EUROPEAN ASSET FINANCE LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
04315426 · ltd · incorporated 2001-11-01
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Dec 2024
Net worth
£60.2k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Financial leasing
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 63-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 63). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 24.5y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 24.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 2 with DOB)
78
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
74 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £60,228
Net assets shrinking
Down £435 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£60k
~ YoY
Current Assets
£7k
↑ 68% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £60.2k | £60.7k |
| Current assets | £7.0k | £4.2k |
| Net assets | £60.2k | £60.7k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-12📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-12-12📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-12-11📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2025-12-11📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-12-11📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-12-11📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-08-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-07-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-04-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-04-24📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-04-19➖MULHERON, John Macdonald resigneddirector
- 2022-04-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-05📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2017-12-05📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2001-12-17🔒Charge registered #1Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 2001-11-05➕LABRUM, Stephen appointedsecretary
- 2001-11-05➕LABRUM, Stephen appointeddirector
- 2001-11-05➖LONDON LAW SECRETARIAL LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2001-11-05➕MULHERON, John Macdonald appointeddirector
- 2001-11-05➖LONDON LAW SERVICES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2001-11-01🏢Company incorporatedAs EUROPEAN ASSET FINANCE LIMITED
- 2001-11-01➕LONDON LAW SECRETARIAL LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2001-11-01➕LONDON LAW SERVICES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
93/100
Critical — business is the founderThe business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 25 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
95/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 25 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 25 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
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Stephen Labrum Individual · British · DOB 02/1963 · age 63 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mr John Macdonald Mulheronceased 28/11/2025· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
🔒Co-director network graph
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 · SG postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A PLUS CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD→ 16501610 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| CARBON FC (CAMBRIDGE) LTD→ 13203359 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| COGENT FINANCIAL PLANNING LIMITED→ 05078887 · est 2004 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| COPIA HOLDINGS LTD→ 14148611 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| COREVISION CAPITAL LIMITED→ 16811445 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DARKFIRE RISK MANAGEMENT LTD→ 16571619 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| EAST ANGLIA ASSET MANAGEMENT COMPANY LTD→ 16874160 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ENOSIS INVESTMENTS LIMITED→ 16648846 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| EQUITY SPARK LTD→ 08673809 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| ERRISEASK ROLLO LIMITED→ 09497420 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| EUCO LTD→ 11347932 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| EUROPEAN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT LIMITED→ 04273402 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
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 →🔒Advanced scoring suite
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
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2001-11-01
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC64910 — Financial leasing
Registered office
10 Watermark Way
Hertford
Hertfordshire
SG13 7TZ
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-14
Last: 2025-11-30
Officers (2 active · 3 resigned)
Active
LABRUM, Stephen→
Activedirector · ~63y · appointed 2001-11-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
LONDON LAW SECRETARIAL LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2001-11-05
MULHERON, John Macdonald→
Resigneddirector · ~62y · appointed 2001-11-05 · resigned 2023-04-19
LONDON LAW SERVICES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2001-11-01 · resigned 2001-11-05
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 17/12/2001 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (74 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-12
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-12-12
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-12-12
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2025-12-11
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-12-11
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-12-11
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-12-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-08-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-07-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-04-24
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-04-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-04-07