Commercial finance broker and lender COG Financial Services has added a twist to its relentless takeover program, acquiring a new business and partially divesting it at the same time. On Friday, COG announced the acquisition of salary packaging business Paywise. The A$30 million transaction is through COG’s subsidiary, novated leasing business FleetNetwork.  At the same time, COG is selling an 18 per cent interest in FleetNetwork (including Paywise) to insurer EML Group for $15 million. EML Group is a partnership between Employers Mutual Ltd and ASWIG Management Pty Ltd. It sells workers’ compensation, general insurance and life insurance claims management services. COG chief executive Andrew Bennett said in a statement: “The rationale for the acquisition and partial divestment transaction is to allow COG to expand its novated lease offering to salary packaging while simultaneously partnering with an established organisation that has been engaged for many decades in the provision of services to employers and their staff.” The acquisition and partial divestment will also free up funds for future deals. The company has a $31 million revolving acquisition facility with a major bank. The deal with EML Group means it will only have to draw down $15 million from the facility. COG has completed four acquisitions over the past 12 months. Bennett said the strategy was to leverage the company’s strength in the asset finance broker market (it claims a market-leading 21 per cent share) by expanding into cross-sell opportunities. He said the deal with EML Group would open up new markets for COG, particularly the government sector. COG’s revenue rose 7 per cent to A$164.3 million during the six months to December, compared with the previous corresponding period. Profit was up 4.6 per cent to $12.8 million.