WIREDGOV

Director has three separate companies wound-up in less than 12 months

News Release issued by the COI News Distribution Service on 21 October 2009

Advanced Bankruptcy Recovery Limited

OPINW Limited

A Sheffield-based financial advice company which was used to breach a court agreement has been wound up in the High Court following an Insolvency Service investigation. A second linked company was also wound up.

The director of these companies, Nicholas Buchanan, had previously controlled another company called Abacrombie and Co Ltd, which was wound up last year after an earlier investigation by the Service’s Companies Investigation Branch (CIB) found that it had been charging excessive fees, did not have a clear pricing structure, and that there was a lack of commercial benefit to its clients.

While this winding up was pending, Mr Buchanan gave undertakings to the Court not to engage any new clients and to pay any funds received from existing clients into a specified bank account. However, just days after agreeing to these restrictions, he established a new company, Advanced Bankruptcy Recovery Ltd (ABR), to continue the same business.

A further investigation by CIB found that the new company collected £139,000 in fees from new and existing clients and paid them into unrelated bank accounts, including an account held by OPINW Limited, an otherwise dormant company which had previously operated as a property developer.
Both companies failed to produce accounting records to explain expenditure, in particular cash withdrawals of more than £64,000, and various transfers, which were made for the personal benefit of Mr Buchanan.

Chief Executive of the Insolvency Service, Stephen Speed, said:

“The previous company controlled by this director operated with a complete lack of financial transparency, charging up to £44,000 for its financial services and receiving more than £2 million in fees from its 530 clients. Once action was taken to wind up this company, the director ignored his own undertakings to the High Court and continued the same business under another name.

“The Insolvency Service will take firm action against companies when we find that undertakings given to protect the public and the business community have been breached.”

Both ABR and OPINW Limited were wound up in the High Court on the grounds that they operated against the public interest.

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. Advanced Bankruptcy Recovery Limited was incorporated in September 2008. Its registered office is at 26 Psalter Lane, Sheffield S11 8YN. It carried on business at this address and at The Portergate, Ecclesall Road, Sheffield S11 8NX. OPINW Limited was incorporated in October 2006 and its registered office is at 39 East Beach, Lytham, Lancashire FY8 5EX at which it carried on business.

2. The petitions to wind up the companies in the public interest were presented under s124A of the Insolvency Act 1986 on 9 September 2009. The companies were wound up on 14 October 2009.

3. Abacrombie & Co Limited was incorporated in September 2002. Its registered office was at 180 London Road, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S2 4LT. It was wound up on 23 October 2008.

4.The Insolvency Service carries out confidential enquiries on behalf of the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills through Companies Investigation Branch.

5. The Insolvency Service administers the insolvency regime investigating all compulsory liquidations and individual insolvencies (bankruptcies) through the Official Receiver to establish why they became insolvent. The Service also authorises and regulates the insolvency profession; deals with disqualification of directors in corporate failures; assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees; provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds; and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.

6. All public enquiries concerning the affairs of the companies should be made to: The Official Receiver, Public Interest Unit, 2nd Floor, 3 Piccadilly Place, London Road, Manchester, M1 3BN. Tel: 0161 234 8531

Email: piu.north@insolvency.gsi.gov.uk

Further information about the work of The Insolvency Service is available from www.insolvency.gov.uk

7. Media Enquiries should be directed to: Lisa Miller, Press Office Manager, Insolvency Service, 21 Bloomsbury Street, London, WC1B 3QW.

Contacts:

Insolvency Service
nds.insolvencyservice@coi.gsi.gov.uk

Lisa Miller
Phone: 020 7674 6910
lisa.miller@insolvency.gsi.gov.uk