International Personal Finance (IPF) Q4 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Delivered pre-exceptional profit before tax of £85.2m, up 1.5% year-on-year, exceeding guidance despite £5m FX headwinds.

• All divisions reported profits ahead of plan, with strong operational execution, customer repayment behavior, and improved credit quality.

• Increased shareholder returns with a £15m share buyback completed and a further £15m planned, and a final dividend up 11% to 8.0p per share.

• Next Gen strategy and digital expansion drove growth in credit cards, new markets, and customer engagement.

• Served 15 millionth customer, reflecting strong market presence.

Financial highlights

• Group customer lending grew 9% at constant FX; closing net receivables up 6.8% at CER.

• Revenue declined 5.4% year-on-year to £726.3m, mainly due to FX and lower revenue in Poland.

• Pre-exceptional EPS up 7.3% to 24.9p; reported EPS up 27% to 27.3p, aided by exceptional tax credits.

• Cost-income ratio increased to 61% (up 4 pts), mainly due to Poland; stable ex-Poland at 55.4%.

• Impairment rate improved to 9.6% from 12.2%, below target range.

Outlook and guidance

• 2025 is positioned for accelerated growth, targeting receivables growth above £150m and lending growth in Poland and Mexico.

• Focus on expanding credit cards, digital offerings, and retail partnerships in key markets.

• Returns expected to moderate in 2025 due to upfront IFRS 9 impairment and higher tax, with improvement forecast for 2026–2027.

• Anticipate stable revenue yields and cost-income ratio improvement toward 49–51% by 2027.

• Impairment rate expected to rise toward 14–16% as growth accelerates.