Experian 2008 Annual Report Download - page 42

Download and view the complete annual report

Please find page 42 of the 2008 Experian annual report below. You can navigate through the pages in the report by either clicking on the pages listed below, or by using the keyword search tool below to find specific information within the annual report.

Page out of 148

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • 11
  • 12
  • 13
  • 14
  • 15
  • 16
  • 17
  • 18
  • 19
  • 20
  • 21
  • 22
  • 23
  • 24
  • 25
  • 26
  • 27
  • 28
  • 29
  • 30
  • 31
  • 32
  • 33
  • 34
  • 35
  • 36
  • 37
  • 38
  • 39
  • 40
  • 41
  • 42
  • 43
  • 44
  • 45
  • 46
  • 47
  • 48
  • 49
  • 50
  • 51
  • 52
  • 53
  • 54
  • 55
  • 56
  • 57
  • 58
  • 59
  • 60
  • 61
  • 62
  • 63
  • 64
  • 65
  • 66
  • 67
  • 68
  • 69
  • 70
  • 71
  • 72
  • 73
  • 74
  • 75
  • 76
  • 77
  • 78
  • 79
  • 80
  • 81
  • 82
  • 83
  • 84
  • 85
  • 86
  • 87
  • 88
  • 89
  • 90
  • 91
  • 92
  • 93
  • 94
  • 95
  • 96
  • 97
  • 98
  • 99
  • 100
  • 101
  • 102
  • 103
  • 104
  • 105
  • 106
  • 107
  • 108
  • 109
  • 110
  • 111
  • 112
  • 113
  • 114
  • 115
  • 116
  • 117
  • 118
  • 119
  • 120
  • 121
  • 122
  • 123
  • 124
  • 125
  • 126
  • 127
  • 128
  • 129
  • 130
  • 131
  • 132
  • 133
  • 134
  • 135
  • 136
  • 137
  • 138
  • 139
  • 140
  • 141
  • 142
  • 143
  • 144
  • 145
  • 146
  • 147
  • 148

40 Experian Annual Report 2008
Directors’ report
The directors present their report and the audited financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2008.
Principal activities and business review
Experian is a global leader in providing information, analytical and marketing services to organisations and consumers
to help manage the risk and reward of commercial and financial decisions. Combining its unique information tools and
deep understanding of individuals, markets and economies, Experian partners with organisations around the world
to establish and strengthen customer relationships and provide their businesses with competitive advantage. For
consumers, Experian delivers critical information that enables them to make financial and purchasing decisions with
greater control and confidence. A review of the results for the year and an indication of future developments appear
on pages 6 to 37. Research and development investment continues to be a high priority for Experian in driving growth,
particularly in relation to product development. Research expenditure totalled US$6m during the year ended 31 March
2008 and the amount charged to the Group income statement in the year was US$6m (2007: US$5m).
Profit and dividends
The Group income statement on page 66 shows a profit for the financial year ended 31 March 2008 of US$452m. The
directors have announced the payment of a second interim dividend in lieu of a final dividend of 12 US cents per
ordinary share to be paid on 25 July 2008 to shareholders on the register of members on 27 June 2008. An interim
dividend of 6.5 US cents per ordinary share was paid on 1 February 2008 giving a total dividend for the year of 18.5 US
cents per ordinary share.
Directors
The names and biographical details of the directors are shown on pages 38 and 39. Sean FitzPatrick was appointed as
a director of the Company with effect from 1 April 2007. Particulars of directors’ remuneration, service contracts and
their interests in the ordinary shares of the Company are shown in the report on directors’ remuneration on pages
51 to 63. There were no changes in the directors’ interests in the Company’s ordinary shares between the end of the
financial year and 20 May 2008.
In accordance with the Company’s articles of association, each director is required to retire at the annual general
meeting held in the third calendar year following the year in which he or she was elected or last re-elected by the
Company. In order to ensure an orderly re-election process Fabiola Arredondo, Paul Brooks and Roger Davis will
retire at the annual general meeting in July 2008 and, being eligible, will offer themselves for re-election. The board
carried out a formal evaluation of its performance and the performance of its committees and individual directors
during the year ended 31 March 2008 and is satisfied that each of the three directors retiring at the annual general
meeting contributes effectively and demonstrates commitment to the role. Further details regarding the evaluation are
contained in the corporate governance statement on pages 44 to 50.
During the year, the Company maintained liability insurance and third party indemnification provisions for its
directors.
Acquisitions and disposal
The Group made a number of acquisitions in the year under review, details of which are included in note 34 to the
financial statements on page 120.
On 28 June 2007, the Group completed the acquisition of an initial 65% stake in Serasa, the market leading credit bureau
in Brazil and operator of the fourth largest credit bureau in the world for US$1.2 billion. A further 5% of Serasa has been
acquired since the date of the acquisition, taking Experian’s total holding in Serasa to 70%. On 8 June 2007, the Group
acquired the whole of the issued share capital of Hitwise, a leading internet market intelligence company. The Company
announced the acquisitions of The pH Group, the UK market leader in business-to-business marketing analytics, and
N4 Solutions, a UK-based mortgage sector and financial services software provider, on 20 July 2007 and 25 July 2007
respectively. During the year under review, the Company also completed the acquisition of remaining interests in
Footfall companies in Spain and Italy.
The Company announced the sale of Loyalty Solutions, a German provider of back office services to loyalty card
programmes, to easycash, a leading German point-of-sale network provider, on 26 September 2007.