OPEN WORD LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
SC227145 · ltd · incorporated 2002-01-21
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
£4.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Other software publishing
Sector: Information & communication
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 63110Data processing, hosting and related activities
- 70229Management consultancy activities other than financial management
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 61-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 61). 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 (77/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 3 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
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 2 with DOB)
77
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
74 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.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Positive net assets
Net assets £4,535
Cash YoY
+99%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£4k
↑ 99% YoY
Net Worth
£5k
↑ 195% YoY
Current Assets
£7k
↑ 140% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £4.8k | £-4.5k |
| Current assets | £7.1k | £3.0k |
| Cash | £4.5k | £2.2k |
| Net assets | £4.5k | £-4.8k |
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
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
4
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 persons-with-significant-control
- • 1 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-20📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2026-01-20📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-02-03📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2022-02-03📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-12-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2019-11-27📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2019-11-27📄appoint-corporate-secretary-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP04
- 2019-11-22➕LC SECRETARIES LIMITED appointedcorporate-secretary
- 2019-11-22➖LEDINGHAM CHALMERS LLP resignedcorporate-secretary
- 2019-02-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-02-06📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2018-11-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2018-06-11📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2006-04-01➖LEDINGHAM CHALMERS resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2006-04-01➕LEDINGHAM CHALMERS LLP appointedcorporate-secretary
- 2006-03-22➖JACK, Ruth Elizabeth resigneddirector
- 2002-04-10➕JACK, Ruth Elizabeth appointeddirector
- 2002-02-13➕JACK, Duncan Hugh appointeddirector
- 2002-02-13➖LEDGE SERVICES LIMITED resignedcorporate-director
- 2002-01-21🏢Company incorporatedAs OPEN WORD LIMITED
- 2002-01-21➕LEDINGHAM CHALMERS appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-01-21➕LEDGE SERVICES LIMITED appointedcorporate-director
Owner dependency
93/100
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 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
85/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. 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 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
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Duncan Hugh Jack Individual · British · DOB 06/1965 · age 61 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 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
Active · Technology · AB postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LUCRANET LTD→ SC873373 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| MARKEDEEN LTD→ SC793337 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| MARTIN N SNAPE CONSULTING LTD.→ SC350650 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| MEDFLUXARA LTD→ SC884141 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| NOVADENT BUSINESS SOLUTIONS LTD→ SC882823 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| PETER PARROT PRODUCTIONS LTD→ SC874111 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| PETROTECHNICAL DATA SYSTEMS SCOTLAND LIMITED→ SC616665 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| PHONE FIT LTD→ SC777105 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| PINNACLE VISUALISATION LTD→ SC449973 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| PIRATE SCARLETT RECORDS LIMITED→ SC650150 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| PIXELIZE LABS LTD→ SC848990 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| PIXELVIEW LIMITED→ SC796035 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2002-01-21
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC58290 — Other software publishing
Registered office
Johnstone House
52-54 Rose Street
Aberdeen
AB10 1HA
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-04
Last: 2026-01-21
Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)
LC SECRETARIES LIMITED→
Activecorporate-secretary · appointed 2019-11-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
JACK, Duncan Hugh→
Activedirector · ~61y · appointed 2002-02-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
LEDINGHAM CHALMERS→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-01-21 · resigned 2006-04-01
LEDINGHAM CHALMERS LLP→
Resignedcorporate-secretary · appointed 2006-04-01 · resigned 2019-11-22
JACK, Ruth Elizabeth→
Resigneddirector · ~54y · appointed 2002-04-10 · resigned 2006-03-22
LEDGE SERVICES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-director · appointed 2002-01-21 · resigned 2002-02-13
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (74 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-22
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2026-01-20
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2026-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-12-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-12-12
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-03
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2022-02-03
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2022-02-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2021-12-09
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-21