Fluid ISA Bond

emz1968

Hi, I posted about Fluid ISA Ltd a while back.  My partner took out a 3 year Fixed Term Fluid ISA Bond with them on 13 November 2018.  My partner has finally got through to them on the phone, only to be told the Bond money cannot be payed back until March! Surely it should be paid back on 13 November 2021? I’ve emailed them for an explanation, but I don’t trust them one bit.  Does anyone have knowledge of Bonds and maturity dates?? 😳

eskbanker

As pointed out in your previous thread on this, the word 'bond' covers a multitude of possibilities - in this case the reference to '3 year fixed term' might suggest a standard cash deposit product but my understanding is that it's actually a riskier investment product, which will be governed by different terms and rules.  I suspect that the best case scenario would be for all the money to be paid out in March, but there are also less palatable possibilities....

Albermarle

Surely it should be paid back on 13 November 2021?

There many bondholders of failed firms/scams who never get paid at all .

The fact they are still communicating with you is a good sign, and as eskbanker says keep your fingers crossed for a March payout .

In the meantime no harm to ask them for an explanation for the proposed late payment.

jimjames

emz1968 said:

Surely it should be paid back on 13 November 2021? I’ve emailed them for an explanation, but I don’t trust them one bit.  Does anyone have knowledge of Bonds and maturity dates?? 😳

What does the paperwork say that they were given when they took out this investment? I suspect it is one where the capital is at risk and the seller can control if/when they redeem.

Is it this one? Not a good sign if so. Hopefully your one is the genuine company.

https://www.fca.org.uk/news/warnings/fluid-isa

Although the real websites shown on FCA warning are both down too
https://www.fluidtrust.com/maintenance-page/#slide

The website is currently down for maintenance.

mikeglyn

Been trying to get hold of Fluid ISA bond but phone rings and then cuts out. My bond matured at end of November and still no money please has anyone had same problem 

jimjames

mikeglyn said:

Been trying to get hold of Fluid ISA bond but phone rings and then cuts out. My bond matured at end of November and still no money please has anyone had same problem 

You might want to follow this thread, you're not the only one asking the same question

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6295122/fluid-isa-bond-1-limited#latest

The Fluid ISA login page is still working, does that show any information?
https://online.fluidisa.com/investments/account/login

That page also has this risk warning: 

Your capital is at risk and interest payments are not guaranteed. Investment via Fluid is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). In the event of default or if Fluid becomes insolvent, you may lose some or all of your investment, including interest payments due.

emz1968

My partner had just been contacted by a company called “C Prompt UK”.  They say Fluid Trust is going into liquidation and that they can get the money back on a ‘no win no fee’ term.  The fee if they win is 5%.  I don’t see why Fluid would give the money back when they’re not covered by the FCA! Anyone heard of this lot?

Alexland

Never heard of them, they may be genuine, but they might just be after more of your money. A general warning on this kind of stuff is at:
https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/a-z-of-fraud/fraud-recovery-fraud

masonic

Sounds extremely dodgy to me. Mention of "no win no fee" suggests they are bringing legal action, but if the company goes into administration they are protected from such claims. The only company of that name registered at Companies House is categorised as providing "Information technology consultancy activities" and seems to be a family business. You could be dealing with someone impersonating this company. If Fluid has become insolvent, the appointed administrators will distribute money recovered from the assets of the business according to insolvency law. Lawyers/solicitors aren't going to be of any use at this stage.

Administrators invariably notify all known investors and creditors if they provide contact details to a third party in order for them to contact you. Most likely the client list has been sold or stolen. It will be valuable to potential scammers. When SVS Securities went bust the administrators had to warn investors of several scammers who were trying to extract money from people.

masonic

Oddly there is still no evidence of an insolvency or liquidation in any of the "Fluid" group of related companies. It's not uncommon for Companies House / Gazette to take 1-2 weeks to publish the notice, but there is no sign of this yet. I'm taking that to be a bad sign for bondholders.

jimjames

Fluid ISA 1 Ltd is fully owned by Fluid ISA PLC. If you look at Companies House then you can see that they include the statement:

The compartmentalised nature of the group means that separate investments into subsidiaries can be ringfenced ... protecting any weaknesses and ensuring rewards are only shared with the relevant investors.

https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/11212930/filing-history

This would suggest that the structure is deliberate to allow the companies to go bust once profits taken and avoid the holding company being impacted

Fluid ISA Bond 1 has shareholder assets of £200k
Fluid ISA Bond 2 has negative shareholder assets of -£40k
Fluid ISA Bond 3 has been dissolved