ACTIVE INFORMATICS LTD

Risk Rating: MEDIUM

The company appears balance-sheet solvent at 30 April 2026, with positive net assets of £119,967, cash of £223,725, net current assets of £119,967 and only £1,769 of bank loans. However, the rating is not LOW because the filed accounts are unaudited and filleted with no profit and loss disclosure, there is a material related-party management fee, current liabilities have risen sharply, and historical cash and net assets have been volatile. No insolvency, liquidation or overdue filing flags are present in the provided data.

Key Concerns

1. Limited financial transparency
   The latest accounts are prepared under the small companies regime, are unaudited, and do not include a filed statement of comprehensive income. Revenue, gross margin, profitability, cash generation and customer concentration cannot be assessed from the available data. The profit and loss reserve is only marginally positive at negative £2,472, so the improvement in net assets is not supported by detailed earnings disclosure.

2. Related-party exposure and control concentration
   The company was charged £60,000 in fees by Sailfish Equity and Management Limited, a related party through director P S Smith’s interest, and owed £7,200 to that entity at year end. P S Smith is also considered the ultimate controlling party, while two PSCs each hold between 25% and 50% of shares/voting rights. The terms, necessity and arm’s-length nature of the related-party fees should be examined closely.

3. Creditor composition and working-capital pressure
   Current liabilities increased to £231,846 from £111,950, including accruals and deferred income of £131,056 versus £9,475 previously, and other taxation and social security of £82,917 versus £51,631. Cash covers current liabilities at approximately 0.97x, and the current ratio is 1.52x, so liquidity is not immediately stressed, but the nature and ageing of these balances—particularly tax/social security and deferred income—require verification.

Positive Indicators

• Solvent balance sheet: Net assets are positive at £119,967, with net current assets of £119,967 and minimal bank debt of £1,769.
• Strong cash position: Cash increased materially to £223,725 from £82,014, providing a good buffer against current liabilities.
• Improving retained position: The profit and loss reserve improved to negative £2,472 from negative £23,123, and net assets rose from £99,316 to £119,967.
• Stable operating footprint: The company has traded since 2008, employed an average of 14 staff, and operates across software development and IT consultancy SIC codes.
• No obvious compliance flags in the dataset: The company is active, not in liquidation, and accounts and confirmation statement filings are shown as not overdue. No director disqualification records are included in the provided data.

Due Diligence Notes

• Obtain full management accounts and the complete statutory profit and loss account, including revenue, gross margin, EBITDA, cash flow, customer concentration and recurring revenue profile.
• Reconcile the summary financial history against the filed accounts: the summary shows shareholders’ funds of £122,328 for 2026, 2025 and 2024, whereas the filed accounts show net assets of £119,967, £99,316 and £95,533 respectively.
• Verify the filing dates independently at Companies House; the dataset contains date fields that should be checked for consistency, including the accounts next-due date and approval date.
• Analyse the £131,056 accruals and deferred income balance: confirm whether it represents customer prepayments, revenue recognition timing, or unpaid costs, and assess any related obligations.
• Review the £82,917 tax and social security creditor for VAT, PAYE and other liabilities, including ageing, payment arrangements and any arrears or penalties.
• Assess trade debtor quality: trade debtors were £111,831, and debtor ageing, credit terms and customer concentration should be reviewed for bad-debt risk.
• Investigate the Sailfish Equity and Management Limited relationship: scope of services, fee basis, board approval, arm’s-length evidence and any other related-party transactions.
• Review shareholder agreements, dividend policy and PSC arrangements given the 25–50% holdings and P S Smith’s ultimate control.
• Confirm bank loan terms, any undrawn facilities, guarantees, operating leases and other off-balance-sheet commitments.
• Review the capitalised development cost history—£365,250 fully amortised—and confirm ownership of software/IP and key customer contracts.
• Check previous name changes and corporate history for continuity, and consider whether institutional investment would trigger audit or additional governance requirements.