D F WILLIAMS FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
08303250 · ltd · incorporated 2012-11-22
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
£154.2k
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 72-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 72). 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: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (70/100)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
1 year of iXBRL accounts extracted (no YoY comparison) + narrative notes parsed
50
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
1 officers (1 active, 1 linked, 1 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
29 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £154,211
Key financials
1 year extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£67k
Net Worth
£154k
Current Assets
£211k
Current Liabilities
—
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 |
|---|---|
| Total assets | £154.2k |
| Current assets | £210.7k |
| Cash | £66.6k |
| Debtors | £144.1k |
| Net assets | £154.2k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 signals 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
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (17 events)Click to expand
- 2025-08-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-08-13📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extendedaccounts · AA01
- 2024-10-30📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2024-10-30📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-03-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-03-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-05-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-04-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-05-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-12-09📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-03-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2012-11-22🏢Company incorporatedAs D F WILLIAMS FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED
- 2012-11-22➕WILLIAMS, David appointeddirector
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.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "WILLIAMS" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 72 — succession pressure is live.
- +No director turnover: Company is 14 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
88/100
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 72 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 14 years.
- 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 David Williams Individual · British · DOB 01/1954 · age 72 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Financial services · CM postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHESTERFIELD FINANCE LIMITED→ 14444288 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| CMMB LTD→ 07936299 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| COTTER MORTGAGES LTD→ 14509420 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| COVERMY LTD→ 07757031 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| CRISP CONSULTANTS LIMITED→ 08373911 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| CROISSANT CAPITAL LTD→ 11503405 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| CULLEN INVESTMENTS LTD→ 14112269 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| CURO UNDERWRITING SERVICES LTD→ 09928519 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| CV FINANCE LIMITED→ 04177230 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| D&C PROPERTY INVESTORS LTD→ 15821833 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| DAISY BLUE TOO LTD→ 07905781 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| DALE WOOD CAPITAL LIMITED→ 08697919 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2012-11-22
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC64999 — Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified
Registered office
C/O Allium Wood The Chestnuts
Brewers End
Takeley
Essex
CM22 6QJ
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-06
Last: 2025-11-22
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
WILLIAMS, David→
Activedirector · ~72y · appointed 2012-11-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (29 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-08-13
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extended
accounts · AA01
2025-08-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-04
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-10-30
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-10-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-03-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-03-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-02-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-03-02