Pioneer Credit prospectus reveals heavy concentration risk
Debt collector Pioneer Credit has revealed in its prospectus issued yesterday that its business is heavily dependent on just one client. Seventy-four per cent of Pioneer's purchased debt has come from a single bank and another 11 per cent from a subsidiary of that bank. The company faces considerable concentration risk.Pioneer plans to list on the Australian Securities Exchange and is offering investors 25.2 million shares at A$1.60 a share. Current shareholders will hold 20.2 million shares at the completion of the offer.Pioneer Credit was acquired by Credit Corp in 2006 and then sold to its current shareholders, led by managing director Keith John, in 2009.The offer price represents a multiple of 16.3 times forecast 2013/14 earnings per share and 11 times forecast 2014/15 EPS.It expects its shares to start trading on the ASX on May 5.Pioneer's business is acquiring and servicing unsecured retail debt portfolios at a discount to their face value. Generally, it purchases debt that is more than 180 days overdue. Ninety per cent of its purchases are credit card and personal loan debt.Debt portfolio purchases increased from $8.6 million in the six months to December 2011 to $14.4 million in the six months to December last year.The company said it would use part of the proceeds of the float to purchase additional debt portfolios.The company estimated that it had an eight per cent share of debt purchases in 2012/13. It said it expected to grow by increasing share within its existing market segment, expanding into new areas and moving into the developing secondary debt market.Its long-term view is that the debt purchase and debt collection markets are consolidating as a result of regulatory pressure and the increasing preference of financial institutions to deal with reputable debt buyers.The company has forecast a statutory net profit of $1.6 million for the year to June. After adjusting for fees related to the listing and costs associated with refinancing the business, the company is expecting to report a pro forma net profit of $4.5 million for the year to June and $6.6 million in 2014/15.Pioneer has entered into a new $47 million senior debt facility, conditional on the completion of the offer.