118 Group Holdings Ltd

What 118 Group Holdings Ltd does

118 Group Holdings Ltd, via its operating subsidiary 118 Data Resource Limited, is a UK-focused B2B data provider that licenses, services, and APIs access to a proprietary UK business dataset built and continuously verified over more than 50 years. The company's core asset is a 4.5 million-record UK B2B universe covering approximately 1.7 million actively trading addresses, with up to 550 data fields per record, 2,400+ granular directory-style industry classifications (substantially finer than standard SIC codes), 750,000+ decision-maker emails, and 63 million rows of historical change data spanning six years. Data quality is maintained through a 70-seat UK-based Contact Centre that makes over 12,000 verified calls per day (5 million+ per year), achieving 95% telephone connectivity and 96% email delivery, augmented by proprietary in-house matching software, 11 years of volatility pattern-recognition modelling, and multi-source collation from Companies House, PAF, telecom providers, credit reference agencies, and directory partners.

The product portfolio spans licensing subscriptions (POI data, KYC, fraud & risk, full analytical universe, fastest growing businesses, brand new businesses, businesses on the move, directory listings, route and territory planning), professional services (cleaning, segmentation, matching, enhancement, insights, aggregated reports), the Bizi self-serve count platform (1,000+ users), and three APIs (Directory, Risk/KYC, CRM). Revenue is generated through data licensing contracts (daily/weekly/monthly update cadences), project-based and recurring data services, API consumption, KYC and fraud data licensing to FCA-regulated banks and insurers, and a vetted reseller programme. Distribution combines direct enterprise sales, account management embedded across the client lifecycle, a vetted reseller channel, the G-Cloud public-sector marketplace, and self-serve platform/API access.

The company holds ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27701 (PIMS), Cyber Essentials, FSQS, G-Cloud accreditation, and ICO registration (Z1704185), with GDPR and PECR compliance positioned as a core differentiator. Customers include high-street banks, insurance companies, a well-known DIY retailer, a German automotive OEM (POI/satnav data), regional newspaper publishers, and national broadband providers — spanning financial services, retail, media, telecommunications, and technology/platform verticals. 118 Group is privately held, founder-controlled, with no disclosed external funding and operates through multiple wholly-owned UK subsidiaries including 118 Information Limited, Market Location Limited, and Cardwell Marketing Ltd.

Name

118 Group Holdings Ltd

Legal name

118 Data Resource Limited

Website

https://118group.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Short description

118 Group is a UK B2B data provider that licenses and services access to a 4.5 million-record UK business dataset, continuously verified through a 70-seat Contact Centre, sold to banks, insurers, retailers, telcos, and platform companies via file licensing, APIs, and the Bizi self-serve platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

B2B Business Data & Intelligence

NAICS

Directory and Mailing List Publishers (51314), Directory and Mailing List Publishers (513140), Credit Bureaus (561450)

SIC

Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)

akta.pro primary industry

Marketing Database & Contact Data Providers (B2B/B2C Lists) (BPAFAKAF)

Keywords

• B2B data licensing
• Business intelligence data
• KYC compliance data
• POI mapping data
• Data cleansing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Sutton Coldfield

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. B2B Data Licensing: 118 Group licenses access to its UK B2B dataset — covering 4.5 million business records and up to 550 data fields — to clients on data licensing contracts. Updates are passed to clients on daily, weekly, or monthly schedules depending on contract terms. Clients receive new records, ceased trading flags, updates to phone numbers, contacts, emails and employee numbers.
2. Data Services: Bespoke data services including cleaning (formatting, re-alignment, deduping), segmentation (geography, industry, employees, turnover, age/trading style), matching, enhancement (appending 550 data fields), and insights (Data Audit and Data Penetration Reports). These are project-based or recurring service engagements.
3. API Access: Three APIs (Directory, Risk/KYC, and CRM) provide programmatic access to data. The CRM API is a consuming API where clients set the frequency of updates. APIs can be altered to retrieve different data fields. Revenue derived from API usage and access fees embedded within licensing contracts.
4. KYC / Fraud & Risk Data Licensing: Licensing granular industry classification data for Know Your Customer compliance, risk profiling, and fraud detection purposes. The dataset includes 63 million rows covering all actively trading UK businesses plus six years of change history. Clients include banks, insurance companies, and FCA-regulated businesses.
5. Aggregated Data Reports: Periodic or one-off aggregated reports allowing analysis of patterns and changes across UK businesses by any number of variables. Reports are tailored to frequency (quarterly, monthly, or one-off) and specific project needs such as district council changes, parliamentary seat analysis, or retail planning.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

118 Group licenses access to a UK B2B dataset covering 4.5 million business records with up to 550 data fields and 2,400+ granular industry classifications, verified through a 70-seat UK-based Contact Centre placing 12,000+ calls daily. Customers consume the data via the Bizi online count platform, three APIs (Directory, Risk/KYC, CRM), scheduled file deliveries, or bespoke data services covering cleaning, segmentation, matching, enhancement, and insights.

