Impact maintains profits despite scaling back loans
SPECIALIST lender Impact Holdings managed a slight increase in pre-tax profits to £141,024 in the six months to September 30 (2010: £139,534) despite a 17% drop in sales to £848,754.
The Daresbury-based company, which offers bridging loans on properties and short-term loans to solicitors’ practices, said the results were “in line with management expectations”.
The firm also said that it had reduced the amount of money it was borrowing from financial institutions by over £1.5m during the six months from March. By the end of September, its own borrowing figures dropped to £5.9m, while its net assets grew to £4.9m (March 2011: £4.7m).
Non-executive chairman Roger Barlow said that AIM-listed Impact Holdings had taken a “strategic decision” to reduce its loan book due to the lack of confidence in the economy and shortage of liquidity in the banking markets.
“The Board remains concerned at the lack of liquidity in the banking markets and for the overall economic environment.
“The consequence to these concerns and our desired strategy of concentrating on
better quality covenants has been a slowing down of our organic growth within
the solicitor-lending business over the past 30 months or so.”
He said it would continue to adopt this “prudent” stance until the economy picks up.
