UPM-Kymmene Corporation Stock Exchange Release (Half Year Financial Report) July 23, 2026 at 09:30 EEST

HELSINKI, July 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 

UPM Half Year Financial Report 2026:
Improved second quarter results in all businesses and portfolio change progressing

Q2 2026 highlights, continuing operations

Sales totaled €2,355 million (2,341 million in Q2 2025)Comparable EBIT increased by 71% to €212 million, 9.0% of sales (124 million, 5.3%)All businesses improved their results from last yearUPM and Sappi signed a definitive agreement on the graphic paper Joint VentureThe Board approved a plan to demerge the Plywood business into a new listed company. The Extraordinary General Meeting to decide on the demerger plan will be held on August 31, 2026UPM achieved a Platinum rating from EcoVadis and an A score from CDP for its supplier engagement

H1 2026 highlights, continuing operations

Sales totaled €4,781 million (4,914 million in H1 2025)Comparable EBIT increased by 17% to €471 million, 9.8 % of sales (404 million, 8.2 %)Strong performance in Decarbonization solutions businesses (UPM Energy and UPM Biofuels)Robust sales growth and performance in Advanced materials businesses (UPM Adhesive Materials and UPM Specialty Materials)Operating cash flow was €225 million (468 million)1)The first installment of the dividend for the year 2025 was paid in April, totaling €395 millionNet debt was 3,313€ million at the end of June (3,310 million) and net debt to EBITDA ratio was 2.36 (2.12)1)

1)  Operating cash, net debt and net debt to EBITDA ratio include continuing and discontinued operations.

UPM Plywood is presented as discontinued operations due to the proposed demerger

On April 29, 2026, the Board of Directors of UPM approved a demerger plan for the separation of the Plywood business into an independent listed company. As a result of the proposed demerger, the Plywood business is presented as a discontinued operation in accordance with IFRS 5. Unless otherwise stated, the commentary in this report relates to UPM’s continuing operations. More information in Financial statement information Note 10 assets and liabilities classified as held for distribution to owners and discontinued operations.

Key figures, continuing operations

UPM presents certain measures of performance, financial position and cash flows, which are alternative performance measures in accordance with the guidance issued by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). The definitions of alternative performance measures are presented in UPM’s  » Annual Report 2025

Key figures, discontinued operations

The financial information presented for the discontinued operations is not representative of the historical or future profitability of the UPM Plywood business area as a standalone business. Information on UPM Plywood’s performance is presented in the segment information.

Key figures, UPM total

Massimo Reynaudo, President and CEO, comments on the results:

“In the second quarter, we reached two important milestones in the transformation of UPM. We signed the definitive agreement to create the graphic paper joint venture with Sappi, and advanced the separation of the plywood business into the future WISA Group. Following these steps, UPM is positioned with stronger growth prospects and improved earnings quality.

During the quarter, all our businesses improved their results compared to the same period last year, with most also outperforming the previous quarter. Increased volumes, margin management and sustained efficiency measures supported our profitability in a business environment that turned inflationary.

In Q2, sales from our continuing operations were slightly up at €2,355 million, and comparable EBIT increased to €212 million, 71 percent higher than in the same period last year. Net debt at the end of the reporting period was €3,313 million, including both continuing and discontinued operations, and net debt to EBITDA ratio was 2.36.

In decarbonization solutions, UPM Biofuels recorded a strong quarter with good demand and healthy bio-premiums for advanced renewable fuels. Prices were further supported by higher fossil fuel reference prices. The ramp-up of our biorefinery in Leuna, Germany, continued. Customer deliveries of industrial sugars reached substantial volumes, and deliveries of renewable functional fillers and other lignin derivatives are expected to start during Q3. UPM Energy improved its results from last year, although the second quarter saw normal seasonality. Structurally, electricity consumption continued to grow year-on-year, and we are well positioned to create value by serving new large-scale consumers.

The markets for our advanced materials businesses, UPM Adhesive Materials and UPM Specialty Materials, showed robust growth in Europe and Asia. Both businesses succeeded in the markets, thanks to a focus on commercial excellence and product portfolio development, and sharpened competitiveness.

Our world-class pulp platform in Uruguay, UPM Fibres South, has consistently improved efficiency for several quarters in a row. In the second quarter, this helped us to fully offset the increases in logistics and other costs. Profitability was further improved by a moderate increase in pulp prices.

