GLI Finance appoints permanent CEO as NAV drops

The board of directors at the AIM-traded SME alternative finance investor said it had considered the time commitment required by Whelan for the role, whilst continuing to drive forward Sancus - one of its trading businesses.

Sancus continued to trade ahead of plan, the board confirmed, and it did not wish to risk limiting its growth potential.

It remained convinced that the structural changes being put in place within the company, together with an expanded management team within Sancus, meant it would be possible for Whelan to combine the roles without risking a loss of momentum.

At the same time, GLI Finance confirmed its net asset value ha reduced by 9.49p to 42.81p per share in the three months to 31 December.

It blamed the reduction on issues in its approach to the platform portfolio, and £5.47m being provided against loans made to "certain unrelated parties".

Since year-end, GLI Finance said one of its investments - Liftforward - had achieved a capital raise of $41.2m (£28.6m), and as a result it was revaluing its stake from £4.22m to £5.8m.