-based business of LinkedIn manages the company’s operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
In another post balance sheet event, a note states that in April 2023, the Irish Data Protection Commission (IDPC) issued a draft decision alleging EU GDPR violation and proposed a fine.
The note states that LinkedIn’s ultimate parent, Microsoft, has indemnified the company against all potential fines directed by the IDPC. The note states: "Accordingly, there is no financial impact on the company.”
The number of LinkedIn members last year rose by 90 million to 900 million across 200 countries in 26 languages.
