Lender plummets as the Poles get tough on costs
CREDIT lender International Personal Finance plunged as new legislation emerged which could hit the firm’s profits. IPF, which does not operate in the UK but is listed here, lends to people with little or no borrowing history.
Yesterday the Polish ministry of justice published draft legislation which suggests changes to the amount that lenders can charge their customers. It follows a cap on non-interest costs that lenders can charge on loans which came into effect in March this year.
Currently borrowers cannot be charged more than 100pc of the value of their loan. A further crackdown could see that brought down to 75pc, which would reduce the potential amount a lender can net in fees by a quarter.
A public consultation will run for 14 days before a decision is made. IPF said it will be reviewing the proposal to assess the extent to which profit in its Polish business would be affected by the changes and is looking into strategies to mitigate the impact. Shares plummeted 43.5pc, or 123.9p, to 160.6p.
The collapse of retailer BHS left more than 160 empty stores on UK high streets, several of which were owned by real estate investment trust Capital & Regional. Yesterday the company announced it had secured new tenants for former BHS shops in Blackburn and Walthamstow. Wilko will be taking the 25,000 sq ft unit in Blackburn shopping centre The Mall on a tenyear lease, while 24-hour gym firm the Gym Group has agreed to move into the 15,000 sq ft site in east London on a 20-year lease. Capital said it was making good progress in securing tenants for two other former BHS spots in Maidstone and Redditch. Shares climbed 1.9pc, or 1p, to 54p.
The FTSE 100 finished up 0.3pc, or 22.6 points, at 6954.2. Sky stormed ahead to become the highest riser of the day after a takeover bid from 21st Century Fox emerged as trading drew to a close. Shares rocketed 26.6pc, or 210.5p, to 1000p.
The banks made up much of the fallers list for the day after the regulator kicked the PPI deadline down the road. Barclays dropped 2.5pc, or 5.9p, to 233.1p as Bank of America Merrill Lynch cut its rating on the stock while Lloyds lost 1.6pc, or 1p, to 61.7p.
Security outfit G4S soared as it appointed a non-executive director. Ian Springett will join the board on January 1. Chartered accountant Springett has been chief financial officer and a director at Tullow Oil since 2008 and previously worked at BP for 23 years. G4S shares gained 2.1pc, or 4.7p, to 230.5p.
Berendsen slipped after it became the subject of a Competition and Markets Authority investigation.
The specialist laundry business had soared in the previous day’s trading on a positive broker note.
Yesterday it announced that its UK Cleanroom business, which disposes of workwear and products for pharmaceutical and medical companies, was being investigated. Berendsen said it was fully cooperating with the regulator and was keen to point out that the division, which had turnover of around £7m in 2015, only represented around 1pc of the group’s total revenue. Shares stumbled 1.2pc, or 10p, to 830p.
Software firm Ideagen has bought IPI Solutions for £5.5m.
Mansfield-based IPI, which was founded in 2005, makes software for aerospace and defence companies. It has around 400 customers including GE Aviation and Meggitt and in the year to June 30 reported profit of £600,000. Ideagen shares rose 4.7pc, or 3p, to 66p.
Condor Gold advanced as it settled a long-running dispute. In September 2010 it entered into an agreement with B2Gold to swap mining licences. B2Gold and another company called Royal Gold ended up jointly filing to sue Condor over a disagreement about a royalty deal attached to its mine. After four years of litigation a settlement has been agreed, though this may take three months to complete. Condor said the agreement cleared the way for its gold project to advance. Shares climbed 5.4pc, or 3p, to 59p.