This blog gives you the latest topical news plus some informal comments on them from ShareSoc’s directors and other contributors. These are the personal comments of the authors and not necessarily the considered views of ShareSoc. The writers may hold shares in the companies mentioned. You can add your own comments on the blog posts, but note that ShareSoc reserves the right to remove or edit comments where they are inappropriate or defamatory.

Wellesley Investors Action Group

By Cliff Weight, Director, ShareSoc

I encourage members to join the Wellesley Investors Action Group. You can do so here https://www.facebook.com/groups/wellesleyp2pcreditorsactiongroup

Neil Taylor has brought this to my attention. ShareSoc is very willing to blog and tweet about this and encourage all those who have lost money in Wellesley to consider joining the Wellesley Investors Action Group. They have 300 members already which is a good start. But there were 11,700 investors affected, so ideally all should join the Action Group. The  336 members have suffered collectively a loss of around £3 million, but, to be able to get the lawyers and litigation funders excited and motivated, a claim of £10 to £20 million is needed, typically.

The Wellesley Investors Action Group state that matters of real concern to them are to be investigated by government agencies.

The scandalous details were written up and exposed in a Daily Mail article last September:

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-8786641/12-000-savers-face-wipeout-Wellesley-Finance-teeters-brink.html

and an earlier article in 2017

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-4769126/Toxic-loans-blight-peer-s-124m-peer-peer-lending-firm.html

Readers may have heard of LCF, which was bigger and more high profile than Wellesley, but covers much the same issues.

On 12 Dec 2020, the FCA confirmed proposals to permanently ban the mass-marketing of speculative illiquid securities – including speculative mini-bonds – to retail investors. A temporary ban was introduced without consultation in January following serious concerns that speculative mini-bonds were being promoted to retail investors who neither understood the risks involved, nor could afford the potential financial losses. The new rules will apply from 1 January 2021 and include a small number of changes to the temporary ban, following a consultation launched in June. See https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/fca-confirms-speculative-mini-bond-mass-marketing-ban

The ban on the mass marketing of illiquid securities comes after a series of scandals involving unregulated bonds, including the collapse of London Capital & Finance (LCF) last year.

Former Court of Appeal judge Elizabeth Gloster, in her report on mini-bonds, blasted FCA foot-dragging and described the regulator’s conduct as ‘unacceptable’.

The FCA appears to have been asleep at the wheel as we noted in the ShareSoc/UKSA joint response to HM Treasury consultation ‘Regulatory Framework for Approval of Financial Promotions’ see https://sharesocstagin.wpenginepowered.com/consultation/sharesocuksa-make-joint-response-to-hm-treasury-consultation-regulatory-framework-for-approval-of-financial-promotions/

Neil Taylor

Neil Taylor has briefed me on Wellesley. Neil is a ShareSoc member, who joined over a year ago – he joined he tells me because “I appreciate the empathy that ShareSoc shown towards Sirius Minerals investors at the time. It was gallant and I shared the same view.”

Neil is also a member of the Leigh Day Claimants Committee which has just been announced and I congratulate him on this very important appointment and I wish him well. Readers will be aware that ShareSoc launched its Woodford campaign in November 2020 and have endorsed the Leigh Day Claim.

 

 

8 Comments
  1. Neil Taylor says:

    if there are any members of ShareSoc who have be caught out by the Wellesley CVA, either mini bond, p2p or property bond holders that are not happy, please join our Wellesley Investors Action Group per Cliff Weight Blog above. We are taking action and have put a strong case forward to the Insolvency Services and FCA who are now to investigate matters.

  2. Robert Buirds says:

    Government agencies seem to employ people who are either incompetent or lazy, making easy money and a comfortable lifestyle. If they failed to do their job then the Government of the day must take the blame and recompense those who are affected by these financial crooks.

  3. Hugh Mcneillie says:

    Hi I was caught out by this Company both P2P and mini bonds I stand to lose 35K and they are still in business ??

    • NEIL TAYLOR says:

      Hugh, Please join WIAG we working on matters behind the scenes. Cliff Weight has posted the link above, we would be happy for you work with us.

  4. John says:

    Lost 15000 to these pirates and now reduced to using food bank which my wife doesn’t I la about as I am to embarrassed to tell her thank you Wellesley for destroying my retirement

  5. Maggie says:

    Please join me to the WIAG and let me know how I can help.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.