For the Fibres North platform in Finland, the business environment is challenging. Even though pulpwood prices have decreased, profitability remains low. The second quarter earnings were also impacted by the maintenance shutdown at the UPM Pietarsaari mill. We are planning temporary shutdowns of the UPM Kaukas pulp mill and potentially the UPM Pietarsaari pulp mill, to optimize production and wood sourcing, and ensure profitability.

UPM Communication Papers’ business performance was broadly stable, with slightly improved margins. Preparations for the planned graphic paper Joint Venture continued. In late May we signed the definitive agreement with Sappi, and secured financing arrangements for the Joint Venture. The EU merger control process moved to Phase II, with final resolutions expected by the end of 2026.

UPM Plywood continued to perform well as the business prepared for separation into an independent listed company, WISA Group. In April, the Board of Directors approved the demerger plan. Subject to the decision of the Extraordinary General Meeting, trading in the shares of WISA Group on Nasdaq Helsinki is currently expected to commence in early November. By separating the plywood business onto its own growth path, we are strengthening its future prospects and streamlining UPM’s business portfolio.

Following the planned graphic paper joint venture and plywood separation, UPM operates in structurally growing markets. The ongoing reshaping of UPM’s portfolio highlights our position in businesses with stronger growth characteristics, and our direction going forward is towards higher value-added products and lower cyclicality.”

Profit guidance, continuing operations

UPM’s comparable EBIT in H2 2026 from continuing operations is expected to be approximately in the range of €375-575 million (€479 million in H2 2025, and €471 million in H1 2026). These figures exclude UPM Plywood, which is classified as discontinued operations.

Outlook

There continue to be significant uncertainties in geopolitics and trade.

In H2 2026, compared with H1 2026, UPM’s performance is expected to be supported by moderately higher sales prices. Variable costs are expected to increase moderately. Energy refunds are expected to support UPM Communication Papers’ result in Q4. Maintenance activity is expected to increase from the comparison period. The production ramp-up at UPM Leuna is expected to increase costs.

In H2 2026, compared with H2 2025, UPM’s performance is expected to benefit from higher sales prices. Variable costs are expected to increase moderately. Fair value change of forest assets is expected to have a significantly smaller impact on comparable EBIT in H2 2026 than in H2 2025 (€131 million). The energy refunds to be booked in UPM Communication Papers in Q4 are anticipated to have a somewhat smaller positive impact than in 2025. Maintenance activity is expected to increase from the comparison period. The production ramp-up at UPM Leuna is expected to increase costs.

Sensitivity to pulp and electricity prices

UPM’s comparable EBIT is sensitive to pulp and electricity prices. The figures below represent group earnings sensitivities on annual level.

UPM is a large producer and consumer of chemical pulp. A €50/tonne change in average pulp price would impact annual comparable EBIT by approximately €180 million (net impact: assuming no correlation between pulp and paper prices) to approximately €270 million (gross impact: assuming paper pricing would match changes in pulp costs).

UPM is a large producer and consumer of electricity in Finland and separately hedges part of its electricity sales and purchases. Based on UPM’s estimated unhedged net electricity sales position in Finland in 2026, a €10/MWh change in average electricity market price in Finland would impact annual comparable EBIT by approximately €40 million.

Foreign exchange exposure

Fluctuations in monetary policies and economic conditions can significantly impact the value of various currencies, which in turn may affect UPM. Additionally, the escalation of global trade tensions could influence currency exchange rates. These currency fluctuations could impact UPM’s cash flow, earnings, or balance sheet, and may also affect the relative competitiveness between different currency regions.

The Group’s policy is to hedge an average of 50% of its estimated net currency cash flows on a rolling basis over the next 12-month period. At the end of Q2 2026, UPM’s estimated net currency cash flows for the next 12 months totaled approximately €1.5 billion. USD was the largest exposure at approximately €1.4 billion, followed by UYU, GBP, CNY and JPY. In addition, the earnings of UPM’s foreign subsidiaries are translated to euros in reporting. UPM has significant foreign subsidiaries in Uruguay, the U.S. and China. Foreign exchange risks are discussed in UPM’s Annual Report 2025 on pages 313-314.

Invitation to UPM’s webcast on the half-year financial report 2026

A webcast and a conference call for analysts and investors will start at 13:15 EEST. The 2026 half-year financial report will be presented in English by President and CEO Massimo Reynaudo and CFO Tapio Korpeinen. Participants can follow the webcast online via this link.

