De La Rue is affected by the interruption of deliveries in its foreign exchange business

Banknote printer De La Rue reported lower sales in the first half after its foreign exchange business was hit by the delivery schedule.

The Hampshire-based group, whose clients include the Bank of England, said its turnover fell 10.2 per cent to £145.1 million in the six months ending September 28.

Revenue rose 4.4 per cent to £50.2 million at its authentication division, which De La Rue agreed to sell to industrial technology company Crane NXT for £300 million.

However, its foreign exchange division saw sales fall by 16.3 per cent to £194.9 million as some deliveries were moved to the second half of the financial year.

However, adjusted operating profits beat expectations, declining 7.6 per cent to £7.3 million, while lower exceptional charges helped its pre-tax losses more than halve to £6.5 million pounds.

De La Rue’s foreign exchange business has since expanded its order book to a five-year high of £338m thanks to multiple contract wins, including some polymer-based banknote deals.

As a result, the company has reiterated its guidance for adjusted operating profits to reach “mid-to-high £20m” this financial year.

Clive Vacher, chief executive of De La Rue, said: ‘The significant new orders we have secured in recent months will begin to convert into increased revenue as we move into the next financial year and will strongly support our growth expectations.

“With these firm foundations, our existing foreign exchange business is now well positioned to take full advantage of an improving market, with a substantial upward shift in activity in 2025 and beyond.”

De Le Rue intends to become solely a banknote design and printing operation once it formalizes the sale of its authentication business, which it expects to occur during the first half of 2025.

The group intends to use the money from the sale to repay a large loan and reduce its pension plan obligations.

Last year, De La Rue was allowed to defer payment of around £20 million in contributions towards the pension deficit after warning that lower global demand for banknotes was causing great uncertainty.

Founded just over 200 years ago, the company prints banknotes for more than half of the world’s central banks, including the Bank of England.

Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell, said: ‘There is significant pressure on the current management team to demonstrate that the business still has life despite the structural headwinds it faces.

“The authentication sale will at least provide the company with a useful cash injection and give it some breathing room.”

La Rue Actions They fell 5 per cent to 104 pence on Thursday morning, although they are still up around 42 per cent over the past year.