Manolete Partners plc
Manolete Partners PLC is the UK's leading insolvency claims financing company. It purchases, manages and monetises insolvency claims (purchased cases) and also funds claims on behalf of insolvent estates (funded cases), typically against former directors or third parties for breach of duty, fraud, professional negligence or Quincecare-duty claims, generating returns for the Company while increasing recoveries for creditors. It is AIM-listed, UK-domiciled, and finances its case portfolio through equity and an HSBC revolving credit facility.
10 annual reports read, FY2017 to FY2026
Open a year to see what its report said. Every line in it carries the page it was read from.
Sources: Companies House (10)
FY2027Next report expected 1 Jul 2027
- Open the reportJSONComing soonSixty seconds on the FY2026 report
Manolete Partners PLC buys and funds legal claims that arise when UK companies go bust, often claims against former directors. In the year to 31 March 2026 its revenue fell to £27.9m from £29.8m. Profit before tax was £1.6m, the same as the year before. The company kept a larger share of each pound of revenue. This was helped by settling a claim over price-fixing by truck makers and by finishing more high-value cases. Lower interest on its bank loan also helped. Against this, it set aside £1.8m to cover money owed by two large debtors that have not yet paid. It also spent £966k, mainly on replacing its chief executive and finance director. Cash at the year end was £1.2m, up from £692k, but bank borrowings rose to £12.7m. No new money was raised from shareholders and no dividend was declared. Management said new cases in the first two months of the new year were well ahead of last year, and it expects revenue and profit to rise. The auditor gave a clean opinion but noted that the company had limited room to spare on one of its bank's lending conditions.
From the reportevery line sits on the page it namesWhat drove revenueNumber and value of new case referrals from Insolvency Practitioners and law firms
Referrals up 15% to 1,027 (FY25: 896); value of signed cases up 23% to £32m (FY25: £26m)
page 7AndForward book of open/live cases
Forward book value (excl. Cartel cases) up 37% to £67m (FY25: £49m), average claim value risen from £124k to £158k
page 15What moved the margintailwindCartel settlement (DAF) and higher-value/higher-margin case completions in H2
Gross margin improved to 37% (FY25: 32%)
page 4AndtailwindReduced finance costs following HSBC margin renegotiation (4.7% to 4.0% above SONIA) and falling base rates
Finance costs fell from £1.6m to £1.1m
page 12One-offs in the year£966k charge: Reorganisation and restructuring costs (CEO/CFO leadership change, operational role changes)
page 45What management saidA key development during the year has been the launch of our medium-term targets, including growing realised revenues by 50% and improving profit before tax margins to 12%.
page 6After the year endPositive start to FY27: case signings of £6m and completions of almost £4m in the first two months of FY27, ahead of the prior year; remaining Cartel cases carry a balance sheet value of £10m as additional upside.
page 7The dividendNo dividend recommended for FY26 (FY25: nil). The Board's priority is to retain cash reserves for investment in current and future cases and to reduce net debt; shareholder returns (dividends, buybacks or a combination) are expected to become a recurring element of the capital allocation framework over the medium term as leverage declines.
page 14Going concern and the auditAuditor Gravita Audit II Limited (Joseph Brewer, Senior Statutory Auditor) issued an unqualified/unmodified opinion that the financial statements give a true and fair view, with two Key Audit Matters: valuation of investments (£46.0m) and recoverability of trade receivables. Directors adopted the going-concern basis; the Company met all FY26 covenants on its HSBC £17.5m facility, though the audit noted limited headroom on one covenant in recent certificates and discussed downside scenarios with the bank.
page 31The risks it names first- Cartel Case Risk – defects emerging in the cartel cases during litigation could cause abortive legal/investment costs and a P&L write-down; mitigated via external expert valuation (Fideres) with management prudence adjustmentp.17
- Recovery Risk – difficulty collecting agreed settlements or judgments leading to credit losses; mitigated by net worth checks pre-acceptance and registering charging ordersp.17
- Funding Risk – business growth could outstrip available capital, limiting ability to accept new cases; mitigated by £17.5m HSBC facility (£13.25m drawn, £4.25m headroom, £1.2m cash at year end)p.17
- Interest Rate Risk – significant interest rate rises over the next two years would increase the cost of finance; mitigated as returns on case completions exceed cost of financep.17
Read from C000804-AR-2026-ch.
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