Participants wishing to ask questions after the presentation must register for the conference call. To participate in the conference call, please register here. After registering, you will be provided with telephone numbers, a user ID and a conference ID to access the conference. To ask a question, press *5 on your telephone keypad to join the queue.

The webcast will be available on the company website for 12 months after the call.

*

It should be noted that certain statements herein, which are not historical facts, including, without limitation, those regarding expectations for market growth and developments; expectations for growth and profitability; and statements preceded by “believes”, “expects”, “anticipates”, “foresees”, or similar expressions, are forward-looking statements. Since these statements are based on current plans, estimates and projections, they involve risks and uncertainties which may cause actual results to materially differ from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to: (1) operating factors such as continued success of manufacturing activities and the achievement of efficiencies therein including the availability and cost of production inputs, continued success of product development, acceptance of new products or services by the Group’s targeted customers, success of the existing and future collaboration arrangements, changes in business strategy or development plans or targets, changes in the degree of protection created by the Group’s patents and other intellectual property rights, the availability of capital on acceptable terms; (2) industry conditions, such as strength of product demand, intensity of competition, prevailing and future global market prices for the Group’s products and the pricing pressures thereto, financial condition of the customers and the competitors of the Group, the potential introduction of competing products and technologies by competitors; and (3) general economic conditions, such as rates of economic growth in the Group’s principal geographic markets or fluctuations in exchange and interest rates. The main earnings sensitivities and the group’s cost structure are presented on page 276 of the Annual Report 2025. Risks and opportunities are discussed on pages 31-33, and risks and risk management are presented on pages 128-132.

UPM, Media relations
Mon-Fri 9:00-16:00 EEST
tel. +358 40 588 3284
media@upm.com

UPM
UPM is a material solutions company, renewing products and entire value chains with an extensive portfolio of renewable fibres, advanced materials, decarbonization solutions, and communication papers. Our performance in sustainability has been recognized by third parties, including EcoVadis and the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices. We operate globally and employ approximately 15,100 people worldwide, with annual sales of approximately €9.7 billion. Our shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd.
UPM – we renew the everyday
Read more: upm.com 

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Built on a 5-nanometer process, the new SoC is designed to support models in the 100 billion parameter class, with full-stack software for private and responsive AI agents at the edge

SINGAPORE, July 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Acrab, a technology company building agentic AI compute infrastructure for the next generation of intelligent systems, today unveiled GΞLIX 1, its first-generation edge AI system-on-chip (SoC), together with Agent Box, a personal edge AI system powered by the company’s full-stack computing platform.

As AI moves from generating answers to completing tasks, agents increasingly need to understand context, remember preferences and coordinate tools and devices in real time. Running these capabilities locally can produce faster responses, keep sensitive information under the user’s control and maintain core functions when cloud connectivity is limited.

For years, models in the 100 billion parameter class have required cloud infrastructure. GΞLIX 1 is designed to bring state-of-the-art AI models at this scale into locally operated edge systems. Powered by GΞLIX, Acrab’s Agent Box is a high-performance personal edge AI center designed to put AI agents into action in a more personal and customized way, with local large model inference, persistent memory, multimodal interactions and agent orchestration capabilities.

By replacing cloud AI’s recurring token-fees per use, Agent Box is a one-time investment with long-term value, hence relieving users’ token anxiety, and allowing AI to move from an occasional tool into an always-available assistant woven into everyday work and life.

“Generative AI helped people find answers. Agentic AI will help them get things done,” said Dr. Ken Phua, CEO of Acrab. “Running models in the 100 billion parameter class on a system small enough to sit on a desk presents a significant computing challenge. GΞLIX 1 is designed to deliver the performance, memory bandwidth and responsive local inference required, while Agent Box shows how that capability can become a complete user experience.”

A private AI center built for everyday life

Agent Box is designed as a private, always-on AI center for personal workspaces and homes. It keeps intelligence close to the people, information and physical environments it serves, while showing how device makers can turn Acrab’s computing platform into complete agentic AI experiences.

For decades, personal computing advanced in predictable steps: faster processors, larger screens, more storage. Agent Box represents something else entirely—the first system designed not to run programs, but to host intelligence.

Agent Box brings together local language and vision model inference, multimodal interaction, persistent memory and an orchestration layer that can understand goals, break tasks into steps and coordinate action across agents, systems and connected devices. Users’ data and memories remain private and stored locally on the device, while the system grows more capable and customized as the context deepens and memories accumulate. Acrab designed the compute architecture from the ground up to achieve optimal local AI performance, usability, cost efficiency, and power efficiency within one device.

