Manx Financial buys rest of Payment Assist earlier than planned

Manx Financial Group, a diversified financial services provider in the Isle of Man and the UK, announced the accelerated acquisition of the remaining 49.9% interest in Payment Assist on Monday.

The AIM-traded firm said the transaction was completed on 13 September, making Payment Assist a wholly-owned subsidiary of the group and allowing for full consolidation of its trading results.

In May 2022, Manx Financial Group, through its wholly owned subsidiary Manx Ventures, acquired a 50.1% stake in Payment Assist.

At that time, an option was established for Manx Ventures to purchase the remaining shares for £5m at any point within two years following the publication of Payment Assist's audited accounts for the period ending 31 December 2024.

Following discussions with the remaining shareholders of Payment Assist - Neil Jeffrey, Colin Ellard, Spencer Wrench, and Simon Bevan - the parties agreed to expedite the sale of their 49.9% holding.

The vendors consented to bring forward the sale for a consideration of £5m on completion of an addendum to the original agreement.

With completion of the transaction, all interests of the vendors in Payment Assist had concluded, and they would receive no further dividend payments.

Manx Financial Group said it anticipated that the early acquisition would reduce the overall cost of acquiring the remaining stake by up to £4m, primarily due to savings on future dividends that would have been payable to the vendors under the original option terms.

The £5m consideration would be funded from the group's existing liquidity reserves.

As part of the acquisition, Neil Jeffrey and Colin Ellard would resign from their positions as directors of Payment Assist.

Group employees James Smeed and Marcus Gregory would continue to serve on the board of directors.

Jeffrey would remain employed until 31 December as part of the agreement, and woul;d subsequently transition to a consultancy role for an additional three years.

Manx said Payment Assist specialises in providing interest-free finance solutions for automotive repairs and services, enabling customers to spread the cost of vehicle maintenance.

The full acquisition would allow the company to fully integrate Payment Assist's operations, aligning with its strategy to expand its financial services offerings within the UK market.

“We have worked with Payment Assist for over nine years through our banking subsidiary, Conister Bank, and held a majority stake in the business for over two years,” said chief executive officer Douglas Grant.

“During this time, we have grown the business, and it now makes sound financial sense for the Group to bring forward its opportunity to acquire the remaining shareholding.”

Grant said Payment Assist's customer focussed, short-term lending products remained “in great demand” during the current, “uncertain” economic times.

“This is a major acquisition for the Group, not only in terms of deploying our liquidity safely, but also in continuing to progress our growth strategy in niche markets.”

At 1241 BST, shares in Manx Financial Group were up 7.69% at 17.5p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.