Leading brokerage firm
Brightside posted lower financial results for 2015, a year of major transition for the growing industry player.
Brightside executive chairman Mark Cliff said group profit dropped from £9.2 million in 2014 to £7 million in the following year while the company completed a near $20 million transformation programme.
Despite the lower figure, Cliff said the company’s profit in 2015 was “bang on plan.” He added that trading performance had been “satisfactory” in a very tough market.
The company recorded revenues of £59.4 million last year, down by 15% from £69.5 million in 2014. Broking revenue also slipped to £34.4 million from £39.9 million, while the number of insurance policies sold decreased by around 20% to 250,000.
Cliff disclosed that new deals with Covéa Insurance and another unnamed insurer had successfully plugged the gap left by
Markerstudy, which cancelled its capacity agreement with the broker in May.
“The new arrangements open up the potential to write business in niche and specialist lines that were not previously open to us under the Markerstudy arrangement,” he said.
Cliff admitted that trading conditions remain challenging, but he claimed that Brightside can achieve its growth ambitions.
“Brightside is now well-placed to challenge its competitors on service and product quality,” he said.
“The business has a strong pipeline, and following investment in new technology, unwinding legacy contracts and a new management team, I am confident we will deliver our five-year plan,” Cliff added.
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