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Encore Capital Group Inc., a buyer of delinquent credit card debt, reported gross collections for 2008 of $398.6 million, a 12.2% increase from $355.2 million in 2007. The San Diego-based company reported total revenue of $255.9 million for the year, up slightly from $254 million in 2007. Net income totaled $18.8 million, up 25.3% from $15 million. For the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, gross collections were $94.4 million, up 10.5% from $85.4 million during the same period in 2007. Encore invested $63.8 million during the quarter to purchase a face value of $1.7 billion in debt, for a blended rate of 3.8% of face value. Encore did not itemize credit card purchase totals. Revenues from receivable portfolios totaled $47.9 million during the quarter, a 14.2% decrease from $55.8 million during the same period a year earlier. In 2007, 90% of the receivables Encore bought consisted of charged-off credit card accounts compared with 46% in 2006. Totals for 2008 are not yet available. Encore is the fourth-largest debt buyer in the U.S. based on 2007 revenues, according to research by Collections & Credit Risk, a CardLine sister publication.
