Ann: Half Yearly Report and Accounts, page-110

They processed $6.7 billion which they had to borrow and pay interest on (they have a permanent debt of $2.5 billion). That gave them $509 million revenue. From that bad debts $129.5 mil. Bank fees and data costs $74.9 mil. Salaries and employees $89.6 mil. Marketing $24 mil. IT $27 mil. All of those expenses were significantly higher than for the previous year - ZIPs costs rise every year without fail. And they go on.

Ultimately the company made a net profit of $45 mil for the half year, courtesy of a taxation benefit of $51 mil. Granted, a $134 mil interest cost is not going to be repeated, but a $15 mil foreign exchange benefit may not either. Several years ago ZIP had $1 bil equity in its Balance Sheet. That was burned and 2 years ago it was perilously close to going into negative equity which would have caused ZIPs lenders to withdraw funding. The directors signed the financials with a clause stating that the company's ability to continue trading was questionable. Now the company has $700 mil equity in its Balance Sheet but it is largely goodwill and restricted cash - its loan book and receivables almost match, compromised by the extraordinary amount of customer debt it writes off each year and still manages to stunt its growth by a combination of a lack of capital and desire to keep bad debts down to 20% of its revenue. Far out! And this is good times, before a surefire rise in unemployment and market correction.