What Capquest does

Capquest Debt Recovery Limited is a UK credit solutions business founded in 1985 and headquartered in Manchester, with an operations office in Glasgow. It serves two primary customer bases: UK financial institutions (banks and lenders) that assign credit portfolios for third-party servicing, and individual consumers with defaulted credit agreements who need to establish affordable repayment plans. Capquest also acquires debt portfolios directly, profiting from the spread between purchased balances and amounts collected. Following its acquisition by Intrum Group on 1 June 2023, Capquest operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary within a pan-European credit management services platform.

The company offers debt collection and account management services supported by an online customer portal (portal.capquest.co.uk) that enables 24/7 self-service for payment plans, card payments and account updates, alongside an income and expenditure affordability tool. Its technology stack includes an LLM-based call-summarisation system applied across all customer service interactions, reciprocal data integrations with the three UK Credit Reference Agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, Experian) for trace, identity verification and credit reporting, and a partner panel model that routes accounts to specialist debt collection agencies, legal firms and insolvency specialists when required. The company is FCA-regulated (registration 721513), CSA-member, ISO 27001-aligned, and GDPR-compliant via ICO registration ZB553871.

Capquest monetises through managed-services fees on assigned portfolios and through portfolio purchase economics on acquired debt. It does not charge consumers for collection services; revenue is generated entirely on the B2B side from financial institution clients. As of 2023, the serviced book includes the Koyo Loans portfolio assigned on 14 July 2023 by Koyo Finance 1 Ltd.

Name

Capquest

Legal name

Capquest Debt Recovery Limited

Website

http://www.capquest.co.uk/

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Capquest Debt Recovery Limited is a UK-regulated debt collection and credit solutions provider founded in 1985. It services and acquires defaulted credit portfolios on behalf of UK financial institutions, helping individual consumers establish affordable repayment plans through an online portal and multi-channel support.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Debt Collection Services

NAICS

Collection Agencies (561440)

SIC

Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)

akta.pro primary industry

Debt Buying / Portfolio Acquisition & Recovery (Debt Purchasers) (BPAAAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Specialty Consumer Loan Servicing & Collections (Subprime) (FSAKAOAJ)

Keywords

• Debt collection services
• Credit management
• Debt recovery solutions
• Consumer credit servicing
• Debt portfolio management

Headquarters

HQ city

Farnborough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Debt Portfolio Servicing: Capquest manages credit portfolios on behalf of UK financial institutions. They earn fees for servicing accounts, including tracing customers, collecting payments, and managing repayment plans. Revenue comes from clients who assign accounts to them for management.
2. Debt Portfolio Acquisition: Capquest acquires debt portfolios (purchases defaulted accounts with outstanding balances) and collects payments directly from consumers. The company profits from the difference between the purchased debt value and amounts collected.
3. Koyo Loans Servicing: Capquest was appointed to service Koyo Loans accounts on behalf of Koyo Finance 1 Ltd. Revenue is generated through servicing fees and account management activities for this specific portfolio.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Capquest is a UK credit solutions business that recovers and manages defaulted consumer credit on behalf of credit providers. It services credit portfolios assigned by UK financial institutions and acquires debt portfolios directly, then collects outstanding balances through multi-channel outreach (letters, phone, SMS, email) supported by an online Customer Portal, Income and Expenditure affordability tool, and LLM-based AI call summarization.

Product overview

Capquest offers a single integrated debt collection and recovery service rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core offering consists of debt collection and account management services, supported by the Capquest Customer Portal which provides online account access, payment processing, and an Income and Expenditure Tool for assessing customer affordability. The company services defaulted credit accounts on behalf of financial institutions, helping customers repay outstanding balances through various repayment options.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Debt Collection Services Outsourced debt recovery and account management for defaulted UK consumer credit accounts, delivered on behalf of financial institutions and on debt portfolios acquired by Capquest. Includes customer tracing, repayment-plan negotiation, credit reference agency reporting, and access to income and expenditure affordability assessment.
• Capquest Customer Portal Self-service online portal for individuals with Capquest-managed accounts to set up payment plans, make card payments (MasterCard, Visa), update contact and financial information, and access live chat and income/expenditure affordability tools.
• Koyo Loans Account Servicing Dedicated servicing of Koyo Loans consumer accounts on behalf of Koyo Finance 1 Ltd, with a dedicated phone line (0333 999 8140) and customer email ([email protected]) for affected borrowers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Default marked as satisfied within 8-12 weeks of full payment
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Koyo Finance 1 LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 July 2023Capquest was appointed to service Koyo Loans accounts on behalf of Koyo Finance 1 Ltd. As of 14th July 2023, Capquest manages these accounts and customers receive Notice of Assignment letters. Koyo emailed customers on 3rd July 2023 about the transition.
• Credit Reference Agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, Experian)coreTechnology or IntegrationCapquest shares account data with Credit Reference Agencies for credit reporting purposes. They obtain customer data from CRAs for tracing and identity verification. The reciprocal relationship ensures the credit market functions properly by informing lenders' decisions.
• SignVideominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with SignVideo to provide British Sign Language (BSL) interpretation services for deaf customers. Customers communicate with a third-party interpreter who relays information to Capquest support agents.
• Partner Panel (Debt Collection Agencies, Legal Firms, Insolvency Specialists)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCapquest uses a panel of specialist partner firms to manage certain accounts. Partners include Debt Collection Agencies, Legal Firms, and Specialist firms (for insolvency or deceased accounts). All partners must meet Capquest's stringent standards and FCA regulatory requirements.
• Money Helper, StepChange, National Debt Line, Citizens AdviceminorOthersReferral and support partnerships with free financial advice organizations. Capquest directs customers to these services for independent debt advice, mental health and money advice, and cost of living support.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Lowell Group: One of the largest UK debt purchasers and servicers, now owned by TPG. Directly comparable on both portfolio acquisition and third-party servicing business lines serving UK financial institutions, with similar regulatory and operational footprint.
• Cabot Credit Management: UK-headquartered debt buyer and servicer now part of Encore Capital Group. Closely comparable to Capquest on business model, customer base (UK financial institutions), and regulatory positioning.
• Marston Holdings: UK integrated enforcement and debt recovery group covering road traffic enforcement, magistrate court fines, and consumer debt recovery. Directly comparable on UK debt collection services and creditor relationships.
• Hoist Finance: European debt purchaser and servicer headquartered in Sweden with UK operations. Directly comparable on the portfolio acquisition model and consumer non-performing loan servicing across European markets.
• 1st Credit (UK): UK debt purchaser and servicer operating across consumer and commercial portfolios. Directly comparable to Capquest on UK-focused debt purchase and servicing for financial institution clients.
• Wescot Credit Services: UK debt collection and recovery services provider working with banks, lenders, and utilities. Directly comparable on UK consumer debt servicing business model and regulatory positioning.
• Debt Recovery Plus: UK consumer debt recovery specialist providing first-party and third-party collection services. Comparable on UK consumer debt servicing model and creditor client base.

Broad incumbents

• PRA Group: US-listed global debt purchaser with significant UK operations following the Arrow Global acquisition. Comparable on portfolio acquisition model and UK creditor client base, though broader international footprint than Capquest.
• EOS Group: German-headquartered international debt collection group with presence across multiple European markets. Comparable on third-party collections and debt purchase business lines, though broader pan-European reach than Capquest's UK focus.
• B2Holding: Norwegian-headquartered European debt purchaser and servicer operating across multiple geographies. Comparable on portfolio acquisition and consumer NPL servicing, with broader geographic diversification than Capquest.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Capquest