1ST FINANCIAL LIMITED
Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 85/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: strategic trade sale (65/100).
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 25.9y
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 25.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (79/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £466.3k | £432.7k |
| Current assets | £506.5k | £506.3k |
| Net assets | £466.3k | £432.7k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
1 signal detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Recent activity
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-28📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-08-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-06-17📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2020-06-11📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2020-06-11📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2020-06-11📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2020-03-31➖GETINO, Fernando resignedsecretary
- 2020-03-31➖GETINO, Fernando resigneddirector
- 2019-11-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-08-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-04-28📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2015-10-10🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2000-06-08🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Prudential Assurance Company Limited
- 2000-01-26🏢Company incorporatedAs 1ST FINANCIAL LIMITED
- 2000-01-26➕PATEL, Vikram appointeddirector
- 2000-01-26➕GETINO, Fernando appointedsecretary
- 2000-01-26➕GETINO, Fernando appointeddirector
Owner dependency
The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
cleanShareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Vikram Patel Individual · British · DOB 01/1969 · age 57 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Financial services · W postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 360-EQUITY LIMITED→ 11971621 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| 42 RISK MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 15788806 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 4879 CASTELLO LTD→ 09627515 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| 4TALL TREES LIMITED→ 13922681 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| 61M LTD→ 09036590 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| AARON CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 05456660 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| ABBEY LENDING I LIMITED→ 14260381 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ABF MXN FINANCE LIMITED→ 07809642 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| ABINGER CAPITAL LIMITED→ 09081126 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ABP39 LIMITED→ 13451716 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ABSOLUTE GLOBAL SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ 04275915 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| ABSWORTH LTD→ 11573760 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
7 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Company details
Registered office
Filing status
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | The Prudential Assurance Company The Prudential Assurance Company Limited | Deed of rental deposit | 1 property | 08/06/2000 | 10/10/2015 |