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On 17 May 2024, Orchard Funding Group PLC provided an update on its review of capital allocation and continued AIM admission, following engagement with key institutional shareholders. The Board currently views the benefits of maintaining AIM admission as outweighed by factors including legal and regulatory costs, inability to attract sufficient investor interest, and low share liquidity. Additionally, the Board believes it is in the Company's best interests to cease dividend payments for the current financial year.
| Date | 17 May 2024 |
| Time | 07:00:04 |
| Category | Miscellaneous |
| ID | 7887O |
17 May 2024
Orchard Funding Group PLC
Update on the Review of the Capital Allocation Policy and the Continued Admission to Trading on AIM
("the Review")
Orchard Funding Group PLC ("Orchard", the "Group" or "Company"), the finance group which specialises in insurance premium finance and the professions funding market, provides the following update on the Review having engaged with its key institutional shareholders.
The Board is currently of the view that the benefits of maintaining the Company's admission to AIM ("Admission") are outweighed by the following factors:
1. the legal and regulatory requirements and associated costs of Admission;
2. the Company's inability to attract sufficient interest from institutional and other investors, in light of the material discount of the current market price of its shares to Net Asset Value; and
3. the low levels of liquidity in trading of the Company's ordinary shares.
The Board believes it is in the Company's best interests to cease payment of dividends for the current financial year.
The capital retained can be used to make, if appropriate, an acceptable tender offer to shareholders in the future and will be for the benefit of the business enabling management the strategic flexibility, when appropriate, to deploy funds to support the lending of the business.
For further information, please contact:
Orchard Funding Group PLC +44 (0)1582 346 248
Ravi Takhar, Chief Executive Officer
Liberum (Nomad and Broker) +44 (0)20 3100 2222
Investment banking
Edward Mansfield
For Investor Relations please go to: www.orchardfundinggroupplc.com
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 as amended by The Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. Upon the publication of this announcement via the Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.