FN50 2024 hits record high in funded vehicles, but profits drop

Two years ago, we unveiled the FN50 with just 49 companies in the table as mergers and acquisitions reduced the size of the sector.

We pondered whether this was the start of the much-mooted market contraction with fewer companies providing the funding for the national car, van and truck fleets.

However, a year later, we were back to 50; this year, 53 companies completed the FN50 survey, resulting in three companies now waiting in the wings for next year, growth permitting.

One of the reasons why more leasing companies are pushing for their place in the FN50 is the trend for brokers to start considering own-book funding.

Take the likes of FN50 new entrant Rivervale (No 45). In a recent interview with Fleet News, CEO Vince Pemberton said: “It seemed a natural progression if we were to grow our business.”

It’s not the only one: AMT, ICR Leasing and Multifleet Vehicle Management (formerly RunYourFleet) all have their roots in either the broker or rental sectors. All recognised the opportunities offered by extending their services.

It isn’t a risk-free strategy, however, as a couple of former members of the FN50 have found. Recent residual value volatility, particularly on electric vehicles, have forced them to exit the market, off hire their funded vehicles and focus instead on growing their broker business.

They leave behind an FN50 enjoying a purple patch post Covid. Last year’s record funded fleet size has again been surpassed, with the class of 2024 adding more than 60,000 vehicles to top 1.8 million cars and vans for the first time (1,802,127).

Unlike last year, though, both cars and vans contributed to the increase. Leasing companies arrested the decline in funded vans to register more than 12,000 additional units, taking the fleet size to 467,203.

Meanwhile, cars were up by more than 43,000 to 1,334,924, continuing a trend stretching back to 2020.

The only category registered a year-on-year reversal is trucks, but the reason is largely down to the absence of Prohire which had 1,463 trucks last year. With HGVs accounting for the majority of its funded fleet (last year it had 924 vans and 12 cars), the company declined to participate this year.

Consequently, the number of trucks funded by FN50 companies has dipped from 29,714 to 28,084 with 13 companies providing figures (14 companies in 2023). However, the average per respondent has risen slightly from 2,123 to 2,160, on the back of growth reported by Novuna Vehicle Solutions and Holman.

Zenith remains the largest truck funder in the FN50 on 15,250, despite a small decline on its 2023 figures.

The other noticeable absentee in this year’s listing is Affinity Leasing, which sat in 39th position in 2023 with a fleet of 2,185, mainly cars. It did not reply to the survey this year.

Those absences opened the door to a larger than usual number of new entrants this year, with five companies debuting, two more than 2023. Despite this, much of the listing has an air of familiarity.

The top eight companies are unchanged from 2023; indeed the only change in the top 10 is Leasys, moving up one place to ninth, and salary sacrifice specialist Tusker which enters following a stellar year under its new owners, Lloyds, with an impressive 55% leap in fleet size.

It replaces Arnold Clark Finance in the top 10.

Last year, Tusker funded just under 33,000 vehicles, primarily cars; this year it tops 51,000. For additional context, in 2022, it was funding just over 22,000 vehicles.

Speaking recently to Fleet News, Tusker managing director Kit Wisdom said the growth illustrated the growing popularity of salary sacrifice.

“Our customer base is growing and getting bigger, because the product’s interesting to benefit leads, and payroll and HR teams,” he said.

This view would be supported by another salary sacrifice specialist Octopus Electric Vehicles, had it not declined to provide figures for the FN50.

On its website, the company claims to supply 5,000 employers, while back in February, chief executive Fiona Howarth told the Telegraph that Octopus was funding 14,000 vehicles, up from 6,000 a year earlier, sufficient to put it inside the top 20.

It is now reportedly targeting a fleet size of 30,000, with a big focus on used electric vehicles, after securing a £500m debt deal. That would comfortably put it inside the top 15.

Just one top 10 leasing company saw a reduction in fleet size, newly rebranded Ayvens which is juggling the challenges of integrating leasing giants ALD and LeasePlan, challenges faced by many major mergers before, notably Lloyds TSB Autolease and Lex Vehicle Leasing.

