Brightside Group is an
insurance broking
An insurance broker is an intermediary who sells, solicits, or negotiates insurance on behalf of a client for compensation. An insurance broker is distinct from an insurance agent in that a broker typically acts on behalf of a client by negoti ...
and
financial services
Financial services are the Service (economics), economic services provided by the finance industry, which encompasses a broad range of businesses that manage money, including credit unions, banks, credit-card companies, insurance companies, acco ...
business in the UK. The company was incorporated in 2006, is based in
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
with offices in
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, and
Torquay
Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignton ...
.
[Brightside Group website]
History
Brightside is registered in the UK and is regulated by the
Financial Conduct Authority
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is a financial regulation, financial regulatory body in the United Kingdom, but operates independently of the UK Government, and is financed by charging fees to members of the financial services industry. The ...
(FCA). In June 2008 a
reverse takeover
A reverse takeover (RTO), reverse merger, or reverse IPO is the acquisition of a public company by a private company so that the private company can bypass the lengthy and complex process of going public. Sometimes, conversely, the public compan ...
took place between Aust Holdings Limited and Brightside Group Plc. Brightside Group Plc acquired Group Direct and its associated companies, changing its principal business activity from financial rehabilitation solutions to insurance broking.
In the same deal Brightside Group acquired Injury QED which provides solicitors with medical reports for personal injury claims.
[ The Brightside acquisition included a strategic investment from ]Aviva
Aviva plc is a British multinational insurance company headquartered in London, England. It has about 18 million customers across its core markets of the United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada. In the United Kingdom, Aviva is the largest general ...
-owned insurer Norwich Union
Norwich Union was the name of insurance company Aviva's British arm before June 2009. It was originally established in 1797. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
On 29 April 2008, Aviva a ...
and Swedish based Stena Investments. For the six months ending June 2010 revenue grew 24% from £21.4 million in 2009 to £26.6m. In December 2009, the Group raised £20m in additional capital to expand online offerings and the development of its medical reporting business, Injury QED, and in June 2010 the Group acquired the eCar and eBike brands to substantially increase distribution and represented an additional 307,000 policies.
Problems with ex CEO
Arron Banks
Arron Fraser Andrew Banks (born 1966) is a British businessman and political donor. He is the co-founder (with Richard Tice) of the Leave.EU campaign. Banks was previously one of the largest donors to the UK Independence Party (UKIP) and helped ...
co-founded Brightside Group in 2005, and was appointed CEO in June 2011, at which time the company was listed on the Alternative Investment Market
AIM (formerly the Alternative Investment Market) is a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange that was launched on 19 June 1995 as a replacement to the previous Unlisted Securities Market (USM) that had been in operation since 1980. It allows ...
(AIM). The board accepted the resignation from Arron Banks, effective 20 June 2012. Following Banks departure a bitter dispute followed including legal action from Southern Rock Insurance Company, which is owned by Banks.
AnaCap takeover
In 2014 the company was de-listed from the AIM Stockexchange and purchased by AnaCap Financial Partners LLC at £1.27 per share.
In 2015 the company underwent a rebrand, becoming known simply as brightside.
Company Results
On 28 September 2010, Brightside Group released its Preliminary Results for the first six months of 2010 (unaudited):
*Profit from continuing operations increased by 33% to £4m in the first six months of 2010 (same period in 2009 £3m)
*Revenue increased by 24% to £26.6m in the first six months of 2010 (same period in 2009 £21.4m)
*EBITDA
A company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (commonly abbreviated EBITDA, pronounced , , or ) is a measure of a company's profitability of the operating business only, thus before any effects of indebtedness, stat ...
before exceptional items and share option charges increased by 11% to £4.97m in the first six months of 2010 (same period in 2009 £4.48m)
*Earnings per share
Earnings per share (EPS) is the monetary value of earnings per outstanding share of common stock for a company. It is a key measure of corporate profitability and is commonly used to price stocks.
In the United States, the Financial Accounting ...
on profit from continuing operations increased by 3% to 0.65p in the first six months of 2010 (same period in 2009 0.63p)
*In 2014 the company made a £43.7 million loss.
Associated companies
Brightside Group incorporates:
References
{{Reflist
External links
Brightside Group websiteFinancial Times Website, Business Profile
Financial services companies established in 2005
Insurance companies of the United Kingdom
Companies based in Bristol