UDC yesterday said it signed a deal with Ford New Zealand and Mazda New Zealand to become their preferred wholesale and retail finance supplier.The deal will bolster ANZ's New Zealand finance company operation, which has struggled to find growth in the past three years.UDC will provide consumer car loan capabilities to Ford and Mazda dealerships in New Zealand.Ford's own finance operation, Primus Financial Services (formerly Ford Motor Credit Company of New Zealand) has struggled. It reported a NZ$641,000 net loss for calendar 2006, on revenue of NZ$60.9 millionThe previous year it made a profit of NZ$5.3 million on revenue of NZ$67.7 million.Net finance receivables fell from NZ$112.8 million in 2005 to NZ$97.6 last year.Ford released a statement yesterday, saying: "Due to a highly competitive market Primus lacks the necessary scale to support the company's mission."UDC's business is focused on the business equipment, auto and agriculture finance markets. It has NZ$2 billion of assets and employs 200 people. It is the biggest equipment financier in New Zealand with a 17.3 per cent market share and also claims leadership in auto finance.For the six months to March it had zero revenue growth. Profit growth of eight per cent was due entirely to heavy cost-cutting. On the positive side UDC reported some balance sheet growth after three years of decline. Gross lending rose from NZ$1.9 billion to NZ$2 billion.