Capital for Colleagues plc / EPIC: CFCP / Market: AQSE / Sector: Financials

30 May 2025

CAPITAL FOR COLLEAGUES PLC

(‘Capital for Colleagues’, ‘C4C’ or the ‘Company’)  

Unaudited Interim Results for the six months ended 28 February 2025

Capital for Colleagues, the investment vehicle focused on opportunities in the Employee Owned Business (‘EOB’) sector, announces its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 28 February 2025.

Key Financials

• Revenues of £0.404m (2024: £0.421m), comprising interest receivable, dividends received and fees
• Loss before tax of £1.046m for the six-month period (2024: profit of £0.985m)
• Net assets of £13.734m as at 28 February 2025 (29 February 2024: £16.148m)
• Net Asset Value (NAV) per share of 74.27 pence as at 28 February 2025 (29 February 2024: 87.32 pence per share)

Portfolio Developments in the Period

• Disposed of ordinary shares in TPS Investment Holdings Limited to Harrock Capital Partners and TJ Morris (Investments) Limited, in equal proportions, for total cash consideration of £0.901m.
• Disposed of A ordinary shares in The Homebuilding Centre Holdings Limited, as part of an agreed 5 year buy-back, for cash consideration of £0.114m.

• £1.850m of additional debt funding provided to 7 investee companies.
• During the period, loans totalling £0.785m were repaid.
• Investments revalued downwards by a net total of £0.413m, reflecting the ongoing uncertain and challenging environment for fund raising in the UK Private Equity and Venture Capital marketplace.
• Investment portfolio at the period end comprised 15 unquoted EOBs (29 February 2024: 15) 

Chief Executive’s Statement

While the fall in the NAV is disappointing, we are confident that it fairly reflects the challenges in the UK Private Equity and Venture Capital market where the Company operates. In particular, one of our investee companies is in the final stages of completing a fund raise at a lower value than we had previously anticipated, and this has led to a significant reduction in the carrying value of that investment. Further information will be provided to shareholders on this transaction in the near future.

Financial Results

In the six months ended 28 February 2025, the Company generated income of £0.404m (2024: £0.421m), principally from interest and dividends receivable and fees associated with our investments. The Net Asset Value fell by 9.45% during the period (2024: increase of 12.3%) and the Company had net assets of £13.734m (2024: £16.148m) as at 28 February 2025.

Dividend

A dividend of 2.1p per share (totaling £0.388m) was paid to shareholders in March 2025 in respect of the financial year ended 31 August 2024.

Outlook

The increased costs imposed on businesses as a result of the October 2024 Budget have been unhelpful and have led to an increased level of caution across much of C4C’s portfolio of investments. However, most of the EOBs in which the Company is invested have continued to show resilience through the challenging economic environment of recent months. Although inflation remains higher than previously forecast, there is a consensus that interest rates will fall further in coming months, relieving some of the pressure on UK companies.

We continue to promote the commercial and financial benefits of EOBs at every opportunity and are pleased to see increasing recognition of EOBs as important generators of equitable and dynamic growth.

Alistair Currie

Chief Executive

For further information, please visit www.capitalforcolleagues.com or contact:

The interim results have not been reviewed by the Company's auditors.

The Directors of the Company are responsible for the contents of this announcement.

Capital for Colleagues

Capital for Colleagues is an investment company focused on the UK EOB sector. The Company has a proven management team, with a wide network of contacts and affiliates, as well as established access to investment opportunities, enabling the Company to execute its strategy and capitalise on EOB-focused investment opportunities. In addition, the Company educates and assists companies that are looking to launch employee ownership schemes, advising them, amongst other things, on how to secure investment and achieve their objectives.

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation EU 596/2014 as it forms part of retained EU law (as defined in the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018).