CATALYST NETWORKS LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
04422041 · ltd · incorporated 2002-04-22
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
£12.1k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Activities of head offices
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 76-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 76). 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 22.2y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 22.2 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.
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
7 officers (1 active, 7 linked, 3 with DOB)
79
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
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 £12,143
Net assets shrinking
Down £1,867 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£12k
↓ 13% YoY
Current Assets
£12k
↓ 14% 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 | £12.1k | £14.0k |
| Current assets | £12.2k | £14.1k |
| Net assets | £12.1k | £14.0k |
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 (30 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-02📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-10-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-11📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-04-10📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2022-04-10📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-12-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-11-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-05-08📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2011-04-01➕ELLIS, Alexander David appointeddirector
- 2011-03-31➖ELLIS, David resigneddirector
- 2009-11-01➖LAMPRELL, Robert Dominic, Director resigneddirector
- 2008-12-01➕LAMPRELL, Robert Dominic, Director appointeddirector
- 2008-11-30➖POOLE, Jonathan resignedsecretary
- 2004-02-18🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 2003-04-20➖ELLIS, Alexander David resignedsecretary
- 2003-04-20➕POOLE, Jonathan appointedsecretary
- 2002-04-22🏢Company incorporatedAs CATALYST NETWORKS LIMITED
- 2002-04-22➕ELLIS, Alexander David appointedsecretary
- 2002-04-22➕CDF SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-04-22➖CDF SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-04-22➕ELLIS, David appointeddirector
- 2002-04-22➕CDF FORMATIONS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2002-04-22➖CDF FORMATIONS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
100/100
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 15 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 76 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
98/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 76 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 15 years.
- 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
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Alexander David Ellis Individual · British · DOB 10/1950 · age 76 | 25–50% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · firm interest | 01/06/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mrs Mary Elizabeth Ellisceased 06/04/2022· 25-50% shares
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 · Professional services · TN postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100% ARCHITECTURE LIMITED→ 15564775 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| 1066 RENTAL LIMITED→ 16093168 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 119 TRADING LIMITED→ 05682520 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| 123 BOOKKEEPING AND ACCOUNTANCY LIMITED→ 14762409 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 1900 WJ LTD→ 08013004 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| 2 HEARTS HEALTH CARE LIMITED→ 14237349 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 2 STREETS CONSULTING LIMITED→ 13896536 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| 2020 MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS LTD.→ 04363742 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| 24-7 EMPLOYMENT SERVICES LTD→ 14370622 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 247 CONSULTING LIMITED→ 14579977 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 24SEVEN HIRE LIMITED→ 04494078 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| 29 FORTY LTD→ 13958624 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
8 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
Incorporated2002-04-22
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC70100 — Activities of head offices
Registered office
20 Mountfield Gardens
Tunbridge Wells
Kent
TN1 1SJ
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-22
Last: 2025-10-08
Officers (1 active · 6 resigned)
ELLIS, Alexander David→
Activedirector · ~76y · appointed 2011-04-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ELLIS, Alexander David→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2002-04-22 · resigned 2003-04-20
POOLE, Jonathan→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2003-04-20 · resigned 2008-11-30
CDF SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-04-22 · resigned 2002-04-22
ELLIS, David→
Resigneddirector · ~51y · appointed 2002-04-22 · resigned 2011-03-31
LAMPRELL, Robert Dominic, Director→
Resigneddirector · ~49y · appointed 2008-12-01 · resigned 2009-11-01
CDF FORMATIONS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-04-22 · resigned 2002-04-22
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 | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 18/02/2004 | — |
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
2025-10-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-09-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-02
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-04-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-10-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-04-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-11-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-08-17
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-04-11
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-10
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2022-04-10
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-04-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-12-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-04-09