Credit Management April 2024 issue

THE NEWS
SFP completes successful
sale of A1 Comms
NATIONWIDE insolvency practitioner,
SFP, has successfully completed the sale
of certain of the business and assets of A1
Comms Limited to Affordable Mobile
Limited (AML) after the business went
into administration.
All employees have been retained in
the sale which was completed within two
weeks of SFP’s appointment, following
an intensive and competitive negotiation
period, conducted at an appropriate pace
to preserve goodwill.
As part of the sale AML has, amongst
other assets, acquired the Intellectual
Property rights in and to the A1 Comms
websites as the business seeks to expand
its mobile proposition. The firm says that
the acquisition of the Brands and Platforms
will provide AML ‘with expertise and
synergies that will accelerate this ambition’.
Derbyshire-based A1 Comms sold mobile
phones through its online consumer brands
Affordable Mobiles, Buymobiles and
Phones.co.uk. It was established in 1997 and
PKF appoints former CEO
of CICM as new Advisor
THE restructuring and insolvency arm
of PKF has appointed the former Chief
Executive of the Chartered Institute of
Credit Management (CICM), Philip King
FCICM, as an advisor as the business looks
to further expand its business operations.
Philip, who also served on the Joint
Insolvency Committee between 2011 – 2020
and was the JIC’s first ever Lay Chair, has
worked in the credit industry for more
than 40 years. This includes 26 years in
front-line credit management and 14 years
as the CICM CEO. Most recently he was
the interim Small Business Commissioner
has been a market leading brand, reaching
annual turnover of more than £140m at its
peak.
David Kemp and Richard Hunt,
Insolvency Practitioners and Directors at
SFP, were appointed joint administrators
on February 2nd with the aim of protecting
the company’s employees and creditors.
“The teams at both A1 and AML worked
tirelessly with us to achieve the purpose of
saving the business. We are pleased to have
completed a sale, which should enhance
the position for creditors and stakeholders,
critically also protecting jobs in the process
too,” David says.
“Ongoing economic pressures and
the continuing cost-of-living crisis have
caused many businesses to struggle in
recent times, and we urge any company
that finds itself in difficulty to seek
professional guidance at the earliest
opportunity to secure the best result for
the stakeholders/creditors, the company,
and their people.”
sharing his experience with all sizes of
business about the importance of managing
cashflow and getting paid.
Philip says he has been impressed with
the work PKF has been doing to support
businesses in need of restructuring: “I hope
to be able to bring my specialist knowledge
and expertise of the credit industry and
insolvency coupled with direct experience
of the challenges faces by businesses both
large and small to help PKF further extend
the capabilities and reach of the services it
offers.
“Insolvency can be a challenging time,
and I have learned that it is not just the
financial impact, but also the impact on
local communities, economies and an
individual’s health and wellbeing that need
to be clearly recognised and managed.”
Brendan Clarkson FCICM, a Director
with the Business Advisory Team of PKF, is
similarly delighted to have secured Philip’s
support: “Philip is one of the best-known
faces in the credit industry and his expertise
is hugely respected among his peers. His
advice in extending the services we offer
and the events we organise within local
business communities will help support
businesses throughout some challenging
times ahead.”
Return to sender
THE UK Regulators’ Network (UKRN),
the Financial Conduct Authority, Ofgem,
Ofwat, and Ofcom, have published a joint
letter setting out shared expectations in
relation to debt collection and customers
experiencing financial difficulty. The letter
sets out a series of ‘outcomes’ it expects
regulated DCAs to deliver including
appropriate frequency of communications,
the use of supportive tone and language,
and clear signposting to free debt advice.
The letter states: ‘Firms should be
prepared for regulators to use their
respective powers to ensure these
expectations are met and embedded in
firms’ processes in their sectors. Where we
find firms are falling short and delivering
poor outcomes leading to consumer harm,
we may take robust action. We want firms
to commit to delivering these outcomes and
will continue to monitor how firms in our
sectors are supporting customers in financial
difficulty in 2024.’
Flexible friends
UK Finance has published its end of
year figures relating to card transactions
by UK cardholders both in the UK and
overseas. There were 2.28 billion debit card
transactions in December, 2.3 percent more
than in December 2022. The total spend
of £68.4 billion was 1.4 percent lower than
December 2022. There were 371.4 million
credit card transactions in December, 3.8
percent more than in December 2022. The
total spend of £19.2 billion was 3.7 percent
higher than December 2022. Outstanding
balances on credit card accounts have
grown by 9.7 percent over the 12 months
to December and 50.1 percent of outstanding
balances incurred interest compared to 50.2
percent in December 2022. Contactless
payments accounted for 63 percent of all
credit card and 75 percent of all debit card
transactions.
Signs of delay
INTEREST rates and political uncertainty
are holding back many businesses from
investing in the long-term business growth
the economy needs. Data from Bibby
Financial Services’ Q1 2024 SME Confidence
Tracker, which surveyed 1,000 UK SMEs,
shows that over half (53 percent) of SMEs
are putting off making major investments
until interest rates fall, while four in ten
(43 percent) are delaying investment until
after the next general election. Despite
this, research findings reveal green shoots
of optimism for the second quarter of
the year. The data shows businesses are
more optimistic this spring, reflecting
wider economic indicators pointing to an
improved outlook for the UK.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / April 2024 / PAGE 10