A purpose-designed SoC for large model inference at the edge

GΞLIX 1 is built on a 5-nanometer process and is Acrab’s first SoC designed specifically for edge AI. Rather than relying on separate compute components, it integrates CPU, GPU and NPU resources with a unified memory architecture engineered for large AI models and agentic workloads.

The SoC features a 20-core Arm CPU, multicore NPU acceleration and 273 GB/s of unified memory bandwidth. It is designed to support local deployment of open-source models in up to the 100 billion parameter class, with coordinated execution across CPU, GPU and NPU resources. Supporting models at this scale locally places substantial demands on computing performance, memory bandwidth and power efficiency.

GΞLIX 1 is engineered for rapid responses at power levels suitable for systems that remain active throughout the day. A central design goal was reducing the delay before a model begins to respond, particularly with long prompts and large context windows.

In company testing, GΞLIX 1 achieved a prefill rate of 1416.8 tokens per second under a Gemma 26B A4B configuration with a 40K KV cache and a 10K token input, compared with 188.9 tokens per second on Mac Mini M4 Pro, representing up to 7.5X faster prefill performance. These capabilities turn a single chip into a versatile supercomputing platform for a wide range of applications.

A full-stack platform, from silicon to applications

Beyond the SoC, Acrab has built the software and system layers needed to turn local model inference into working agentic products. These include an optimized runtime and developer toolchain, agent operating system capabilities, reference designs and applications that help devices understand context, retain memory and coordinate real-world action.

Agent Box is the first expression of Acrab’s broader ambition to provide a horizontal computing foundation for agentic AI across a wide range of edge devices and intelligent systems.

Processing a substantial share of AI workloads locally can reduce dependence on metered cloud inference, lower recurring processing and data transfer costs, and avoid the delay involved in sending every interaction to a remote service. Cloud resources can still be used when a task requires them, allowing developers to choose the right balance between local and cloud execution.

Building a broader edge AI device ecosystem

Acrab plans to work with device manufacturers and developers to bring its computing platform into products including AI NAS systems, AI PCs, smart vehicles, and industrial and service robots.

Agent Box demonstrates how Acrab’s silicon and software can be integrated into a complete product experience. The company aims to provide a complete set of compute platform and agent-native infrastructure for the next generation of AI transformation across industries. By combining custom AI silicon, full-stack software, and reference designs of agents for use scenarios, Acrab enables industry partners and developers to bring intelligent AI products to market faster.

“Our goal is to give device makers and developers the foundation to bring agentic intelligence into many different products and environments,” Dr. Phua said. “Agent Box demonstrates what the technology can do today, while GΞLIX 1 and our full-stack platform are designed to support a much broader ecosystem of devices and applications.”

Product Launch Event Video Replay:

https://www.acrab.ai/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdojjwucdTQhttps://www.linkedin.com/events/7484797078045401088/

About Acrab

Acrab is a technology company building agentic AI compute infrastructure for the next generation of intelligent systems. Founded in 2024, the company develops high-performance AI compute architecture and integrated software platforms designed to bring AI agents into action, providing personalized assistance and real-time execution across a range of edge environments.

By combining purpose-designed silicon, advanced edge AI models, full-stack software and system orchestration, Acrab provides the computing foundation for AI agent systems across everyday life, bringing assistance, creativity, utility and value.

In June 2026, Acrab announced that it had received over US$350 million in cumulative financing from global venture capital firms and strategic industry investors, including early backers Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India, Vertex Growth, and K3.

For more information about Acrab, please visit https://www.acrab.ai/.

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SOURCE Acrab

Philippe Morel brings over 30 years of financial services and technology leadership experience, with a track record of scaling regulated platform businesses in partnership with private equity.

MUNICH, July 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — IDnow, Europe’s leader in digital identity and fraud prevention, today announces the appointment of Philippe Morel as Chief Executive Officer, effective today. Philippe succeeds Andreas Bodczek, who steps down after more than seven years of leadership that transformed IDnow into a leading European provider of digital identity and fraud prevention.

