Pyne Gould Corporation, an Investment and Finance Firm, has focused its attention on securing a banking license and looking at acquisition opportunities after achieving a $10.1 million in the half-year.

Outgoing Chairman Sam Maling said the company was on right path since it achieved its predicted profit of $20.9 million for the full year to June 2010.

The profit of $10.1m for the six months to December 31 2009 was 13% ahead of budget and a turnaround from the $17m loss for the previous half- year to December 31 2008.

Maling said PGC had completed its first stage of rebuilding with a $272.5m recapitalization and a board review and was into stage two focused on regaining an "investment grade" credit rating necessary to obtain a banking license for its business Marac Finance.

PGC Chief Investment Officer, Craig Stephen said it was very difficult to secure a rise in a credit rating outside of an annual review.

With regard to the $4.4 million unauthorized loan at Marac, PGC Managing Director Jeff Greenslade said that the company was restrained in what it could say because there were a number of "rights'' to consider in this including their own rights to claim.

Greenslade said that the company had a clear picture of what had happened, how it had happened and what it needed to do. It was a one-off and Marac had proper controls in place.