UK-listed Charles Taylor says its insurance support services business achieved good revenue growth in the first half, but the division’s profitability dipped slightly due to investment in new initiatives.

Overall the company reported a 7.1% rise in revenue to £74 million ($127 million), while profit before tax grew 1.9% to £5.3 million ($9.1 million).

“Charles Taylor has had a good start to [the year], with all of our businesses performing in line with expectations,” CEO David Marock said.

“We believe the potential for growth in the professional services delivered by the group to global insurance markets is great.”

The company recently purchased CEGA, a provider of travel medical assistance and claims management services, while it has sold non-life insurance businesses in run-off.

“CEGA has long-standing relationships with large, high profile insurers, some of which are new to Charles Taylor, which offers the opportunity to cross-sell the group’s other professional services,” the company said.

Earlier in the year Charles Taylor bought a stake in Fadata, a specialist provider of software to the global insurance industry.

“We are executing our strategy for growth successfully and are building on a significant number of initiatives,” Mr Marock said.

The group’s adjusting services business saw a modest increase in profit from efforts to improve operational efficiency and currency benefits.

“The adjusting market remains challenging, although there are early signs of slightly increased loss activity,” Charles Taylor said.

“We also invested further in the business to strengthen our teams, offices and capabilities.”