ADAM SMITH LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC116109 · ltd · incorporated 1989-02-10
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£10.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Activities of financial services holding companies
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle with a 73-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 73). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
9 officers (3 active, 9 linked, 3 with DOB)
77
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
7 connected companies via shared directors
66
Filing history
103 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
🔒Estimated company valuation

Sector-multiple EBITDA, turnover, and NAV-proxy valuation range with confidence tier — derived from extracted iXBRL financials.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £10,818

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£11k
~ YoY
Current Assets
£15k
~ YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£3k£6k£9k£12k£15kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£13.3k£13.3k
Current assets£15.5k£15.5k
Net assets£10.8k£10.8k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-12-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-07-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-12-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-12-04
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-03-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2019-07-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2018-08-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2017-07-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2016-07-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  11. 2015-07-23
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  12. 2015-07-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  13. 2014-10-29
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  14. 2014-07-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2013-10-25
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2009-05-20
    ➕
    DOUGLAS, Morag Fiona Katherine appointed
    secretary
  17. 2009-03-16
    ➕
    DOUGLAS, Craig J R appointed
    secretary
  18. 2009-03-12
    ➖
    REID, Gillian Susan resigned
    secretary
  19. 2006-08-17
    ➖
    FALCONER, Lynne Dorothy resigned
    secretary
  20. 2006-08-17
    ➕
    REID, Gillian Susan appointed
    secretary
  21. 2006-08-17
    ➖
    FALCONER, Lynne Dorothy resigned
    director
  22. 1999-03-02
    ➕
    FALCONER, Lynne Dorothy appointed
    director
  23. 1995-02-01
    ➕
    FALCONER, Lynne Dorothy appointed
    secretary
  24. 1994-12-12
    ➖
    DOUGLAS, Alexandra Gibb resigned
    secretary
  25. 1994-07-12
    ➖
    DOUGLAS, Alexandra Gibb resigned
    director
  26. 1994-07-10
    ➕
    DOUGLAS, Alexandra Gibb appointed
    secretary
  27. 1994-07-10
    ➖
    DOUGLAS, Derek Jack resigned
    secretary
  28. 1989-02-10
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ADAM SMITH LIMITED

Owner dependency

90/100
Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

FACTORS
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 73 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 73 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 37 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

Red flags

clean
No red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)

Group structure

Esk Farm Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️
Esk Farm Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares
ultimate parent
⬇
ADAM SMITH LIMITED
This company · SC116109

Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Esk Farm Limited
Corporate entity
75–100%
—75-100% shares06/04/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

🔒Co-director network graph

Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

8 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →
🔒Advanced scoring suite

Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated1989-02-10
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC64205 — Activities of financial services holding companies

Registered office

Adam Smith House
Melville Castle Estate
Lasswade
Edinburgh
EH18 1AW

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-06
Last: 2025-07-23

Officers (3 active · 6 resigned)

DOUGLAS, Craig J R→
secretary · appointed 2009-03-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DOUGLAS, Morag Fiona Katherine→
secretary · appointed 2009-05-20
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DOUGLAS, Derek Jack→
director · ~73y
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DOUGLAS, Alexandra Gibb→
secretary · appointed 1994-07-10 · resigned 1994-12-12
Resigned
DOUGLAS, Derek Jack→
secretary · resigned 1994-07-10
Resigned
FALCONER, Lynne Dorothy→
secretary · appointed 1995-02-01 · resigned 2006-08-17
Resigned
REID, Gillian Susan→
secretary · appointed 2006-08-17 · resigned 2009-03-12
Resigned
DOUGLAS, Alexandra Gibb→
director · ~70y · resigned 1994-07-12
Resigned
FALCONER, Lynne Dorothy→
director · ~55y · appointed 1999-03-02 · resigned 2006-08-17
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Recent filings (103 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-07-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-12-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-12-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-03-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-10-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-07-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-07-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2018-08-03