However, one year on from providing its first set of amalgamated FN50 figures, Ayvens is performing well, with only a moderate 6% dip in fleet size, equating to 18,611 vehicles, of which almost 10,000 were cars. History shows that others have fared rather more poorly in the initial years.

Aside from Tusker, nine companies enjoyed double-digit growth in fleet size. The most dramatic was retail-focused funder BMW Financial Services, with a 163% rise to 2,839, almost all cars.

Among the larger funders, Select Lease by Mobilize and Holman both exceeded 20% increases.

The former, a business partnership between Renault-owned Mobilize Financial Services and independent broker Select Car Leasing, is starting to deliver on the long-term goal of chief executive officer Alice Altemaire with a 20.2% rise to almost 38,500 vehicles.

She told Fleet News in May that “we want to be top five in the UK”, an ambitious target that would require adding more than 100,000 more vehicles based on this year’s FN50.

Meanwhile, American-owned finance lease specialist Holman continues to show there is a market for its distinct offering with a 21.8% increase to almost 14,000 vehicles, lifting the company three places to 16th.

Only Novuna Vehicle Solutions and Ayvens offer more vehicles on finance lease.

Notable year-on-year growth was also achieved by Ford Fleet Management, which is funding almost 1,500 more vehicles for a 38% increase to 5,172. It moves into the top 30 in 29th place, up four.

Alongside Altemaire, just four other leasing companies are led by women, a new high but still far below the level expected across a group of 50 organisations. That modest group also includes one acting managing director, Claire Timms at Total Motion, who has boosted her CV by masterminding a near 17% rise in fleet size year-on-year.

Lakshmi Moorthy is the only one running a leaseco inside the top 10, currently in her fourth year at Arval, while the longest serving by far is Samantha Roff who took the reins at Venson Automotive Solutions 18 years ago. Venson continues to hold its ground at just over 10,000 funded vehicles, prioritising customer service and profits over pure growth.

Patricia Wolfe, in her sixth year heading Athlon, also oversaw an upwardly mobile business, rising by 3.9%.

Despite the record FN50 fleet size, not every leasing company posted an increase in their individual figures.

An unlucky 13 were in the negative, although most were only marginally down on 2023.

Besides Rivervale, two other leasing companies entered the FN50 for the first time in the lower echelons. Fleet4You sneaked in at No50, although its fleet of 509 vehicles is substantially larger than the 144 posted by last year’s occupant, Leasing Plus which has exited the top 50.

Three places higher is Pure Leasing with 778 vehicles.

Entering further up the table is Global, which goes straight in at number 34 with a fleet of 4,078, of which 3,271 are cars.

The highest new entry, in 28th place, is Drivalia Lease UK. Similar to Global, cars dominate its fleet accounting for 5,055 of the 5,550 total.

With its origins in car rental, Drivalia is another of those companies expanding its reach into own-book funding. It has a strong relationship with leasing broker Leasing Options and ambitious plans for further growth.

One other interesting development is worth noting: there has been an unprecedented level of change among the MDs and CEOs in charge of FN50 companies.

Eight of the 45 leasing providers from last year’s FN50 have new people at the helm, which could result in new directions and strategies for some. They include Tim Laver, who replaces the retiring Alfonso Martinez at Ayvens (Laver was previously MD at ALD and then deputy of the merger business under Martinez), Kit Wisdom at Tucker, replacing Paul Gilshan, Phil Wilbraham at Pendragon with Neal Francis leaving, and Chris Nightingale at TCH Leasing, who replacing the long-serving and now retired Mark Hammond.

Fleet News will be assessing their influence, their successes and any misstep over the 12 months to the 2025 FN50.

The achievements of the vehicle leasing industry and the release of this year's FN50 were celebrated by Fleet News at the FN50 Dinner on on Wednesday (November 6).

Leasing award winners were also announced alongside this year's most reliable company car and most reliable company van.