DroneShield Taps Afterpay Veteran as CFO While Racing to Deliver RfRecon by Year-End

DroneShield appoints Rebecca Lowde as CFO effective 2 November 2026, with USD 251 million in contracted FY2026 revenue and RfRecon's first order due to ship.

DroneShield is entering the final stretch of its 2026 fiscal year with a twin focus: getting hardware out the door and putting a seasoned hand on the financial tiller. The counter-drone specialist has named Rebecca Lowde as its next Chief Financial Officer, effective 2 November 2026 — a hire that lands squarely in the middle of its busiest delivery window yet.

Lowde arrives with more than three decades of international finance experience. She previously served as CFO at Afterpay and MYOB, two roles that give her a deep grounding in scaling fast-moving technology businesses. Management expects her appointment to sharpen the company's financial controls as operations expand.

An Order Book That Locks In the Year

The incoming CFO inherits a balance sheet already carrying substantial visibility. DroneShield has pegged its contracted revenue for fiscal 2026 at USD 251 million, comfortably inside the USD 250 million to USD 270 million guidance range it has issued for the year. A further USD 46 million in firmly committed sales is booked for 2027 and beyond, giving management a planning cushion that extends well past the current reporting period.

That backlog underpins the company's standing with armed forces and security agencies, where it has built a reputation as a dedicated drone-defense supplier. The question now is execution: converting signed agreements into recognized revenue on schedule.

RfRecon's First Order Heads to Western Europe

Among the deliveries due before the calendar turns is the debut order for RfRecon, DroneShield's newly launched AI-powered reconnaissance device. The initial purchase — announced 10 September — came from an existing Western European military customer, and the units are slated to ship before the end of 2026.

On the US side, DroneShield confirmed last Friday that installation, acceptance testing, and operator training are complete for DroneSentry-X Mk2 units mounted on US military vehicles. That milestone marks initial operational capability under the JIATF-401 contract. A contract amendment has added three more units to the program.

The company also broadened its technology footprint through a partnership with Australian firm AIM Defence, agreed last Thursday, aimed at making its DroneSentry platform interoperable with the Fractl high-energy laser.

Where the Stock Stands

Shares changed hands at EUR 1.05 on the day, up 0.7%. Over the trailing seven sessions, the stock has advanced 4.0%.

What happens next hinges on whether fresh product initiatives pull in additional orders and whether existing commitments translate into durable top-line growth. The remaining months of 2026 will show how faithfully DroneShield converts its stated targets into delivered results.