DRYDEN FRASER LTD

💤Zombieactive
SC525600 · ltd · incorporated 2016-02-01
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 Feb 2026
Net worth
£210.1k
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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, 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
7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 6 with DOB)
87
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 4 total, 4 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
59 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
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
82
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £210,078

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£210k
↑ 612% YoY
Current Assets
£244k
↑ 400% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£49k£98k£146k£195k£244kFeb 2025Feb 2026

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2026-02-282025-02-28
Total assets£231.1k£42.8k
Current assets£244.0k£48.8k
Net assets£210.1k£29.5k

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

Recent activity

Last 30 days
3
filings
  • • 2 address
  • • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
6
filings
  • • 2 accounts
  • • 2 address
  • • 2 officers
Last 180 days
6
filings
  • • 2 accounts
  • • 2 address
  • • 2 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (32 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-04-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2026-04-14
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  3. 2026-04-14
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  4. 2026-02-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2026-01-29
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  6. 2026-01-29
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  7. 2025-08-26
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  8. 2025-08-26
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  9. 2025-06-04
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
  10. 2025-06-04
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  11. 2025-02-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2023-10-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  13. 2023-06-08
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  14. 2023-06-08
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  15. 2023-06-08
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  16. 2023-06-08
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  17. 2023-05-03
    ➖
    ZAK, Patryk Mateusz resigned
    director
  18. 2023-05-03
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  19. 2023-05-03
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  20. 2022-06-06
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  21. 2021-05-01
    ➖
    LAFFERTY, Helen Mcfadyen resigned
    director
  22. 2021-01-11
    ➕
    LAFFERTY, Helen Mcfadyen appointed
    director
  23. 2020-10-13
    ➕
    ZAK, Patryk Mateusz appointed
    director
  24. 2018-11-23
    ➖
    MARTINGALE, James Brett resigned
    director
  25. 2018-11-23
    ➖
    SYVRET, Nigel Charles resigned
    director
  26. 2018-05-29
    ➖
    HEWITT, Jan resigned
    director
  27. 2016-04-22
    ➕
    MARTINGALE, James Brett appointed
    director
  28. 2016-04-22
    ➕
    SYVRET, Nigel Charles appointed
    director
  29. 2016-02-01
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As DRYDEN FRASER LTD
  30. 2016-02-01
    ➕
    HEWITT, Hamish John John Sanderson appointed
    secretary
  31. 2016-02-01
    ➕
    HEWITT, Hamish John John Sanderson appointed
    director
  32. 2016-02-01
    ➕
    HEWITT, Jan appointed
    director

Owner dependency

83/100
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.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 58 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

60/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 58. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

1 low
Multiple registered office changes
low

Multiple address changes in a short period can indicate operational instability or admin disorder.

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Hamish John Sanderson Hewitt
Individual · British · DOB 05/1968 · age 58
75–100%
—75-100% shares25/08/2025
3 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Dryden Fraser Topco Limitedceased 25/08/2025· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting
  • Mrs Helen Mcfadyen Laffertyceased 01/05/2021· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
  • Mr Hamish John Sanderson Hewittceased 01/06/2025· 75-100% shares

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

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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
Incorporated2016-02-01
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC64999 — Financial intermediation not elsewhere classified

Registered office

46a Basement Office
46a Bridge Road
Edinburgh
EH13 0LQ
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-11-30
Last made up to: 2026-02-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-10
Last: 2025-08-27

Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)

HEWITT, Hamish John John Sanderson→
secretary · appointed 2016-02-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HEWITT, Hamish John John Sanderson→
director · ~58y · appointed 2016-02-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HEWITT, Jan→
director · ~55y · appointed 2016-02-01 · resigned 2018-05-29
Resigned
LAFFERTY, Helen Mcfadyen→
director · ~72y · appointed 2021-01-11 · resigned 2021-05-01
Resigned
MARTINGALE, James Brett→
director · ~53y · appointed 2016-04-22 · resigned 2018-11-23
Resigned
SYVRET, Nigel Charles→
director · ~64y · appointed 2016-04-22 · resigned 2018-11-23
Resigned
ZAK, Patryk Mateusz→
director · ~29y · appointed 2020-10-13 · resigned 2023-05-03
Resigned

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

Recent filings (59 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-04-24
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-04-14
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-04-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-02-25
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2026-01-29
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2026-01-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-27
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-08-26
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-08-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-22
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
2025-06-04
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-06-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-02-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-10-05