Product overview

118 Group is a B2B data provider offering a comprehensive suite of data products, APIs, and professional services for accessing and analyzing the UK B2B universe. The core offering centers on the Bizi platform (flagship online count tool) which provides access to the marketable UK B2B universe based on 130+ selection criteria. Supporting this are specialized data products including POI Data (1.7 million trading addresses with geocoding), Fastest Growing Businesses, Brand New Businesses (weekly), and Businesses on the Move. The company provides KYC, Route Planning, Territory & Audience Planning, Location Planning, and Fraud & Risk data products built on its 4.5+ million business database. A key differentiator is the Full UK Analytical Universe containing 63 million rows of data with 500+ fields. The API suite includes Directory, Risk, and CRM APIs for programmatic access. Professional services encompass Data Cleaning, Segmentation, Matching, Enhancement, Insights, and Aggregated Reports. The company operates a 70-seat UK Contact Centre making over 5 million calls annually to verify and maintain data accuracy, combined with technology and AI techniques for data capture. The product portfolio also includes a Reseller Program for vetted partners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bizi Platform Flagship online count tool giving customers access to the marketable UK B2B universe. Produces data counts based on 130 selection criteria with fully customisable outputs, serving B2B sales, marketing and planning professionals.
• POI Data Points of Interest dataset containing 1.7 million trading address details of UK businesses, 4.5 million UK business addresses with lat/lon and Easting/Northing coordinates, granular descriptions, public buildings, private POIs, firmographic information, employee sizes, site types, and turnover data.
• Full UK Analytical Universe Comprehensive analytical dataset combining 4.5+ million business records with 63 million rows and 500+ data fields, covering all UK businesses aggregated from publicly available sources with deduplication and additional data flags.
• Directory Listings Compilation and cleaning of directory listings with trading names, addresses, phone numbers, and 2,400+ granular directory-style classifications verified via the UK Contact Centre at least annually.
• KYC (Know Your Customer) Data Granular industry classification dataset for KYC compliance, with up to three industry classifications per record, trading addresses, employee numbers, turnover, and monthly change notifications — designed for banks, insurers, and FCA-regulated businesses.
• Fraud & Risk Data Dataset covering all actively trading UK businesses plus six years of change history (63 million rows), enabling identification of whether businesses are what they claim, business linkages, director connections, and historical changes — for fraud detection and risk analysis.
• Route Planning Data Location-based dataset for planning driver routes using trading addresses, including previous business names and weekly/daily updates, identifying live and trading businesses within specified radius of postcodes.
• Territory & Audience Planning Data Location-based dataset for planning service provision, new premises, competitor analytics, and sales territory planning, covering 4.5 million premises with 2,300+ categories plus square footage, covers, and car park sizes.
• Location Planning Data Dataset for retail, infrastructure, and utility planning enabling customers to understand what businesses exist in an area, including independent shops and SMBs alongside national chains.
• Fastest Growing Businesses Data Data product identifying UK companies that show disproportionate employee and/or turnover growth, for sales targeting and prospecting.
• Brand New Businesses Data Weekly data file of startups and new owners for identifying newly established UK businesses, supporting early-stage prospect targeting.
• Businesses on the Move Data Data file tracking UK companies planning to relocate their operations, enabling timely prospecting and territory reallocation.
• Directory API REST-style API allowing customers to search UK business data by name, industry type, and location, returning the most suitable listings in milliseconds — negating the need to host 1.7 million listings.
• Risk API API enabling KYC and risk-check workflows; searches on any data variable return complete records with registered/trading names and addresses, directors, decision-makers, trading age, employee numbers, turnover, and industry classifications.
• CRM API Consuming API allowing customers to pull complete UK B2B records and insert them into their CRM, marketing platform, or data lake with configurable update frequency.
• Data Cleaning Service Bespoke data cleansing service combining the 70-seat UK Contact Centre with in-house tools to amend formatting, re-align fields, flag duplicates, and enhance data with up to 550 available fields.
• Data Segmentation Service Bespoke segmentation producing datasets filtered by geography, industry (2,400+ classifications, SICs, NAICS), employees, sites, turnover, age, trading style, and other criteria.
• Data Matching Service Proprietary matching service using in-house software interrogating ~90 combinations of company name, contact name, postcode, and telephone to identify matches, build suppression lists, flag duplicates, and create lookalike audiences.
• Data Enhancement Service Enhancement service matching customer data to UK B2B records and appending any of 550 data fields including industry sector, lat/long, local authority districts, business rates, and niche attributes such as kitchen facilities or parking spaces.
• Data Insights Service Data insight services including Data Audit reports (data quality analysis, duplicate identification, TPS/CTPS matching, and segmentation analysis) and Data Penetration Reports with granular breakdowns by geography, organisation size, and location type.
• Aggregated Data Reports Customised aggregated reports analysing patterns and changes across UK businesses by various variables, available quarterly, monthly, or as one-off reports tailored to specific projects such as district council or parliamentary seat analysis.
• Reseller Partner Programme Partner programme for vetted data resellers (with strong compliance focus and integrity reputation) providing access to 118's data products via the Partners team, structured for light-touch or hands-off support.

