(Alliance News) - Legal financier Burford Capital Ltd on Thursday reported sharp growth in income and profit in a "momentous" first half.
In the six months to June 30, Burford's pretax profit jumped 41% to USD231.5 million from USD163.8 million the year before.
The company's total income was 40% higher at USD287.0 million versus USD205.2 million the year before. The sharp growth was driven by a 36% rise in investment income.
Burford declared an interim dividend of 4.17 US cents, 14% higher than the 3.67 cents distributed the year before.
"As Burford approaches its tenth anniversary, we have unbridled optimism about the future. The industry continues to grow rapidly, due in large part to the pace we set by evolving our products and services to meet the increasingly diverse demands of the users of legal finance. Burford is well-positioned to continue to lead the global legal finance industry through the next decade of growth," said Chair Peter Middleton.
Chief Executive added Christopher Bogart: "Burford has had a momentous first half, with profits exceeding USD200 million and assets surpassing USD2 billion for the first time. Income from our core litigation investment portfolio was driven by a blend of attractive cash realisations across multiple vintages."
Burford ended the period with total assets of USD2.25 billion, 37% higher than at the same point last year. Burford's net assets were 64% higher year on year at USD1.57 billion.
Bogart added: "Growth in demand for our capital and our capacity to respond with innovative new solutions are the hallmark of our outright industry leadership and reflected in record new investment commitments of USD751 million. We are excited about the outlook for the legal finance market and our unique ability to capture the opportunities we observe."
Shares in Burford Capital were down 2.5% in London on Thursday at 1,627.00 pence each.
Burford Capital (BUR)