Large UK Debt Buyer Plans Growth

United Kingdom-based Lowell Group, a purchaser of non-performing consumer debt portfolios, plans to add 60 jobs in the city of Leeds.

The 10-year-old company employs approximately 750 people in Leeds and another 200 people at other locations in England. The positions will be in credit and risk, customer service and IT.

Lowell Group, owned by the private equity firm TDR Capital since 2011, also plans to move its main office to larger space in Leeds. The company recently signed a 15-year lease for an 80,000 square foot office building that has space to accommodate more than 1,000 people.

The company acquired Interlaken Group last year, a move that followed an entry into contingency collections in January 2011 when it set up Lowell Preston (Tocatto) - a research and development hub offering clients a chance to work with Lowell Group on a commission basis.?At the time, company officials said the success of Lowell Preston demonstrated the size and potential of the opportunity to run separate collection and debt purchase businesses under one umbrella company, providing the rationale for the Interlaken deal.

In a statement, Lowell Group's CEO James Cornell, who co-founded the company in 2004, said: “I’m proud of the success we’ve achieved over the last 10 years and look forward to continuing to grow our business in Leeds, a great place to do business. Our people - Team Lowell - are our biggest asset and testament to the tremendous pool of talented people Leeds has to offer and we are pleased to continue to extend and grow this team."

Last month, the company worked out a deal to slash its borrowing costs, a move aimed at helping it purchase additional consumer debt portfolios or give TDR the flexibility to pay itself a small dividend if additional purchases do not prove to be attractive, company officials said.

The largest UK debt purchasers include Lowell Group, Cabot Credit Management, Arrow Global, CapQuest, Marlin Financial Group, Link Financial and Max Recovery.