Tavistock Investments PLC (AIM:TAVI) has announced the sale of LEBC Hummingbird Limited to Aspira Corporate Solutions Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of LEBC Holdings Limited, for a consideration of £3.0mln.
On 3 May 2022, Tavistock said it had received consent from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for the company to become a controller of LEBC and that, as a consequence, it had completed the purchase of the 21% stake in LEBC which had been announced on 10 January 2022.
In the chairman's statement in its accounts for the year ended 31 March 2022, announced to the market on 26 September 2022, it was confirmed that Tavistock's board was working closely with the management of LEBC to maximise the value of this investment for the benefit of both sets of shareholders.
As a part of the arrangements, Tavistock agreed to acquire Hummingbird from LEBC Group Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of LEBC, principally to provide that company with additional working capital and this transaction was announced on 23 May 2022.
However, as an alternative source of working capital was subsequently identified for LEBC Group Limited, Tavistock agreed to sell Hummingbird to Aspira on the same terms as those on which it had been purchased in May 2022.
Hummingbird began trading in 2020 as a provider of financial research for the LEBC Group. Hummingbird's audited accounts for the financial year ended 30 September 2021 show that the company achieved gross revenues of £0.61mln, profit before tax of £0.43mln and had gross assets of £0.13mln as of 30 September 2021.
Tavistock said it has received approximately six months' contribution from Hummingbird to the group's results for the year ending 31 March 2023.