Admission to AIM

Begbies Traynor Group PLC
1 October 2004


RNS Release

1 October 2004

                  Begbies Traynor Group plc - Admission to AIM

                           Begbies Traynor Group plc
            Raises £5.38 million to fund accelerated growth strategy


Begbies Traynor Group plc ('Begbies Traynor' or 'the Group'), the UK's leading
independent insolvency, corporate rescue and recovery specialist, announces
today the dealings in its ordinary shares on the Alternative Investment Market
('AIM') of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BEG.

The Group has raised £5,383,000 (before expenses) through the placing by Teather
& Greenwood Limited, the Group's Nominated Adviser and Broker, of 13,457,500 New
Ordinary Shares (of 5 pence) at 40 pence per share to institutions and partners 
in the firm. The issued share capital on Admission is 65,124,580 Ordinary Shares
capitalising the Group at £26 million.

The placing has raised approximately £4.9 million net of expenses. The proceeds
of the Placing will be used for working capital purposes, investment in people
(the recruitment of experienced practitioners), office openings and 
acquisitions.

Ric Traynor, Executive Chairman of Begbies Traynor, said:

'We are delighted with the support we have received from both a group of leading
UK institutional investors and from many of our partners and colleagues.

'Begbies Traynor has grown substantially over the last few years and the
successful fundraising and admission to AIM marks the latest stage in our
development. We believe that our new status as the only publicly quoted
insolvency and corporate rescue specialist will enhance our profile and help
open the door to higher-value assignments. This, together with our strategy of
expansion by organic development as well as acquisition, should enable us to
accelerate our strong growth prospects in the years ahead.'


Placing statistics

Placing price per Ordinary Share                                        40 pence

Number of New Ordinary Shares being issued pursuant to the Placing    13,457,500

Number of Ordinary Shares in issue immediately following the Placing  65,124,580

Market Capitalisation following the Placing at the Placing Price     £26,049,832

Percentage of enlarged issued Ordinary Share capital being placed          20.7%

Estimated net proceeds of the Placing receivable by the Company       £4,883,000



Enquiries:

Begbies Traynor                             0161 839 0900
Ric Traynor, Executive Chairman
Andrew Dick, Chief Operating Officer
Graham McInnes, Chief Financial Officer

Teather & Greenwood                         0151 242 0610
Mike Sawbridge

Gresham PR Ltd.                             020 7404 9000
Neil Boom/Jenny Leahy


Information on Begbies Traynor can be accessed via the Group's website:
www.begbies-traynor.com


Background information

About Begbies Traynor Group plc

Introduction

The Group specialises in corporate insolvency management, offering expertise in
administrative, receivership and liquidation services as well as personal
insolvency management including individual voluntary arrangements. It also
offers services in the fields of corporate rescue and forensic investigation and
is seeking to enter the field of corporate finance by acquisition. The Group has
grown to its current network of 23 nationwide offices ranging from Scotland to
the South West of England, with over 240 operatives. The Company intends to
pursue a strategy of organic development, coupled with the acquisition of
specialist knowledge of both individuals and firms, to further increase its
scope and range of services.

History

The business of the Group was originally formed in 1989 by Ric Traynor and three
employees, who all remain with the group in senior roles. BTL has subsequently
expanded by a mixture of organic development, involving the opening of new
offices and the recruitment of individuals or teams and by acquisition. Between
1993 and 2004, the Group opened six offices in Preston, Sheffield, Leeds,
Bristol, Birmingham and Watford. In addition a number of satellite offices were
opened.

In 1997 BTL acquired a controlling interest in a London based insolvency
practitioner named Begbies. At this time the Group also developed an association
with a liquidations practice in Southend. The Southend practice operates as a
franchise, giving it access to the Begbies Traynor name and network.

Between 1997 and 2003 the Group also grew by acquiring a number of practices in
Brighton (50 per cent.), Exeter (75 per cent.), Liverpool, Nottingham (33 per
cent.) Glasgow, Edinburgh and Cardiff. In addition in 2002, the Group acquired a
local business, which was incorporated into the Manchester office. The Group's
strategy has been, where possible, to retain the local practitioner's knowledge
to assist in the development of the branch or region.

In 2004 Begbies acquired the interests which it did not already own in its
practices based in Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Birmingham, which were
previously owned by Ric Traynor and Andrew Dick.

Also in 2004, Begbies agreed to acquire, conditional on Admission, the remaining
interests in its practices that are presently owned by Ric Traynor and Andrew
Dick and the entire issued share capital of BTL.

The third party interests in London and Nottingham have been bought since 30
April 2004 and the minority interests in Brighton and Exeter will be bought in
due course.

Following Admission, the Group will be structured with Begbies as the ultimate
holding company which, together with BTL and its subsidiaries will own the
Limited Liability Partnerships through which the business activities are
conducted.

