As part of MUFG Pensions and Market Services, a market-leading provider of scaled, technology-enabled administration solutions with over 6,500 employees, Link Treasury Services assists public sector entities in the UK with the challenges of accounting standard IFRS 16. Their outstanding advisory expertise will now be supported by a leading lease accounting solution from the Norwegian company, House of Control.
From April 1, 2024, Local Authorities in the UK joined the NHS (who adopted on April 1, 2022) in their need to comply with the IFRS 16 standard. This essentially means that the majority of leases must be treated as on balance sheet and will now contribute to capital expenditure/debt.
Link Treasury Services recently signed an agreement with House of Control, which has developed a market-leading digital solution for IFRS 16 compliance and management.
Stephen Burns, Executive Director at Link Treasury Services, says they have high ambitions when it comes to assisting their clients. Therefore, they spent a long time finding a digital solution that works optimally for the Local Authority sector in the UK. The choice of a provider from Scandinavia was no coincidence, he explains:
“Scandinavian finance departments have long been at the forefront digitally. High salaries and challenging access to qualified labour have created a huge demand for smart and efficient solutions. In this market, House of Control has taken a dominant position within lease accounting software, to make the challenging work with the IFRS 16 standard simple, fast, and precise,” says Burns.
Nearly 250 of Scandinavia's leading listed companies and public sector organisations have adopted House of Control's solution for IFRS 16, which has been mandatory for the private sector since 2019. Now that Local Authorities in the UK have access to this solution, they gain a tool that is both technically and functionally mature and tailored for UK Local Authorities IFRS 16 reporting and disclosures in line with the CIPFA Code. In close dialogue with customers, this software for lease accounting has been continuously improved since 2017.
It is far from the first time that House of Control has caught the attention of leading players in the market. In the fall of 2022, Europe's largest provider of business software, Visma, chose to acquire the company. With Visma backing them, it has become easier for customers throughout Europe to use House of Control's smart solutions for IFRS 16 and contract management.
Link Treasury Services will be the first collaborative partner to distribute House of Control's software on their behalf in European markets. CEO Lasse Sten of House of Control says it is an honor to be chosen by Link Treasury Services for their initiative towards the public sector in the UK:
“We know that finance departments in the public sector in the UK face at least as great challenges as private and public enterprises in Norway and the rest of Scandinavia. To ensure they always comply with complicated regulations, Link Treasury Services is the leading advisor that public finance leaders in the UK turn to. Therefore, we are quite proud that Link Treasury Services chose House of Control as the provider of software for IFRS 16, competing against a large number of other European players,” says Sten.
Further information and comments:
- Darrell Slevin, Director - Head of the Asset Finance Advisory team at Link Treasury Services: Email darrell.slevin@linkgroup.co.uk
- Lasse Sten, CEO at House of Control: Email sten@houseofcontrol.no
About Link Treasury Services
Link Treasury Services is a part of MUFG Corporate Markets, a division of MUFG Pension & Market Services. We are a global, digitally enabled business that empowers a brighter future by connecting millions of people with their assets – safely, securely and responsibly.
Through our two market leading businesses MUFG Retirement Solutions and MUFG Corporate Markets, we partner with a diversified portfolio of global clients to provide robust, efficient and scalable services, purpose built solutions and modern technology platforms that deliver world class outcomes and experiences.
A member of MUFG, a global financial group, we help manage regulatory complexity, improve data management and connect people with their assets, through exceptional user experience that leverages the expertise of our people combined with scalable technology, digital connectivity and data insights.
About House of Control
House of Control is a Norwegian tech company that develops software as a service (SaaS) solutions for contract management and IFRS 16 compliance (Lease Accounting). The software are important tools for solving important, time-consuming, and professionally challenging work for the CFO and finance department – helping them improve financial and operational management. Private and public enterprises use the software to manage contracts and assets, communicate with suppliers, and get a faster overview over their business via dashboards. Today, House of Control Group has 1,500 customers, with thousands of users worldwide.
