Lowell revenues grow 22 percent in 2017

The credit management services provider saw debt purchase cash collections rise 20 percent, year-on-year, while third party collections income grew by nearly a third (32 percent) to £109m.

Indeed, third party collections placements stood at £1.5bn by December 31, 2017, up 58% on 2016. On a pro forma basis, Lowell has more than £13bn of third party collections assets under management.

Overall cash earnings before interest, taxes, depreciations and amortisation (EBITDA) rose around 18% to £299m, while estimated remaining collections grew to £2.1bn, up 17 percent on the previous 12 months. Collections in 2017 represented 107% of those forecast.

Lowell added it had invested £256m in new portfolios over the year.

Among its investments was the acquisition in March 2018 of Intrum’s carve-out business, giving the company a Nordic presence. Lowell now operates in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Estonia.

James Cornell, Lowell chief executive, said: “The last 12 months have been a period of significant change for our business: embedding the new brand and the acquisition of the carve-out business from Intrum.

“But this is how we consistently deliver for our stakeholders – better results through continued innovation, investment and improvement.

“And within this, we kept sight of our mission – to make credit work better for all; helping our clients thrive, and getting our customers’ finances back on track.

“The figures reported today show a diversifying business that is building platforms for growth on the solid foundations of prudence and sustainability.”