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London Capital and Finance
Comments
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Bailin- my goodness, will this stuff never end! I see it is not marketed by rpdigital but it certainly has the same look and feel.0
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So politicians are coming out of the woodwork, asking the FCA how did the London Capital and Finance debacle happen, when there is no open window to fly out of!
So how did this whole LCF debacle come about, even though FCA authorised LCF and HMRC granted IFISA manager status?
A reason why FCA and HMRC decisions can lead or contribute to LCF and similar investment business ilk success is their linked system of decision making re authorisation.
As others here did, having frequently emailed and spoken to both these interdependent bodies on this, especially the FCA, my conclusion was that the primary aim of both these government financial bodies is to encourage business growth nationally. Financial growth through business development is the priority. Not the quality, integrity or genuiness of the businesses. The six million outstanding cases of fraud logged in the UK by the police is evidence of this.
This productivity and financial growth motivation has led to a disinterest in investigating the major factors which can lead to failure: including the unworkable investment issuer business and the investment product.
Both bodies follow their parliamentary rules, but as the Welsh saying goes: it is too late to lift your petticoat once you have piddled. It is better to avert the danger that has not yet come.
As with all FCA authorisations, in the decision making process of the FCA to authorise LCF, it did not investigate or approve the business or product, nor did the HMRC re the granting of ISA manager status to LCF. For sure the FCA and HMRC carried out due diligence re their selection procedures in their relationship with LCF, but not into the LCF business and product. It is not their remit to do so.
As others here may have done I repeatedly asked of the FCA, among other things, since the launch of the mini-bond to verify the LCF business model re commercial due diligence as investors were unable to do so. The officers of LCF were refusing to satifisfy commercial due diligence investor efforts. The legally unenforceable FCA Handbook Principles did not allow such behavior, although the rule of law of the land allowed LCF to carry out such behaviour and do what it did.
Even in the granting of authorisation such due diligence was not carried out by the FCA, because the policy is not to approve the business or product. Even though they were repeatedly told what was going to happen and why, including the fact investors were unable to verify the business through commercial due diligence, the answer was their hands were tied, until they eventually untied them when it was too late. That piddled thingy!
Of course investors are looking who to blame, but they themselves are also complicit by jumping for the carrot on the end of the stick! Evaluating risk is a tricky tightrope to walk, especially for the unwary, the inexperienced and for those with little money to risk and little experience of risk. In tandem with the carrot there is insufficient due diligence. Due diligence does take our time, knowlege and requires information we often cannot get access to. Either because it is unavailable to us legally or otherwise, or simply we are refused access. If you cannot satisfy commercial, legal and financial due diligence those who are inexperienced in financial risk are best walking away.
The LCF debacle, a tiny drop in a big financial pond, has happened before and it will happen again, perhaps with some new financial product, and again there will be winners and losers. However, we have enough investment products already invested in worldwide to bring down the financial world. Even one, according to Warren Buffet and other investment experts, namely the current £trillions derivatives (this way or that way aka gambling) bubble alone could play a major contributory role in bringing down the financial world through destroying flat currencies worldwide.0 -
The FCA did not come out of today's Moneybox Live report very well at all, when it was once again pointed out that they were warned in a letter from an IFA in 2015 about LCF's marketing and lending practices but only acted in the public interest more recently. Just sticking to their line of "We will be looking into this mattter carefully and will consider what lessons can be learned" simply isn't good enough.
Surely the public should expect better than this, given that a big part of the FCA's job is to protect consumers. "Learning lessons" is a real cop out. If it felt that immediate action was necessary to protect the public a few months ago, there are valid reasons for thinking that action should have been taken a lot earlier given that issues were brought to their attention.0 -
I suppose the question is how many warning letters the FCA has received every week? They may get tons of these letters, and most of them may turn out to be pure hokum. Then, years later, an IFA points to his particular letter and says "told you".No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?0
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Here's where they can start:The FCA ... "We will be looking into this mattter carefully and will consider what lessons can be learned"
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5954137/please-can-we-invite-an-fca-representative-for-q-a0 -
A number of us have complained to the FCA about various dubious investments, including this one, and it wouldn't be surprising if our efforts were in vain. However, when a regulated financial adviser complains to the FCA about a regulatory breach, then that ought to carry more weight. Enough to at least spend 5 or 10 minutes having a cursory look into the sales practices of the firm in question. That's all it would have taken to confirm further action was warranted.I suppose the question is how many warning letters the FCA has received every week? They may get tons of these letters, and most of them may turn out to be pure hokum. Then, years later, an IFA points to his particular letter and says "told you".0 -
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Just sticking to their line of "We will be looking into this mattter carefully and will consider what lessons can be learned" simply isn't good enough.
It may not be good enough but it's been good enough for the FCA for almost twenty years. They deploy this response every single time they f--- up and it's never failed them yet.Supercalafragalistic wrote: »
Non-executive director resigns six months ago after pleading guilty to harrassing his ex.
Not nice but it literally can't get any more tangential. As a non-executive director he had absolutely nothing to do with the day-to-day running of the firm.0 -
Has this been posted here before. It was posted on one of the facebook pages and concerns Smith and Williamson https://www.ft.com/content/9d2f637c-01c2-11e8-9650-9c0ad2d7c5b5
https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcontent%2F9d2f637c-01c2-11e8-9650-9c0ad2d7c5b5%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR39SNGrEZOWCZeprr_mJj7QI2KUWFMDIgq5HXxCIs1J0hI76k-bn0uEJzw&h=AT0tA95Ey3EBhbpBVeeJokNLiAkhZ1T5c28aryrzRGJdKRAxcEC30IMvJ0jlwaK9TILEXg9iTxx_XjztvrcNyV3K6j3qA_CsHwEnAeH8E8ItP5hMOY6ZE6UrMcImQmXO5aaW0 -
Has this been posted here before. It was posted on one of the facebook pages and concerns Smith and Williamson https://www.ft.com/content/9d2f637c-01c2-11e8-9650-9c0ad2d7c5b5
https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcontent%2F9d2f637c-01c2-11e8-9650-9c0ad2d7c5b5%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR39SNGrEZOWCZeprr_mJj7QI2KUWFMDIgq5HXxCIs1J0hI76k-bn0uEJzw&h=AT0tA95Ey3EBhbpBVeeJokNLiAkhZ1T5c28aryrzRGJdKRAxcEC30IMvJ0jlwaK9TILEXg9iTxx_XjztvrcNyV3K6j3qA_CsHwEnAeH8E8ItP5hMOY6ZE6UrMcImQmXO5aaW
Link a bit broken0
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