Bath-headquartered specialist funder Time Finance has launched a three-year strategy to increase its lending by 50% as its current highly successful four-year growth plan nears its completion.
The group, which provides asset, loan and invoice finance products to more than 10,000 small and medium-sized enterprises across the UK, recently chalked up record lending after 14 consecutive quarters of growth.
It also announced a 44% increase in pre-tax profits to £3.9m on revenue up 16% at £18.2m in the six months to 30 November.
Earnings per share rose by 39% to 3.24p while net tangible assets were up 14% to £41.5m.
Time’s gross lending book was up by 11% to a record £209.4m, with net deals in arrears falling to 5% of the lending book and net bad debt write-offs stable at 1% of the average lending book.
The group said the results reflected the success of its medium-term, four-year strategy, which started in June 2021 and runs until this May.
The plan aimed to double its gross lending book, achieve run-rate profits ahead of the 2019 pre-pandemic levels, strengthen its balance sheet through own book lending and make Time Finance a nationally recognised SME funder.
In comments accompanying its half-year results, it said: “With the company well on track to meet these metrics, a new strategy, designed to maintain the significant momentum generated and to provide a platform for the next phase of the company's growth to May 2028, has been set.”
The key elements of the strategy include:
- Lending book growth to more than £300m – expected to be achieved from existing funding lines
- Resilient lending – arrears and write-offs well controlled at broadly current levels
- Operational leverage – profit before tax margins rising to the mid-20 percents
- Increased return on equity – to the mid-teen percentages.
Time Finance non-executive chair Tanya Raynes said the first half of its 2024/25 financial year had marked another period of strong financial performance and delivery against its strategic plan.
“Demand from UK SMEs remained robust helping drive the lending book to record highs and, while revenues continue to grow, our focus on efficiencies has resulted in even more significant growth in both profits and earnings per share.
“Net tangible assets are at record highs, and cash reserves and funding sources remain solid, while arrears and write-offs are well controlled.
"The group remains in an excellent position to deliver further growth and increased value to our shareholders, and we are pleased to launch the pillars of the group's updated corporate strategy targets in this regard."
Time Finance, previously known as 1pm and listed on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM market, has increased the size of its lending book by primarily focussing on invoice finance and the ‘hard’ subset of asset finance as they are, typically, both larger in average loan size and more secure.