23 July 2024

H&T Group plc

("H&T", the "Company" or the "Group")

Trading Update and Notice of Interim Results

H&T Group Plc, the UK's largest pawnbroker and a leading retailer of high quality new and pre‐owned jewellery and pre-owned watches, today issues a trading update prior to the announcement of its interim results for the six-month period ended 30 June 2024, which are expected to be published on 20 August 2024.

Trading across the Group, in the period since our last update on 16 May 2024, has been in line with expectations.

Availability of small sum credit continues to be constrained generally for consumers and demand for our pawnbroking offer has been robust. Redemptions have taken a little longer to moderate than we anticipated, following the pickup of redemptions in Spring but they have moderated through June and into July.  

The capital value of the pledge book (excluding accrued interest and provisions) at 30 June was £105m (30 June 2023: £95m; 31 December 2023: £101m). All key pledge book metrics remain in line with expectations.

Retail sales, through the demand for our high quality new and pre-owned jewellery and watches, and foreign currency revenues continue to perform in line with forecasts, while scrap margins are improving as expected.

Chris Gillespie, H&T Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"I am pleased to report that overall, trading performance in the first six months of the financial year has been in line with our expectations. I look forward to updating the market fully when we announce the Group's Interim Results on 20 August."

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About H&T Group

H&T Group is the UK's largest pawnbroker, a leading retailer of high quality new and pre-owned jewellery and watches and provides a range of financial products tailored for a customer base which has limited access to or is excluded from the traditional banking sector. These products include: Pawnbroking, Retail and Foreign Currency.

H&T's store estate of c.280 stores across the UK provide customers with small-sum short-term non-recourse pawnbroking loans secured by pledged personal property, that consists primarily of gold, jewellery items and watches. H&T also buys and sell's new and pre-owned gold, jewellery items and watches along with providing foreign currency exchange, international money transfer, third-party cheque encashment and watch repair services to its customers.    

H&T is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

H&T's common stock (ticker symbol "HAT") is traded on AIM, which is the London Stock Exchange's market for small and medium size growth companies.

For more information regarding H&T and the services the Group offers, please visit H&T's website at http://handt.co.uk.