Credit Corp dropped its FY2026 numbers before the market opened on 4 August 2026. Profit after tax landed at $105.5 million, 12 per cent better than last year. Revenue did $586 million on a 7 per cent lift.
Shareholders get a final dividend of 45.5 cents, paid on 25 September 2026. That takes the year to 77.5 cents and holds the payout ratio at 50 per cent, where Credit Corp has kept it for years. Earnings per share was 155.0 cents.
Six months ago this looked shaky. Credit Corp reported flat first-half profit of $44.1 million on 3 February and the shares fell close to 14 per cent in one session. Management refused to move guidance and told the market the second half would produce about $61 million.
It produced $61.4 million.
Credit Corp net profit after tax by financial year, FY2021 to FY2026. [Source: Credit Corp Group]
The US turnaround carried the Credit Corp FY2026 results
US debt buying profit jumped 57 per cent to $26.2 million. American collections reached US$183 million, a 24 per cent rise.
The number that actually explains it sits deeper in the deck. Collections per hour worked climbed from US$244 to US$334. That is a 37 per cent lift in productivity. Operations headcount in the US moved from 462 to 466.
So the extra collections came from the same rooms of people, not from hiring.
Legal collections had been the sore spot for years. Fourth-quarter legal collections grew 36 per cent on the same quarter a year earlier.
“We have previously been less competitive in legal collections against our major peers, but recent results show that the gap is closing,” said Thomas Beregi, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
Cost to collect in the US fell from 38 per cent to 36 per cent. Asset turnover improved from 0.48 to 0.52, which puts Credit Corp inside the range of its listed American rivals for the first time in a while.
Consumer lending is now the biggest earner in the group
Lending profit rose 3 per cent to $55.9 million. That single segment out-earns US debt buying and Australian debt buying put together.
Lending volume reached a record $424 million, up 15 per cent. New customer volume grew 22 per cent. The closing loan book finished at $510.5 million.
Only 3 per cent profit growth off that base looks thin. Two things ate it. Fast book growth means more upfront loss provisioning. And the profit-and-loss drag from new products jumped from $1 million to $4.5 million.
Strip that drag out and segment growth was 9 per cent.
Wizit, the digital credit card and line-of-credit product, took 17 per cent of all new customers. It still loses money. Credit Corp expects run-rate breakeven during FY2027.
The UK business issued its first loans in early July 2026, days after the balance date. Credit Corp bought a licensed shell to get in the door.
Credit Corp net profit after tax by financial year, FY2021 to FY2026. [Source: Credit Corp Group]
The Australian debt buying arm is shrinking its own payer book
The local arm made $23.4 million, a 5 per cent gain. Getting there cost plenty. Investment ran to $135.7 million, half again as much as the year before.
That jump was one purchase. Credit Corp bought a credit card run-off book in the third quarter. Quarterly collections spiked to $79 million, then dropped back to $59 million in the fourth quarter. A year earlier the fourth quarter brought in $60 million.
Here is the part worth sitting with. The face value of the Australian and New Zealand payment arrangement book fell 8 per cent, from $1,255 million to $1,157 million.
The book that generates future collections got smaller in the year the group set a profit record.
Cost to collect at home sits at 44 per cent. In the US it is 36 per cent. The domestic operation is the older, supposedly better one.
Record profit, negative free cash flow
Net operating free cash flow for FY2026 was negative $8.3 million. In FY2025 it was positive $51.1 million.
Purchased debt ledgers, net lending and capital expenditure soaked up $435.2 million. Net borrowings rose to $414.3 million and gearing lifted from 28.5 per cent to 32 per cent.
For a business that buys income streams, cash going out the door is the job. Still, a record profit year that burns cash is a different animal to a record profit year that throws it off.
Credit Corp also spent much of FY2026 chasing Humm Group. It cut its bid after due diligence and walked away on 22 June 2026. Anyone who read the first half FY2026 result knows how much airtime that deal took.
Where the FY2027 guidance quietly hedges
For FY2027, Credit Corp is guiding to profit between $110 million and $118 million, with earnings per share of 161 to 173 cents. Take the midpoint of either and the growth rate is roughly 8 per cent.
Ledger buying guidance tells another story. Total purchased debt ledger acquisitions of $200 million to $280 million, down 21 per cent at the midpoint against the $302 million spent in FY2026.
The starting pipelines are slim:
- US pipeline of $62 million, against $166 million invested during FY2026
- Australian and New Zealand pipeline of $54 million, against $135.7 million invested
- Gross lending guidance of $445 million to $495 million, up 11 per cent
American charge-off supply is contracting from its peak and prices lifted on some larger re-tenders. Credit Corp says it can top the pipeline up. It has said that before and been right.
First half FY2027 is pencilled in at $45 million to $55 million. The full-year midpoint is $114 million. So the back half is again doing most of the lifting. Exactly the shape that cost shareholders 14 per cent in February.
One more detail from the deck. Credit Corp devoted a slide to artificial intelligence wins in call summarising, dialling and quality review. Total headcount still went from 2,065 to 2,196 across the year. Efficiency is showing up in output per hour, not in fewer staff.
Investors watching the broader consumer credit trade can compare this against Latitude’s FY2025 annual report, where operating momentum has not closed the gap with the share price. The same tension shows up in the majors, from the CBA half-year result to the drivers behind CBA shares in 2026.
Credit Corp is no longer a domestic debt buyer with an American side project. It is a lender with a fast-improving American collection floor and a home debt buying business that is running down its own arrangement book. FY2027 will show whether the US can keep buying enough paper to feed the machine it just fixed.
Credit Corp FY2027 guidance ranges against FY2026 actual results. Source: Credit Corp Group]
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FAQs
Q: What was Credit Corp Group NPAT in FY2026?
A: It came in at $105.5 million, 12 per cent up on FY2025.
Q: What is the FY2026 final dividend?
A: 45.5 cents a share, landing 25 September 2026.
Q: What is Credit Corp’s FY2027 profit guidance?
A: Somewhere between $110 million and $118 million.
Q: Which segment grew fastest?
A: US debt buying, with profit up 57 per cent to $26.2 million.
Q: Did the Humm takeover proceed?
A: No. Credit Corp ended discussions on 22 June 2026.
Q: How big is the consumer loan book?
A: $510.5 million at 30 June 2026, a record.
Disclaimer:
This article is for general information only and does not constitute financial advice. It draws on publicly available ASX announcements and company filings. Share prices and financial data change. Past performance is not a reliable guide to future results. Readers should do their own research and speak with a licensed financial adviser before making investment decisions.
Sources:
Elizabeth Jones is a finance and mining content specialist with over 10 years of experience creating clear, SEO-driven content across fintech, investing, banking, insurance, cryptocurrency, and resource markets. She transforms complex financial data and industry trends into engaging, reader-focused articles that improve understanding and audience engagement.
