Fintel saw a £2.9m uptick in revenues last year which, its joint chief executive Matt Timmins said, was “marginally ahead of expectations”.
The technology firm, which is the parent company of SimplyBiz and Defaqto, said Investec and Zeus had set a revenue expectation of £61.5m, but instead the firm finished 2021 on £63.9m. This meant it outperformed expectations by £2.4m.
“Revenue has been delivered marginally ahead of expectations, with earnings expected to be in line, having made continued investment into our digital growth,” Timmins said in a trading update yesterday (January 27).
“The rapid digitisation of our SaaS [software-as-a-service] and subscription-based business has continued, improving earnings quality.
“Our Defaqto ESG research platform has been expanded to cover 76 retail investment funds and our Digital ESG Client Profiler has been deployed to over 8,000 wealth managers and financial advisers.”
The firm said with “high levels of recurring income” from its SaaS and subscriptions business, combined with a “strong customer base” and “positive market dynamics”, the board remained confident it will deliver future earnings growth.
Timmins also cited Fintel’s sale of its non-core business Zest Technology in 2021, alongside the disposal of Verbatim. He said both exits had “streamlined the business”.
A year before, the firm’s bosses took a pay cut as the company froze salaries and bonuses in the wake of the pandemic. It also placed its mortgage valuation teams on the government's furlough scheme for a time as part of a "short-term" cost saving plan.
Alongside a strategy to streamline the business last year, Fintel signed a five-year deal with Tatton Asset Management in September. The two firms intend to sell 2,500 fintech licences to advice firms during the partnership.
The deal saw Tatton license Fintel’s adviser technology and acquire its Verbatim fund ranges. Fintel did not give an update on the deal’s progress to date.
The technology firm operates three divisions. Its intermediary services unit provides compliance and regulatory support to directly authorised IFAs, mortgage advisers and wealth managers, whilst its distribution channel arm focuses on market analysis, and its fintech arm is made up of Defaqto, which it acquired in March 2019 for £74m.
Back in March 2021, the firm said in its financial results that it could take advantage of “selective and appropriate acquisition opportunities”, though none such opportunities seem to have arisen just yet.
ruby.hinchliffe@ft.com
