Diversifying away from a single income stream - debt purchasing and collection in Australia and New Zealand - and into new territory and consumer lending has proved a successful five-year strategy for Credit Corp Group Limited.The ASX-listed finance company unveiled its results for the 2017/18 fiscal year, which featured net profit after tax that was up by 9.1 million, or 17 per cent over FY 17, to A$64.3 million. This came on the back of a $33 million increase in revenue to $299 million, up 12 per cent.Thomas Beregi, CEO of Credit Corp, presenting the results to shareholders and analysts, said the result reflected the successful diversification of the company over the last five years, with almost 30 per cent of the FY18 earnings derived from the organically developed Australia and New Zealand consumer lending business, along with a US debt buying operation, which reported its first full year profit."Both segments have the potential for substantial growth and the US, in particular, could grow to become as large as the Australian and New Zealand debt buying operation in the medium term," he said."The US is a great debt buying market and we now have a profitable and competitive business with the capacity to grow rapidly," Beregi said, disclosing the US operations achieved an NPAT of "just under A$2 million" in FY18. "We have developed a number of excellent relationships with debt sale partners and will expand our purchasing from these parties."Increased earnings from the US debt buying and the locally based consumer lending businesses are expected to drive solid profit growth in 2019 in the range of four per cent to seven per cent, the company said in an ASX statement.Credit Corp said its consumer lending originations and book growth "accelerated" in the second half of 2018 providing strong momentum into 2019. The increase in demand was partly due to stricter credit criteria being applied by mainstream lenders and a retreat from some forms of lending.The Australian and New Zealand debt buying operation grew profits by six per cent on collections growth of four per cent despite one-third lower purchased debt ledger investment in 2018. During the 2017/18 year, for example, Credit Corp acquired Thorn Group's Cashfirst branded consumer loan book of almost 5,000 current customers and its historical customer database for $13.3 million. The company said in a media statement outlining its profit guidance for the next year that it "retains significant debt headroom and will invest across all three businesses as opportunities arise. At this point the company provides PDL investment guidance in the range of $150 to $170 million."Net profit will increase to the range of $67 million to $69 million, the company predicted.The company seems to have shaken off the effects of a one day trading halt on 22 June in order to respond to allegations made in what Credit Corp said was "an anonymous report". The company was accused by the report's authors of offering "payday loans" through its "Wallet Wizard" business, structured to avoid