9 KNOTS BUSINESS SOLUTIONS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
04393123 · ltd · incorporated 2002-03-12
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£401.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
83/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Information technology consultancy activities
Sector: Information & communication
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 63-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 83/100 (exceptional), bankability 85/100. Strong seller-intent signal (80/100, director aged 63). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -40% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · oldest 10.1y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 10.1 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Cashflow trend is negative — lender view likely cautious.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (79/100)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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 4 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
78 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
83/100Exceptional
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
85
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 £401,683
Net assets shrinking
Down £173,647 YoY
Cash YoY
-40%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£296k
↓ 40% YoY
Net Worth
£402k
↓ 30% YoY
Current Assets
£501k
↓ 23% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £402.9k | £576.9k |
| Current assets | £501.4k | £649.1k |
| Cash | £296.5k | £492.1k |
| Debtors | £204.9k | £157.1k |
| Net assets | £401.7k | £575.3k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
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
Last 30 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-19📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2024-12-19📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2024-12-19🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2024-12-19🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2024-12-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-18📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2022-03-18📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2022-03-12➖KUIJPERS, Johanna Maria resignedsecretary
- 2022-03-12➖KUIJPERS, Johanna Maria resigneddirector
- 2021-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-10-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-05-17🔒Charge registered #2Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 2016-04-22🔒Charge registered #1Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 2006-07-18➕SWANN, David Gavin appointeddirector
- 2005-07-20➖SWANN, David Gavin resigneddirector
- 2004-11-03➖DISPA, Bertus Jan resignedsecretary
- 2004-11-03➕KUIJPERS, Johanna Maria appointedsecretary
- 2004-11-03➕SWANN, David Gavin appointeddirector
- 2002-03-12🏢Company incorporatedAs 9 KNOTS BUSINESS SOLUTIONS LIMITED
- 2002-03-12➕DISPA, Bertus Jan appointeddirector
- 2002-03-12➕DISPA, Bertus Jan appointedsecretary
- 2002-03-12➕KUIJPERS, Johanna Maria appointeddirector
Owner dependency
76/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
86/100
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.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 24 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 24 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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Bertus Jan Dispa Individual · Dutch · DOB 03/1966 · age 60 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
Mr David Gavin Swann Individual · British · DOB 01/1963 · age 63 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
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
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 121 DIGITAL SERVICES LIMITED→ 15370776 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
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| 14A DIGITAL SOLUTIONS LTD→ 16995721 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1DSON LIMITED→ 10881871 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| 2000NET.COM LIMITED→ 03913226 · est 2000 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 26y | — | — |
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| 7TH PLANET MEDIA SERVICES LTD→ 14371253 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 8086 IT SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ 07297778 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| A & B NETWORKS LIMITED→ 15416531 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
6 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
Incorporated2002-03-12
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC62020 — Information technology consultancy activities
Registered office
7 St. John Street
Mansfield
Nottinghamshire
NG18 1QH
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-19
Last: 2026-05-05
Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)
DISPA, Bertus Jan→
Activedirector · ~60y · appointed 2002-03-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SWANN, David Gavin→
Activedirector · ~63y · appointed 2006-07-18
View their other companies + combined net worth →
DISPA, Bertus Jan→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2002-03-12 · resigned 2004-11-03
KUIJPERS, Johanna Maria→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2004-11-03 · resigned 2022-03-12
KUIJPERS, Johanna Maria→
Resigneddirector · ~60y · appointed 2002-03-12 · resigned 2022-03-12
SWANN, David Gavin→
Resigneddirector · ~63y · appointed 2004-11-03 · resigned 2005-07-20
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 17/05/2016 | 19/12/2024 | |
| satisfied | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | A registered charge | — | 22/04/2016 | 19/12/2024 |
Recent filings (78 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-05-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-23
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2024-12-19
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2024-12-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-11-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-18
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2022-03-18
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2022-03-18