RC Fornax plc
RC Fornax plc is a veteran-founded, AIM-listed UK consultancy that provides outsourced engineering, technical and programme management services to the UK Ministry of Defence and defence primes, covering land, sea and air platforms (fighter aircraft, naval vessels, drones, military vehicles). It operates a managed-services model delivered under Statements of Work, drawing on an in-house team plus a security-cleared associate network, and is developing an AI-driven 'SME Procure' platform to connect SMEs with defence buyers.
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Sources: Companies House (1)
FY2026Next report expected 2 Mar 2027
- Open the reportJSONComing soonSixty seconds on the FY2025 report
RC Fornax, which supplies engineering and project management services to the Ministry of Defence and large defence contractors, saw revenue fall to £4.1m in the year to 31 August 2025, from £6.4m the year before. It went from a profit to a loss before tax of £1.6m. The company blamed delays in defence buying around the government's Strategic Defence Review, which meant fewer leads became contracts than expected. Running costs also rose sharply because of more staff, recruitment and fees linked to its stock market listing. A one-off settlement with a former director added cost. New shares raised £3.4m during the year, and £910k was spent, mostly on fitting out a new Bristol headquarters. Year-end cash was £892k, with £323k of borrowings. A dividend was paid before the listing, but no final dividend is proposed for the year. A further £2.1m was raised after the year end. Management warned that uncertainty over the timing of government defence spending plans continues, but expects to return to profit in due course. The auditor gave a clean opinion. Four customers provide most of the revenue.
From the reportevery line sits on the page it namesWhat drove revenueStatement of Work (SoW) managed-services contracts with MOD and defence primes
Operating model centres on delivery of managed services under SoW, transferring deliverable/programme responsibility to RC Fornax while ensuring IR35 compliance
page 4AndTime & Materials and outcomes/milestone contracts
Revenue recognised over time for T&M contracts (hours worked) and at a point in time for milestone/outcomes contracts
page 48What moved the marginheadwindSDR-related procurement delays and slower pipeline conversion
Gross margin fell to 23.36% (£950,686 gross profit) from 24.27% (£1,563,158) as revenue fell from £6.44m to £4.07m
page 70AndheadwindHeadcount expansion, recruitment costs and IPO/restructuring professional fees
Administrative expenses increased to £2.2m (FY24: £0.8m), driven by headcount expansion, recruitment costs, and professional fees linked to IPO and organisational restructuring
page 9One-offs in the year£124k charge: Exceptional costs - staff settlement (settlement and associated legal costs related to a dispute with a former director/employee litigation)
page 54What management saidFY25 tested our agility and resilience in a year of profound change for the defence sector...revenue and adjusted loss reflect the impact of SDR-related procurement delays that did not result in the conversion of leads at the rate initially expected, and our deliberate investment in capability.
page 6After the year endDecember 2025: completed equity fundraising (placing + retail offer) raising gross proceeds of £2.32m (£2.25m placing + £0.07m retail offer) at 6p per share; admission to AIM effective 8 December 2025; net proceeds earmarked for SME Procure/Smart Suite development and working capital
page 68The dividendNo final dividend recommended for FY25 (loss-making year). Interim dividends of £163,625 were paid prior to the IPO in February 2025 (FY24: £564,565), declared by the founder directors. Following the IPO and move into negative distributable reserves, no further dividends were declared or paid, as distributions may only be made from accumulated realised profits.
page 31Going concern and the auditDirectors adopted the going concern basis; forecasts under a severe-but-plausible scenario show the Company able to operate from cash generated from operations without additional borrowing, taking into account the December 2025 £2.1m net fundraising completed post year-end. Auditor Azets Audit Services Limited issued an unqualified opinion that the financial statements give a true and fair view. Key audit matter: accounting for the IPO (classification/completeness of IPO-related equity and cost treatment) given the first-time transition from FRS102 to IFRS; other identified audit risks included management override of controls and fraud in revenue recognition. The FY24 comparative information was not audited.
page 36The risks it names first- Defence procurement timing and budget changes (SDR/DIP-related delays or re-phasing of UK defence programmes) — trend: increasedp.10
- Contract delivery and execution failure leading to margin erosion, liquidated damages, reputational damage — trend: no changep.11
- Talent attraction, retention and security clearances constraining delivery capacity — trend: increasedp.11
- Cyber and information security incidents — trend: increasedp.11
Read from C001072-AR-2025-ch.