Troubled wealth supervisor and monetary providers agency WH Eire mentioned losses elevated final 12 months and it has given up attempting to promote its wealth administration after negotiations to unload the division collapsed.
The corporate mentioned there was curiosity from numerous patrons, however none got here to fruition.
In a inventory market assertion the agency mentioned: “In the course of the 12 months numerous potential patrons approached us in respect of a purchase order of the WM division and the place it was acceptable these have been actively pursued. Nonetheless, none of those discussions resulted in a transaction.”
It revealed the information whereas publishing its annual outcomes for the 12 months to the top of March, by which it reported total income dropped practically a fifth – 19.6% – from £26.7m to £21.5m.
It recorded a statutory loss earlier than tax of £5.9m, up from a £1.8m loss within the earlier 12 months, partly a results of a rise in restructuring prices of £2.9m.
The agency’s AUM slipped from £1.4bn in 2023 to £1.2bn on the finish of March.
WH Eire did promote its capital markets division, finishing on the deal to Zeus Capital in July.
Phillip Wale, chief govt of WH Eire, mentioned: “Whereas the FTSE 100 has been comparatively resilient, the AIM All Share Index fell 9% over the interval.
“These market circumstances severely impacted transactional enterprise (and notably fundraisings) within the capital markets division, which, along with important restructuring prices, have been the principal motive for the group reporting losses for the 12 months.”
Alongside the income from the sale of its capital markets division, WH Eire mentioned it hoped that the impression of its price reducing programme launched earlier in 2024 would offer it with “an improved likelihood of returning the persevering with wealth administration division to a break-even place.”
Mr Wale added: “Having accomplished the sale of the capital markets division in July 2024, we’ve got achieved a extra secure monetary place for the group towards the present market backdrop.
“We are actually implementing plans for the expansion of the remaining wealth administration enterprise to return it to interrupt even while discovering additional efficiencies within the group as an entire.”
The agency noticed a serious board shake-up final November. That adopted a £5m rescue deal thrashed out in the summertime which saved the corporate. In August WH Eire shareholders had backed the fund-raising transfer to assist stabilise funds on the troubled agency. WH Eire warned that it was at risk of being wound up if the deal had not gone forward.
As a part of the cost-cutting deal, chief govt Phillip Wale took a 30% pay minimize in return for share choices. Different senior executives, together with head of wealth administration Michael Bishop, additionally agreed to take pay cuts.
Within the earlier months the corporate minimize its workforce by 45 to 111 because it strived to chop prices. The agency’s discussions with the FCA about its monetary place might have resulted within the firm being wound up if the summer season share putting was unsuccessful. Within the occasion it was profitable.