Trintech, the Irish-based payment systems software firm, said yesterday it was aiming to make a profit at the earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) level by the end of the current financial year.

Revealing an adjusted ebitda loss of $548,000 (€404,494) for the first quarter, Cyril Byrne, the group's chairman and chief executive, said the primary management goal is "to deliver a profitable ebitda growth performance in the second half of fiscal 2008".

The $548,000 figure compares with a loss of $80,000 in the three months to the end of April 2006. The company attributed the wider loss to lower margins in the healthcare business it acquired in the final quarter of the prior financial year.

At a net level, New York-listed Trintech recorded a loss of $1.4 million in the quarter. Revenue, meanwhile, increased 33 per cent, to $7.4 million.

Mr McGuire welcomed the results, saying they were on track as the company makes the transition to a software and transaction-services business model. He said sales growth was mostly fuelled by ongoing investment in new products and expansion into financial services and healthcare markets.

"We continue to deliver revenue growth and expand our customer base as a result of the significant investments being made in increasing our sales force and investing in marketing campaigns to generate demand for our products and services," Paul Byrne, Trintech's president, said.