Hello Rainmakers,
Things never stay the same for long in the trade and invoice finance world.
This week Time Finance has agreed to a recommended £55m cash takeover by Bentley Park (UK), the parent company of Ultimate Finance.
The deal would bring together two of the UK’s specialist SME lenders, creating a combined net loan book of nearly £650m.
But first a reminder, this is free to all who have signed up, however Rainmakers subscribers get at least two unique pieces a week, one in the summer, and also full access to our back catalogue of investigations, scoops, and insights, including updates from The Secret Investor, interviews with entrepreneurs, and the leaders from VC and PE investors like Endless, Foresight, Mercia, and LDC.
The logic of the merger is that while Time are strong in the South West and North West, Ultimate has greater reach in the Midlands and Yorkshire.
As Ed Rimmer, chief executive of Time Finance, said: “We share a lot of mutual ambitions for the continued growth of the business going forward.”
He said the businesses shared “a strong strategic fit” that would create “a broader platform” without losing focus on customers and introducers.
Bentley Park intends to delist Time Finance following completion and stop offering new soft asset financing products, which it regards as non-core to the combined business. It expects any headcount reduction from that change to be limited, though it has cautioned separately that wider restructuring following a planned review of the business “could be material” for Time Finance’s roughly 150-strong workforce.
It is embarking on a six-month review followed by an implementation period lasting up to nine months.
Ultimate Finance, founded in 2002 and part of the Tavistock Group, has funded more than £19bn to UK SMEs to date. Its own loan book had grown to a record £430m in June, following a period of strong organic growth that included a widening of its invoice finance facility limits earlier this year.
Josh Levy, chief executive of Bentley Park and Ultimate Finance, said: “This acquisition is an exciting opportunity to bring together two strong specialist lenders with complementary capabilities, shared values and a common focus on supporting UK SMEs.”
Time Finance was founded in 2000 and listed on AIM in 2006 under the name 1pm plc. The business grew from its roots as a smaller SME lender into a broader specialist finance provider spanning asset finance, invoice finance and business loans, and it rebranded as Time Finance in 2020.
It has seen its loan book grow for 20 consecutive quarters and it stood at approximately £218m as at 30 June, split between £141m in asset finance and £77m in invoice finance.
Cavendish is acting as financial adviser to Time Finance, while Dickson Minto Advisers is advising Bentley Park.
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Betano’s Daskalakis to place bet on Bristol City’s Premier League ambitions.
George Daskalakis, the Greek gambling tycoon behind Betano, is betting on Bristol City’s promotion chances with a minority stake acquisition from owner Steve Lansdown.
Kaizen Gaming’s Betano has been in the Premier League before, but only on the front of Aston Villa’s shirt as its main sponsor. But this is a different bet entirely, and a promotion gamble could be worth hundreds of millions.
But, just as with other forms of betting, reality can quickly replace optimism. In Bristol City’s first Championship match of the season last weekend they had more red cards than shots on target as they got beat 2-0 at home to Millwall.
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A Mansfield fire safety specialist is changing hands after a two-year growth blaze, with Premier Technical Services Group (PTSG) acquiring Integrated Doorset Solutions Group (IDSL) from private equity investor LDC.
The deal sees LDC leave the building after backing IDSL’s management team in May 2024.
Since then, IDSL has turned up the heat on expansion, growing revenues by 73% to £60m and increasing EBITDA from around £5m to £14m.
Employee numbers have also risen from 286 to 485, while the business has expanded through acquisitions including Hartland Fire and Fire Doors Rite.
IDSL, which provides fire door manufacturing, inspection, maintenance and compliance services, has also invested in its Mansfield operation, opening a new 20,000 sq ft manufacturing facility.
The growth has helped IDSL build some serious firepower, giving PTSG a larger platform in the fire safety market as it takes the business into its next phase.
For LDC, the deal brings the curtain down on a partnership focused on supporting IDSL’s expansion through organic growth and acquisitions.
LDC’s investment supported IDSL’s expansion into new markets, with acquisitions broadening its customer base and strengthening its inspection and maintenance capabilities.
With LDC now out of the picture and PTSG taking the reins, IDSL has a new owner and a clear runway for its next phase of growth.
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Coventry engineering specialist NCMT has secured £13.5m from NatWest to complete a management buyout and put the business in gear for its next phase of growth.
The package includes an £8.3m revolving credit facility, a £4m bond facility, plus foreign exchange and operational support.
Based on Siskin Drive, NCMT supplies and services high-tech machine tools used by manufacturers for metal cutting and grinding, helping them boost efficiency and cut waste.
The funding has already helped the existing leadership team take control of the business, with further investment planned in technology, apprenticeships and its Coventry workforce.
Managing director Jonathan Smart said the deal gives NCMT the flexibility to invest for the future, while finance director Timothy Dooner said the business wanted a banking partner that understood the peaks and troughs of exporting, bonding and long-term skills investment.
Will Jones, relationship director at NatWest, said NCMT combines decades of engineering heritage with a focus on innovation, highlighting the Midlands’ strength in high-value manufacturing.
With the management team now firmly at the controls, NCMT is looking to machine its way into its next stage of growth.
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Our Scottish rainmakers this week were all busy on property-related deals.
Yesterday, Hardies Chartered Surveyors announced it has acquired Storrier & Donaldson’s quantity surveying practice.
The private transaction sees Storrier & Donaldson owner Robert Currie join as consultant partner, with his team relocating to the Glasgow city centre offices of Shepherd and Hardies.
Also in Glasgow, lettings and property management start-up Dwello Property has acquired the lettings business of Thomson Residential.
The firm will continue operating from Thomson’s Clarkston Road office, with the deal increasing overall headcount to 21.
Bank of Scotland supported the acquisition with a £520,000 term loan, which should enable Dwello to pursue “further carefully-selected growth opportunities” and invest in its people, systems and processes.
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Having now completed the Rainmaker events in the West Midlands, North West and Yorkshire, we have also now announced dates and an opening for entries for the East Midlands event on the 5th of November in Nottingham and the South West event on the 26th of November in Bristol.
Last year the events sold out, so book early to secure your table.
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