Business and Office Network

Business

The Directors believe that the Group is the UK's largest independent insolvency,
corporate rescue and recovery specialist with clients ranging from major
institutions to individuals with business difficulties.

The Group operates mostly in mainland Britain, where it competes with the
insolvency practices of major professional firms and local specialists. The
Directors believe that its strength in winning business referrals from a wide
range of sources lies in its national coverage, independence and specialisation
in insolvency, corporate recovery and turnaround.

The Office Network

The Group operates with 45 licensed insolvency appointment takers, some 140 fee
earning staff and 55 in support and administration. In total the Group operates
from some 23 locations of which five are regional offices, a further eight are
full offices and ten are satellites.

Business Activities

The core business of the Group is the formal administration of insolvencies
including receiverships, liquidations, administrations, company voluntary
arrangements and personal insolvencies. The Group has recently extended its
activities into a range of consultancy services including corporate rescue,
credit management and forensic and investigation services. The Company is also
planning to expand in the areas of corporate finance and volume debt recovery.

The Market

Market

Annual revenues in the UK insolvency market are informally estimated to be £650
million, with about £200 million of this relating to major national and
international insolvencies available only to the ''Big Four'', the balance of
£450 million is open to practitioners across the industry. Although insolvency
activity, as measured by numbers of appointments is counter-cyclical to the
general economy, the value of activity is less volatile for two reasons. First,
in times of economic stability or growth, the value of cases rises, with higher
realisation of business assets; secondly, the forward workload of cases (which
last typically for three years) allows activity patterns to be managed between
time sensitive and other work.

Development Strategy

The Directors intend to continue their policy of expansion both organically and
by acquisition and have set a target of doubling the Group's insolvency activity
over three years. They also plan to continue to develop a Group structure
operating out of five regional centres controlling smaller service and satellite
sales offices. The Directors anticipate that this will improve efficiency as
well as strengthening national coverage whilst providing more points of local
contact.

The Directors plan to continue to attract individuals and to acquire small
practices to drive growth in the core business, whilst continuing to develop
compatible service offerings. Non-insolvency services are not, however, expected
to exceed 20 per cent. of total revenues.

Current Trading and Prospects

Key performance measurements since April 2004 indicate that trading in the early
part of the current financial year remains satisfactory. The Directors continue
to review opportunities for growth both organic, through the addition of new
services and the cross fertilisation of existing services across the Group, and
through acquisition of both individuals and firms. The Directors remain positive
about prospects for the remainder of the current financial year.

Financial Information

For the year ended 30 April 2004, the Group reported turnover of just under £22
million and pre- tax profit of just over £4.0 million.

Reasons for the Placing

The net proceeds of the Placing will initially be used for working capital,
investment in people, office openings and acquisitions. They will be also be
used to repay shareholders' loans.

The Directors believe that the profile of the Group will be significantly
enhanced by its position as a company whose shares are traded on AIM. It will
also act as a further incentive to management and employees through the
increased shareholding opportunity and the provision of a market for their
shares.

Directors, Senior Management and Staff

Directors
Ric Traynor (age 44) Executive Chairman

After qualifying with Andersens, Ric specialised in insolvency. He later moved
to Latham Crossley and Davis as a practitioner in the field, before leaving to
set up the original Manchester office of BTL's business in 1989. He has 20
years' experience as an insolvency practitioner.

Andrew Dick (age 39) Chief Operating Officer

Andrew started his career in the insolvency sector in 1982 with a Midlands
practice, before also moving to Latham Crossley and Davis. He, too, left in 1989
to form the original office of BTL's business. He has been an insolvency
practitioner for 10 years, and opened the Preston office in 1993.

Graham McInnes (age 52) Chief Financial Officer

Graham McInnes qualified with Spicer & Pegler in 1976. After a period as
insolvency and corporate finance partner, he left in 1990, to establish his own
corporate finance boutique. From 2000 to April 2003, he was finance director of
AIM-quoted Enterprise plc. Between April and November 2003, he was corporate
development director at Enterprise plc.

Philip Holden (age 38) Non-Executive Director

Philip is a solicitor and a licensed insolvency practitioner and a former equity
partner at DLA where he qualified in 1990. He was formerly Head of Financial
Recovery at Lloyd's of London and a member of the executive team responsible for
the implementation of the Reconstruction and Renewal plan for the Lloyd's
insurance market. He is a director of LCL Group Limited which specialises in the
acquisition and management of insurance companies in run off. He is also a
director of a number of manufacturing companies which are the subject of
corporate restructuring and turnaround where he is acting as principal as well
as adviser.

Senior Management and Staff

Other than the Directors, the senior staff of the Group are, in order of
seniority, classified as partners, directors, senior managers and managers.
There are 37 partners and six directors, of which five are involved in forensics
and recovery services; the remainder work in core insolvency. 11 partners have
additional responsibilities in office or regional management, professional
standards and national marketing.






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