Communisis hit by credit card cheque ban

PRINTING group Communisis has warned that its profits will be hit by a planned Govenrment ban on credit card cheques.

The Leeds-based group said that it expects its financial customers to drop the cheques even before any law is brought in to prevent credit card firms sending out unsolicited credit card cheques to borrowers.

The cheques make up less than 2% of Communisis’ turnover, £4.2m out of a total £257.7m last year.

Communisis said the impact on profits from the proposals is “likely to be material”.

Communisis chief executive Steve Vaughan said: “We have already taken steps to reduce costs and mitigate the effects of this news and we will continue to pay close attention to our cost base as we move forward through the period.”

He added that the group is confident about its long term prospects

“We continue to concentrate on building the diverse range of value added services we now have in our portfolio to ensure long term success,” he said.

Shares in Communisis fell almost 6% following the announcement, but rallied to close down 1p to 25p last night.