Visa — Income Statement, Cash Flows & Balance Sheet
Is Visa profitable?
Visa's revenue and earnings grew solidly, though a large litigation charge kept reported profit growth modest.
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net revenue | $35,926M | $40,000M | +11.3% |
| Total operating expenses | $12,331M | $16,006M | +29.8% |
| — of which: litigation provision | $462M | $2,562M | +$2,100M |
| Operating income | $23,595M | $23,994M | +1.7% |
| Net income | $19,743M | $20,058M | +1.6% |
| Operating margin | 65.7% | 60.0% | -5.7 pts |
Revenue grew at a healthy double-digit pace, but a dramatically larger litigation charge — primarily related to the interchange antitrust lawsuits — consumed most of the operating gains, leaving net income only slightly ahead of last year. Strip out that charge and Visa's underlying profitability looks meaningfully stronger.
Where does Visa's revenue come from?
Data processing is Visa's largest and fastest-growing revenue category, while international and value-added services are important growth engines.
| Revenue Category | FY2024 | FY2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service revenue | $16,114M | $17,539M | +8.8% |
| Data processing revenue | $17,714M | $19,993M | +12.9% |
| International transaction revenue | $12,665M | $14,166M | +11.9% |
| Other revenue | $3,197M | $4,053M | +26.8% |
| Client incentives (deducted) | ($13,764M) | ($15,751M) | +14.4% |
| Value-added services (subset) | $8,800M | $10,900M | +23.9% |
Every revenue line grew, with value-added services — things like fraud tools, issuer processing, and advisory services — expanding the fastest and now representing over a quarter of gross revenue. Geographically, international markets now account for about 61% of net revenue, up from 59% a year earlier, reflecting faster growth outside the US.
Does Visa generate cash?
Visa is a cash-generating machine, but returned even more cash to shareholders than it produced from operations.
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating cash flow | $19,950M | $23,059M | +15.6% |
| Capital expenditures | ($1,257M) | ($1,482M) | +18.0% |
| Free cash flow (GAAP operating CF minus capex) | $18,693M | $21,577M | +15.4% |
| Share repurchases | ($16,713M) | ($18,185M) | +8.8% |
| Dividends paid | ($4,217M) | ($4,634M) | +9.9% |
| Total returned to shareholders | ($20,930M) | ($22,819M) | +9.0% |
Visa generated substantially more free cash flow than the prior year, and returned essentially all of it — and then some — to shareholders through buybacks and dividends. The company also issued roughly $3.9 billion of new Euro-denominated bonds during the year, partly to fund that generosity.
How strong is Visa's balance sheet?
Visa carries meaningful debt but sits on a large cash cushion and generates enough cash to service its obligations comfortably.
| Metric | FY2024 | FY2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash & cash equivalents | $11,975M | $17,164M | +43.3% |
| Total debt (carrying value) | $20,836M | $25,171M | +20.8% |
| — of which: due within 12 months | $0 | $5,569M | — |
| Accrued litigation (total) | $1,727M | $3,033M | +75.7% |
| Total equity | $39,137M | $37,909M | -3.1% |
Debt rose after the new Euro bond issuance, and about $5.6 billion matures within the next year, though Visa's strong free cash flow and large cash balance make refinancing straightforward. The more notable watch item is the accrued litigation balance, which nearly doubled — a reminder that the ongoing antitrust cases represent a real, though as-yet unquantified, long-term financial risk.