All articles by Antonio Fabrizio
Antonio Fabrizio
Ultimate Finance’s factoring business expands
Ultimate Finance Group posted profits before tax of £191,000 (214,000) for the six months ending December 2009, 36 percent up compared to one year before. Client turnover for the period also increased from £99 million to £148.5 million, the AIM-quoted factoring and invoice discounting provider said. The company is financed with a £25 million back to back financing arrangement with Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance, which is in place until July 2012.
Polish leasing down, sees increase in Q4
Leasing business in Poland fell around 30 percent to PLN23 billion (5.9 billion) last year, according to figures published by the countrys leasing association ZPL. Equipment and vehicle financing reached PLN20.9 billion around PLN300 million above industry expectations but real estate decreased more than expected, the association said.
Italian leasing 33 percent down in 2009
Italian leasing was 33 percent down in 2009 to 26.1 billion, Assilea figures have shown. Intesa Sanpaolo-owned Leasint was the top company last year with a volume of 4.3 billion, overtaking UniCredit Leasing which posted 4 billion in its Italian market
Deutsche Leasing posts ?8.3 bn new business
Deutsche Leasing saw new business volume fall 8 percent to 8.3 billion in its 20082009 financial year ending October. Domestic new business, excluding real estate leasing and structured finance, was 5.2 billion (a 7 percent drop from the previous financial year, when it posted a record high of new business), while foreign new business declined 11 percent to 1.4 billion.
Finnish leasing shows signs of recovery
Finnish lessors were not as heavily impacted by the financial crisis as most of their European counterparts in 2009, according to figures published Federation of Finnish Financial Services. The association said that while car and commercial vehicle leasing agreements decreased by around 35 percent following a drop in demand from businesses and consumers, industrial machinery and equipment leasing was actually 40 percent up
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Spain’s leasing halved, but glimmers of hope
According to the Asociacin Espaola de Leasing (AEL), Spanish lessors wrote 7 billion of new business, which is exactly half the 14 billion figure recorded one year before. Of that figure, equipment leasing was particularly heavily hit totalling 5.3 billion (it reached 11.4 billion the previous year)
Slovak lessors see 45 percent volume drop
Slovak lessors saw a rapid deterioration of the market last year, according to the countrys Association of Leasing Companies (ALS). New business volume fell by over 45 percent to 1.5 billion (from 2.8 billion in 2008), mainly because of a steep decline during the first six months of the year. This was mainly due to a significantly reduced demand from SMEs to finance their investment needs, and to lessors becoming much stricter in assessing the risk of their clients projects, the association said
SMMT: mixed results for CV registrations
UK van registrations saw an improvement in February, but registrations of heavier vehicles are still falling, Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) figures have shown. The truck market recorded another significant drop, falling by over 36 percent, with 1,370 new units registered across the country
Czech vehicle leasing business down in 2009
Czech vehicle leasing suffered heavily last year, with all major lessors reporting drops in new business volume Despite a 30.8 percent decrease in new business volume, the captive ranked first amongst Czech Republics top vehicle lessors, totalling nearly CZK6 billion (230 million).
Intesa’s VUB Bank acquires 100% of Slovak lessor
Italian banking group Intesa Sanpaolo has strengthened its presence in the Slovakian leasing market, after its subsidiary VB Banka gained full control of VB Leasing.