Sancus sells Gibraltar arm for £10,000

The firm said in January that it would close its Gibraltar and Guernsey offices as part of efforts to streamline its business.

As part of the outlined plan, it said it would cease new business in Gibraltar entirely, whereas it continue to lend in the Guernsey market.

The firm said that as part of a review of its business during 2022 it “did not identify sufficient quality lending opportunities to merit continued efforts in the region”, so it would write down its goodwill of £8.64m to nil.

Sancus continued that the disposal would lead to cost savings of around £200,000 relating to run-off costs, as well as the avoidance of redundancies and associated expenses.

It added that this would mean the company could focus on its “core markets” in the UK, Ireland and Channel Islands.

Sancus said that the proceeds, which were payable in cash, would be used for “working capital purposes”.

The lender continued that the sale was “in line” with its “ongoing structured change programme”.

It added that it would “continue to focus on returning the company to profitability” and this included measures to “simplify the business, improve efficiency and optimise the use of its resources”.