SSP announces record profits for 2007
Software house SSP has not ruled out further UK takeovers this year following the acquisition of rival Sirius, its chairman said this week.
David Rashe said any further buys would be smaller “bolt-ons” rather than significant acquisitions as the company looked to integrate Sirius.
“The integration will take time, so we won’t see a significant acquisition in the UK before the end of the financial year [March 2008]. If there was a small one which we could bolt-on we would do that,” said Rashe.
The Sirius takeover was completed on 10 July in a deal which valued the company at £43.4m. Insurance Times reported the acquisition in May (News 10 May).
Meanwhile, SSP announced record results for the year ended 31 March 2007. Revenues increased by 26% to £38.6m, while profit after tax improved to £2.5m compared to a loss of £0.3m the previous year.
Rashe said the company was aiming to reach an annual turnover of £100m and a profit margin of 25%. The profit margin is currently 20%.
He said the goal was realistic, based on the successful integration of recent acquisitions into the business and a buoyant market, as well as SSP “enjoying healthy pipeline opportunities”.
The company’s previously announced target of reaching £60m turnover by the end of 2009 would be met following the acquisition of Sirius.
Unveiling the company’s new brand image, Rashe said that integrating SSP and Sirius “had been easier than we thought”.
He claimed that the deal was “good news” for insurers as they had “one big provider to deal with” and that its customers welcomed the move.
He also said there was little overlap between the two busineses, in both domestic and international markets.
Following the acquisition, SSP will operate through four divisions: intermediary services, corporate broker, insurer systems and international.