Quantifiable outcome

• 95% telephone connectivity rate in Contact Centre verification
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ExperiancoreTechnology or Integration118 Group uses Experian as a credit reference agency data source for validating and enhancing business data. Experian data is cited alongside Dun & Bradstreet and Creditsafe as part of the multi-source data validation approach. Also listed as a marketing list provider partner.
• Dun & BradstreetcoreTechnology or IntegrationUsed as a credit reference agency data source within the multi-source validation framework alongside Experian and Creditsafe for business data validation and financial attribute enrichment.
• CreditsafecoreTechnology or IntegrationPart of the credit reference agency ecosystem used for multi-source validation of business data. Contributes to data quality and financial attribute coverage within the 118 database.
• GBG PlccoreTechnology or IntegrationIdentity and Fraud Service Provider. GBG Plc provides identity verification and fraud detection services that 118 Group integrates into its KYC and risk checking workflows for clients in regulated industries.
• PertempsminorOthersEmployment and recruitment agency used by 118 Group for talent acquisition, particularly for Contact Centre agent recruitment and other staffing needs.
• Sky ConnectminorOthersListed as a utility partner within the retail and commerce sector for data sharing or business verification purposes in the utilities category.
• WasteManagedminorOthersListed as a waste management partner within the retail and commerce sector for data sharing or business verification purposes in the waste management category.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• ZoomInfo: Large US-headquartered B2B contact, company, and intent data platform serving sales, marketing, and recruitment teams globally. Comparable in offering B2B marketing data, decision-maker contacts, and CRM enrichment, though focused on US/global rather than UK SMB verification.
• Experian: Global credit bureau and B2B data provider serving UK banks, insurers, and enterprises. Both a data source integrated into 118 Group's dataset and a competitor for the same enterprise KYC and risk-buying customers, making it the closest broad-incumbent comparable.
• Callcredit (now TransUnion UK): UK credit-reference and B2B data bureau within TransUnion, offering consumer and business credit reporting, KYC, and fraud data to UK banks and insurers. Competes with 118 Group for regulated UK enterprise customers and serves as a benchmark for KYC data depth and pricing.
• Dun & Bradstreet: Global provider of business credit, marketing data, and firmographic information with deep UK and international coverage. Listed as a credit-reference data source for 118 Group and a direct competitor in B2B data licensing, KYC, and supplier risk.

Direct peers

• GBG Group: UK-listed identity verification, fraud, and KYC data provider serving regulated financial-services clients. Partner of 118 Group via the Identity & Fraud Service but also a competitor in the same regulated KYC/fraud RFPs with enterprise banks and insurers.
• Creditsafe: UK-headquartered business credit and data provider offering company reports, KYC data, and B2B marketing data. Competes head-to-head with 118 Group for UK SMB lending, KYC, and B2B data customers and is also a partner data source.
• Market Location (118 Group subsidiary): Internal historical peer: 118 Group's Market Location subsidiary is itself a long-running UK list broker and data product business, offering direct comparison points on data licensing pricing, customer mix, and product breadth within the UK B2B data space.
• Yell Data Services: UK directory publisher with associated B2B data services and APIs built on a telephone-verified UK business database. Direct comparable to 118 Group's Directory Listings and POI products serving directory, mapping, and lead-generation customers.

Emerging players

• Lusha: Browser-extension and API-based B2B contact data provider for sales teams, with growing UK coverage. Competes for the same sales-and-marketing customers that use 118 Group for prospect lists, decision-maker emails, and CRM enrichment.
• Apollo.io: Sales intelligence platform combining B2B contact data, firmographics, and engagement tools targeting mid-market sales and marketing teams. Partial overlap with 118 Group's sales-and-marketing customer segment and Bizi self-serve proposition, though with a global rather than UK-only dataset.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/118-group-limited

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries7 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 118 Group Holdings Ltd