FERN TECHNOLOGY UK LTD.
💤Zombieactive
SC148486 · ltd · incorporated 1994-01-19
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 Sept 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Business and domestic software development
Sector: Information & communication
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 79-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 79). 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 (75/100)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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 1 with DOB)
74
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
77 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-09-30 | 2023-09-30 |
|---|
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2025-06-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-07-03📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2020-03-31📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2019-04-03📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2019-04-02📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2019-03-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-06-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-06-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-09-20📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2016-07-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2003-12-01➕SIRIKACHORNDEJ, Jan appointedsecretary
- 2003-11-20➖JOHNSTON, Hazel resignedsecretary
- 1995-01-01➕JOHNSTON, Hazel appointedsecretary
- 1994-12-31➖PRIOR, Robin resignedsecretary
- 1994-01-19🏢Company incorporatedAs FERN TECHNOLOGY UK LTD.
- 1994-01-19➕SCULLIN, Eamon appointeddirector
- 1994-01-19➕PRIOR, Robin appointedsecretary
- 1994-01-19➕OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1994-01-19➖OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
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 32 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 79 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
100/100
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 79 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 32 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 32 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 Patrick Eamon Scullin Individual · Irish · DOB 10/1947 · age 79 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Technology · KA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GARNOCK VALLEY MUSIC NETWORK CIC→ SC822488 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| GRAHAM TECHNOLOGY CONSULTING LIMITED→ SC387250 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| HACKCASTS LTD→ SC882757 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| HELIX NORTH LTD→ SC508898 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| HOLLZERS LIMITED→ SC850999 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| HOP ON PRODUCTIONS LIMITED→ SC441541 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| J-LIKE LTD→ SC716616 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| JAMIE BROWN FILMS LTD→ SC663771 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| JEN GRAHAM DESIGNS LTD→ SC863767 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| JUHUU LTD→ SC416874 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| KIRKOSWALD LIMITED→ SC326161 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| KONEXON LTD→ SC465547 · 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
Incorporated1994-01-19
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC62012 — Business and domestic software development
Registered office
3e Cassillis Street
Ayr
KA7 1DN
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last made up to: 2024-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-21
Last: 2026-01-07
Officers (2 active · 3 resigned)
SIRIKACHORNDEJ, Jan→
Activesecretary · appointed 2003-12-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SCULLIN, Eamon→
Activedirector · ~79y · appointed 1994-01-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
JOHNSTON, Hazel→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1995-01-01 · resigned 2003-11-20
PRIOR, Robin→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1994-01-19 · resigned 1994-12-31
OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1994-01-19 · resigned 1994-01-19
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (77 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-06-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-03-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-03-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-04-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-06-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2020-08-24
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2020-07-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-02
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2020-03-31