Burford Capital predicts loss as Covid-19 slows cases

Burford Capital said it would post an annual loss of up to $80m after Covid-19 slowed the progress of cases backed by the litigation funder.

The company said it made $1.1bn of new commitments, up from $758m a year earlier, and used $841m of new cash as new business activity recovered in the second half.

But Burford said few cases concluded in the second half, partly because of court delays caused by Covid-19. Realisations in the portfolio of cases backed exclusively by Burford fell to $264m from $337m a year earlier.

After reporting a net loss in the first half, Burford said it expected an annual net loss of $70m-80m. The company said the loss was caused by timing only and that no client had scrapped a legal case.

Philip Bogart, Burford's chief executive, said: "We are delighted with the strong performance of new business in 2021. We would have preferred cases to move through the judicial system faster than they have since the pandemic began, but the slow pace we are experiencing is a timing issue, not one affecting our view of the ultimate realisable value of the portfolio."

Burford shares fell 1% to 685p at 10:00 GMT. The shares have fallen 15% so far in 2022.