Bosses of failed Cumbrian investment firm banned
THREE bosses of a Cumbria-based investment company have been banned from holding company directorships for a total of 28 years after making anauthorised payments from their clients’ pension funds and inappropriate investments.
David Frederick Taylor, 69, of Cumbria, 46-year-old Anton David Taylor of London and Simon Mark Silva-Peake (41) of Essex ran Carlisle-based Quintillion Asset Management, which was compulsorily wound up on August 14 with estimated liabilities of £2.48m and assets of £220,767, an estimated deficiency to creditors of £2.26m.
The business which traded from Warwick Mill Business Park, Warwick Bridge, Carlisle went into liquidation in 2012, which sparked an investigation by the Insolvency Service.
All three directors have given undertakings to the Secretary of State for Business which prevent them from becoming directly or indirectly involved in the promotion, formation or management of a limited company for the duration of their bans.
Mr David Frederick Taylor’s disqualification of six years commenced on June 9 and Anton David Taylor and Simon Silva-Peake’s disqualifications of 11 years each start on August 28.
Ken Beasley, of the Insolvency Service’s Public Interest Unit said: “Investors who believed that the company was providing professional investment advice to safeguard their pensions have lost significant sums of money. The company’s actions in making high risk investments against the wishes of clients were unacceptable and the directors bear that responsibility.
“By failing to preserve the company’s accounting records the directors also showed a fundamental disregard for their duties as directors of a limited company. The disqualifications demonstrate that The Insolvency Service will use its enforcement powers to remove irresponsible and culpable directors from operating with the benefit of limited liability in the business environment.”
The Insolvency Service said its investigators found that the disqualified directors were responsible for transferring pension funds of at least £659,270 in breach of agreements with clients. A further £2m was transferred from client funds to investment schemes that were inappropriate to client risk profiles.
The directors’ failure to deliver up the company’s accounting records meant that investigators were unable to account for unauthorised transfers of client’ funds or establish who within the company was responsible for, or had knowledge of, transfers of client monies.
