First Wave I Limited
Registered name: FIRST WAVE I LIMITED
Part of Sakura Holdco Limited groupFirst Wave I Limited made £246m revenue and a £4.6m loss in the year to 31 Dec 2024.
First Wave I Limited’s revenue grew 34% to £246m in the year to 31 Dec 2024, with a loss of £4.6m and 3,322 employees. The company is classified under “activities of other holding companies” and is based in Darwen; we hold 3 years of its filed accounts.
- Status
- Active
- Location
- Darwen
- Age
- 6 yrs · since 2020
- Type
- Private Limited Company
Key figures
Financial history
| Year to | 31 Dec 2022 | 31 Dec 2023 | 31 Dec 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Disclosure | Full P&L | Full P&L | Full P&L |
| Profit & loss | |||
| Revenue (turnover) | £132m | £184m | £246m |
| Cost of sales | −£32.6m | −£45.1m | −£57.8m |
| Gross profit | £99.3m | £139m | £188m |
| Operating profit | −£5.3m | £8.2m | £18.8m |
| Profit before tax | −£11.1m | −£1.4m | £7.6m |
| Profit after tax | −£13.8m | −£8.1m | −£4.6m |
| Profit (best available) | −£13.8m | −£8.1m | −£4.6m |
| Employees (average) | 2,324 | 2,542 | 3,322 |
| Ratios | |||
| Profit margin | −10.5% | −4.4% | −1.9% |
| Gross margin | 75.3% | 75.5% | 76.5% |
| Revenue per employee | £56.8k | £72.3k | £74k |
| Profit per employee | −£6k | −£3.2k | −£1.4k |
| Growth (year on year) | |||
| Revenue growth | — | ▲39.4% | ▲33.6% |
| Headcount growth | — | ▲9.4% | ▲30.7% |
| Balance sheet — indirect signals, not revenue | |||
| Net assets | — | — | — |
| Source | Accounts · bulk data Sep 2024 | Accounts · bulk data Sep 2024 | Accounts · bulk data Oct 2025 |
How the business works
- Profit margin
- −1.9%
- Profit ÷ revenue.
- Gross margin
- 76.5%
- Gross profit ÷ revenue. High for software and services.
- Revenue per employee
- £74k
- Revenue ÷ average employees.
- Profit per employee
- −£1.4k
- Profit ÷ average employees.
- Cash conversion
- —
- Cash generated from operations ÷ operating profit. Needs a cash-flow statement.
- Fixed assets ÷ revenue
- —
- Capital intensity. Low = capital-light, cheaper to start.
- Deferred income ÷ revenue
- —
- Customers paying upfront (subscriptions, deposits). Approximate when combined with accruals.
- Debtors ÷ revenue
- —
- Money owed by customers. Low = customers pay quickly.
Balance-sheet signals
Year-on-year changes in filed balance-sheet items. They can hint at momentum (or investment) but are not revenue or profit and must not be read as such.
- Net assets
- —
- Now —
- Cash at bank
- —
- Now —
- Headcount
- ▲31%
- Now 3,322
- Deferred income
- —
- Now —
- Fixed assets
- —
- Now —
Group structure
Ownership chain
- Sakura Holdco Limitedultimate parent75–100%
- Sakura Midco Limited75–100%
- Sakura Bidco Limited75–100%
- First Wave I Limitedthis company
Bands show the share of ownership each company holds in the one below it.
Subsidiaries (1)
- HO2 Investments LimitedFigures not disclosed
From the Persons with Significant Control register (corporate controllers only).
Sources
Latest figures from accounts for the year to 31 Dec 2024 (profit −£4.6m), from the Companies House accounts bulk data published Oct 2025. Spotted an error? Request a correction.
Contains public sector information from Companies House licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data from Companies House, © Crown copyright. View the licence.