AYRSHIRE FINANCIAL SERVICES LTD.

💤Zombieactive

SC209344 · ltd · incorporated 2000-07-21

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

£85.3k

book net assets

Opportunity

80/100

Exceptional

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What this business does

Primary activity: Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified

Sector: Financial & insurance

Investor take

Pursue

Asset-holding vehicle with a 60-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 60). 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

Lenders & charges

Confirmed no charges registered

Directors & officers

7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 2 with DOB)

Ownership & PSC

1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared

Director network

Network not yet resolved

Filing history

68 filings on record

Gazette notices

No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)

Opportunity Score

80/100Exceptional

PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality

Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.

Acquirability

Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.

Risk profile

Few red flags.

Signal strength

Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102

Positive net assets

Net assets £85,271

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts

Cash

£93k

Net Worth

£85k

↑ 31% YoY

Current Assets

£111k

↑ 35% YoY

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
Total assets	£104.6k	£89.3k
Current assets	£110.5k	£81.9k
Cash	£93.5k	—
Debtors	£17.0k	—
Net assets	£85.3k	£65.1k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

Recent activity

Last 30 days

filings

Last 90 days

filings

Last 180 days

filings

Counts from Companies House filing history.

Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand

2025-02-03
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-07-01
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-05-10
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-06-28
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-06-11
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-06-19
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2019-06-29
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2018-06-23
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2017-06-21
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2016-06-29
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2015-08-21
📄
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2015-06-26
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2014-08-18
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2014-08-18
📄
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2013-07-30
📄
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2007-07-26
➖
RUSLING, David William resigned
secretary
2007-07-24
➕
BRUCE, Helen appointed
secretary
2004-12-01
➖
BRUCE, Alexander Gilbert resigned
secretary
2004-12-01
➕
RUSLING, David William appointed
secretary
2004-12-01
➖
MCCLEARY, Gary resigned
director
2000-07-21
🏢
Company incorporated
As AYRSHIRE FINANCIAL SERVICES LTD.
2000-07-21
➕
BRUCE, Alexander Gilbert appointed
director
2000-07-21
➕
BRUCE, Alexander Gilbert appointed
secretary
2000-07-21
➕
BRIAN REID LTD. appointed
corporate-nominee-secretary
2000-07-21
➖
BRIAN REID LTD. resigned
corporate-nominee-secretary
2000-07-21
➕
MCCLEARY, Gary appointed
director
2000-07-21
➕
STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. appointed
corporate-nominee-director
2000-07-21
➖
STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. resigned
corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

93/100

Critical — business is the founder

The 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 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
+Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100

Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS

secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 60. Early succession window.
primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 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

clean

No 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 Gilbert Bruce Individual · British · DOB 09/1966 · age 60	75–100%	—	75-100% shares	01/07/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

Similar companies

Active · Financial services · KA postcode area

Company	Est. value	Turnover	Net worth	Staff	Age	Opp	Director
CHRISTIE FINANCIAL PLANNING LIMITED→ SC189743 · est 1998	—	—	£162.2k	—	27y	82	65y
JMC FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED→ SC245180 · est 2003	—	—	£17.1k	—	23y	82	58y
KEN BINNIE FINANCIAL LIMITED→ SC244778 · est 2003	—	—	£253	—	23y	82	66y
PACIFIC SHELF 1272 LIMITED→ SC267459 · est 2004	—	—	—	1	21y	82	77y
A G FINANCE (SCOTLAND) LIMITED→ SC281499 · est 2005	—	—	—	11	21y	80	64y
ACMCA LIMITED→ SC234784 · est 2002	—	—	£19.7k	—	23y	80	71y
ALAN R. MACKAY & COMPANY LIMITED→ SC114821 · est 1988	—	—	—	37	37y	80	58y
B.P.D. SOLUTIONS LTD→ SC396317 · est 2011	—	—	£2	—	15y	80	66y
DAVID MUNRO FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED→ SC350315 · est 2008	—	—	£47.9k	—	17y	80	62y
MONARCHIA (AESTHETICS AND SAFETY) CONSULTANCY LTD→ SC801508 · est 2024 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	2y	—	—
NICHOLSON WEALTH LIMITED→ SC835235 · est 2025 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	1y	—	—
ONE INGRAM FINANCE LTD→ SC555330 · est 2017 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	9y	—	—

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

Incorporated2000-07-21

Jurisdictionscotland

Primary SIC64999 — Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified

Registered office

Apl Business Centre

Stevenston

Ayrshire

KA20 3LR

Filing status

Accounts

Next due: 2026-06-30

Last made up to: 2024-09-30

Confirmation statement

Next due: 2026-08-04

Last: 2025-07-21

Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)

BRUCE, Helen→

secretary · appointed 2007-07-24

View their other companies + combined net worth →

Active

BRUCE, Alexander Gilbert→

director · ~60y · appointed 2000-07-21

View their other companies + combined net worth →

Active

BRUCE, Alexander Gilbert→

secretary · appointed 2000-07-21 · resigned 2004-12-01

Resigned

RUSLING, David William→

secretary · appointed 2004-12-01 · resigned 2007-07-26

Resigned

BRIAN REID LTD.→

corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-07-21 · resigned 2000-07-21

Resigned

MCCLEARY, Gary→

director · ~58y · appointed 2000-07-21 · resigned 2004-12-01

Resigned

STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD.→

corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-07-21 · resigned 2000-07-21

Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.