A vehicle secured consumer lender that runs on an auto finance operating system, earns category leading credit performance, and operates an FDIC bank partnership most buyers will undervalue.
01 · Executive summary
On paper it sits in the title lending category, which carries a negative reputation in consumer finance. In practice it is a bank sponsored, vehicle secured lender with the credit performance of a prime auto book and the regulatory reach of a chartered fintech. The gap between these two readings is the opportunity.
The business originates 100% vehicle-title-secured installment loans, entirely online, structured and serviced like auto paper: conservative loan to value, a full repossession and liquidation playbook, and takes only paid off vehicles as collateral. The result is a credit record the owner describes as one of the lowest charge-off rates in the category. In specialty finance, that is not a feature. It is the entire equity story.
It earns roughly $75-80M of revenue at a ~low-30s% net margin, distributing on the order of ~$25M of net income currently, with a forward target of ~$30M, as cash. It is countercyclical: when banks and credit unions tighten and the consumer is stretched, the funnel fills. And it partners with an FDIC bank that preempts state rate caps, live across 30 states today with potential reach toward all 50.
It is run by a credit operator who spent two decades in auto finance and global bank consumer lending before leading it, developing it into today's operating model, deliberately, as an auto finance company that happens to sit in the title regulatory bucket. The operating leader who runs the business day to day has confirmed he stays. A buyer is not acquiring a brand and a book. It is acquiring a running operating system, with the unpriced upside in the bank partnership and in pricing the company has chosen, on principle, not to take.
02 · Business overview
The product is a three-year amortizing installment loan, fully secured by the borrower's paid off vehicle, averaging $4,000 to $5,000 in principal with monthly rate step-downs as the balance amortizes, and an average loan duration of ~14 months. It is originated and serviced entirely online. The walk-in customer is not the customer; the storefront operator on every corner is the competitor base, not the model.
03 · The moat
04 · Financial summary
Figures are management stated and refresh against the data room before any commitment. The headline the owner points to is net income, the cash the business dividends out, not an adjusted operating metric.
| Metric | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ~$75M to $80M | Management stated |
| Net income (dividended) | ~$25M current / ~$30M forward | Cleared and distributed as cash |
| Net margin | ~low-30s% | Derived from stated revenue and net income |
| Charge-off rate | ~10% | Owner's account |
| Standalone cost of funds | ~8-10% | Owner's account; bank scale acquirer funds far lower |
| Average loan size | $4,000 to $5,000 | Average loan duration ~14 months |
This memorandum states the business, not the price. The full valuation, with the three buyer lenses, the comparable set, and the floor to ceiling math, lives in the valuation hub linked at the close of this document.
05 · Growth opportunities
Every one is a lever an acquirer inherits. They are stated as the owner framed them, grounded in what the business already is.
06 · Ownership and transition
The owner spent two decades in the consumer lending divisions of large global banks before being recruited to run this company. He did not stumble into the category. He engineered an auto finance company inside the title regulatory bucket on purpose, importing the operating cadence, the org structure, the scorecards, and the collection discipline of auto finance.
The operating leader who runs the business day to day has confirmed he stays, and would step into owner equivalent ownership of his role. The CFO may stay as well. Buyer continuity is intact.
The process is deliberately off market. This is for a buyer who wants a genuinely strong income producing asset that did not go to auction. There is no hard timeline and no pressure. The intent is a clean transition to an owner who can see the company for what it is, and price the parts the category label hides.
07 · Next steps
This memorandum is the business case. The numbers behind it, and the owner's own words from the management call, are one click away. To engage, or to request the data room, contact Next Chapter Advisory Group.