Debt experts aim to tap into remortgaging
A firm of debt experts in Lancashire is moving into arranging remortgages in a bid to cash in on £1.5m of extra fees.
Debt Free Direct, which has its headquarters in Adlington, near Chorley, has won approval from the Financial Services Authority to set up the new strand of its business.
The company says it will now be able to offer people in debt an alternative to its Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) products, which sets up contracts between people and their creditors on how they will repay their debts.
Bosses expect the new company, which will trade as DFD Mortgages Ltd from January 2007, to generate a new income of £1.5m by the end of April next year.
Chief executive Andrew Redmond said: "This development enhances our existing remortgage business and means that we are well-placed to cement our position as a consumer champion, by ensuring that our customers continue to receive appropriate advice and are offered the right product at the best rate available.
"Moreover, we will be maximising our income from those leads where an IVA would not be the appropriate solution, either for the consumer or the lender. This business continues to be built organically without incurring acquisition costs."
The move will allow the company to cash in on the remortgaging market – it presently refers such clients to external mortgage brokers, regenerating nearly £1m in referral fees in the last financial year.
Nicola Hackney, a former executive at banking groups TSB, Midland Bank, and Abbey, is director of operations for DFD Mortgages.
The announcement sent the firm's share price soaring to £4.83 per share, valuing the company at more than £180m.
Debt Free Direct employs more than 500 people at its base in the former Amec building on Church Street, Adlington.
06 December 2006
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