A payment company run by a former winner of Birmingham Young Professional of the Year features in a new countdown of the nation's fastest-growing companies.

City centre-based Glide Utilities has made its inaugural appearance in the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 which ranks Britain's private companies with the fastest-growing sales over three years.

Glide, which was was co-founded eight years ago by 2010 BYPY winner James Villarreal, is a utilities payment services provider and has been placed in 95th spot with 47 per cent sales growth.

Also featured is Birmingham-based online gold dealer BullionByPost (63rd, 60 per cent growth) which is run by 2014 West Midlands director of the year Rob Halliday-Stein.

The highest ranked company from the West Midlands is Herefordshire-based Ambrey Risk (eighth, 175 per cent).

The company provides ex-forces personnel to protect ships from modern day pirates in Dubai, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and India and was co-founded by Chris Charnley.

The other five West Midlands companies which feature are: Warwick energy supplier First Utility (55th, 67 per cent); Nuneaton online retailer BathEmpire.com (64th, 59 per cent); Coventry sports nutrition developer Grenade (33rd, 86 per cent); eResponse Recruitment (45th, 72 per cent) and Genuine Gemstone Company (90th, 49 per cent), both based in Redditch.

Chris Li, founder and chief executive of BathEmpire.com, said: "We are delighted to once again be ranked among the fastest growing private companies in Britain.

"To feature for the third year running is a phenomenal result, given that it is notoriously difficult for companies to maintain such high growth levels as they increase in size."

A total of ten companies across the Midlands feature in the 2014 countdown and together they employ more than 1,400 staff and have achieved combined sales of £580 million.

To be considered, companies must be UK registered, independent, unquoted and ultimate holding companies.

The 18th Fast Track 100 league table has been compiled by Fast Track, the Oxford-based research and networking events company.