The IDnow Trust Platform: From KYC to Continuous Trust

In June 2026, IDnow launched the IDnow Trust Platform, marking the company’s expansion beyond traditional identity verification. Designed to help regulated organisations move from Know Your Customer (KYC) to Trust Your Customer (TYC), the platform orchestrates identity verification, fraud prevention, biometric authentication and qualified digital trust services across the full customer lifecycle. Through four modular services — Identify, Authenticate, Protect and Trust — and its Orchestrate, Observe and Decide capabilities, customers can configure workflows, monitor risk signals in real time and automate decisions through a single integration. The platform is built to help organisations adapt to the evolving European regulatory landscape, including AMLR, eIDAS 2.0 and the emergence of EU Digital Identity Wallets, while addressing increasingly sophisticated AI-driven fraud.

A New Chapter for IDnow

Philippe Morel brings more than 30 years of leadership experience spanning financial services, technology platforms and regulated environments, with a consistent track record of strategic transformation and value creation in partnership with private equity.

Most recently, Philippe served as Chief Executive Officer of Railsr, a payments and embedded finance platform, where he led strategic repositioning and commercial rebuilding before the merger with Equals Money.

Prior to that, Philippe served as CEO of SETL, a blockchain-based financial market infrastructure provider, where he repositioned the business into payments and digital settlement networks, launched the Regulated Liability Network (RLN) tested with the New York Federal Reserve, and delivered tokenisation projects for tier-one financial institutions.

Before his executive career, Philippe worked at Boston Consulting Group, rising to Senior Partner and Managing Director. He led BCG’s Global Capital Markets practice and its Private Equity EMEA business, advising boards and CEOs of major financial institutions on strategy, transformation, M&A and growth across Europe, the US and Asia. He also served for nine years as Chair of BCG’s Global Audit and Risk Committee.

Philippe holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a degree in Finance from HEC Paris.

Board Statement

Martin McCourt, Chair of IDnow, said: “We are delighted to welcome Philippe to IDnow at a pivotal moment. IDnow has recently launched its Trust Platform, expanding beyond traditional identity verification to help regulated organisations orchestrate identity, fraud prevention and compliance across the full customer lifecycle. Philippe’s background — combining deep strategic expertise with hands-on leadership of regulated technology and financial services platforms — is ideally suited to the opportunity ahead. We are confident that he will lead IDnow into its next phase of growth.”

Philippe Morel Statement

“IDnow is a genuinely exceptional business — a European-born leader in digital identity and fraud prevention at a moment when regulation, digital identity wallets and increasingly sophisticated fraud are reshaping the market. The newly launched IDnow Trust Platform is designed to help customers move beyond one-time verification towards continuous trust across the full customer lifecycle. I am energised by what this team has achieved and by the opportunity ahead. My first priority is to listen: to our customers, our colleagues and our partners. From there, we will define and execute IDnow’s next phase of growth together.”

A Tribute to Andreas Bodczek

The Board also takes this opportunity to express its deep gratitude to Andreas Bodczek, who has led IDnow with extraordinary vision and commitment since 2018. A seasoned technology entrepreneur with a Diplom Kaufmann from LMU München, Andreas brought to IDnow the experience of building and scaling digital businesses: as co-founder and CEO of Fyber, which he grew into a globally recognised mobile technology platform, a board partner at Point Nine Capital, and chairman at JTL Software.

At IDnow, his impact was transformative. He led the company through a pivotal transition from founder-led to PE-backed under Corsair’s ownership, providing the foundation for sustained growth. He drove the acquisitions of identity Trust Management AG and ARIADNEXT — the French market leader in remote identity verification — which significantly expanded IDnow’s capabilities, brought the Rennes engineering hub into the group, and established IDnow’s presence across Europe. Most recently, he oversaw the launch of the IDnow Trust Platform, marking the company’s expansion beyond traditional identity verification and creating a unified platform for identity, fraud prevention, authentication and qualified digital trust services across the customer lifecycle. His leadership has positioned IDnow well for its next chapter, and we wish him every success in what comes next.

About IDnow

IDnow is Europe’s leader in digital identity and fraud prevention, with a mission to transform trust into a powerful asset in the digital world. Through its broad portfolio of AI-driven, SaaS-based identity and fraud prevention solutions, IDnow establishes, maintains and enriches trust throughout the customer journey, enabling businesses to operate securely while driving growth and scalability. The IDnow Trust Platform provides unified access to identity verification, fraud prevention, biometric authentication and qualified digital trust services. IDnow has offices in Germany, the United Kingdom, Romania and France and is backed by Corsair Capital.

For more information, visit idnow.io. 

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